Hello folks, I thought that I would use this weeks bi-weekly review to recommend some podcasts. This site has been having a lot more views ever since the rise of my History podcast on iTunes so I assume that this new traffic is coming from new listeners (Hello to all the new people, I hope you like at least one thing about this site!) I thought that maybe it would be a good chance to share some of my own top podcasts and for once give people some content that they themselves might actually want!

    These are just three of the many podcasts I listen to, there are far more to mention and I will probably do it further down the line, these ones I think though appeal to the broadest audience, so they get to go first! Just a quick summary, these are more recommendations than reviews... how can you criticise... it is all free!

The Classic Tales Podcast (iTunes Link : Website)

    The Classic tales is a long running series in which the host B.J. Harrison recites classic short stories, and some longer ones. A huge amount of effort goes into this podcast and it is released on a weekly basis to further increase the workload! The recordings are excellent quality, easily professional level quality and the host even takes the time to create different voices for the characters.

    At the time of writing this there is one of my beloved Jeeves stories being serialised on the show... what more could be asked for?!

The Moth Podcast (iTunes Link : Website)

    This is not so much a podcast series as the others instead this is a weekly upload of a random story told on stage and without notes at one of The Moth events. Check the website for full details but to sum it up The Moth is a group which organises various events and nights where people with interesting stories can share them on stage. This is a very professionally produced show as a result which is a big plus. The stories normally last between 10-20 minutes and could be based on anything that has happened in all kinds of peoples lives, comedy, tragedy and everything between. They really need to be heard to really understand what I am trying to say, but this is definitely a recommended listen!

Dan Carlin’s Hardcore History (iTunes Link : Website)

    Once again this is a very professionally recorded podcast. Dan Carlin was/is a radio broadcaster so he has experience with audio shows and it seems access to some really good equipment. These shows are very few and far between, but they well worth the wait. Often over an hour long they feature Dan talking about the past in an enthusiastic way, not completely scripted so there are always moments where in the excitement you can tell he has just had an amazing thing occur to him. He claims to be a History Fan rather than a historian, which I have always liked the idea of and as he says this lets him imagine all sorts of different things that a historian couldn’t really theorise over. The show is backed regularly by sounds relating to the topic being covered and they certainly add to the experience. If the episodes could be more frequent then this would be the perfect podcast!

    Well, I don’t know if my reviews are actually helpful but the recommendations definitely remain well worth checking out. They are all definitely in the top end of podcast production and could easily be mistaken for radio shows or audiobooks, the fact that they are all free makes them incredible value for money!

    (The photo above is taken with my new camera... I sold the iPhone and got the cheapest camera with a good zoom that I could... Check back for the sunday blog post with amazing photo’s etc!)

Thanks for reading,

As always,

Look after yourself,

and have fun,

dan