Blogust #19 - Podcast Recommendations 20:28 | 30-08-2026 | Sunday Hello Dear Readers, Today I have decided to make a list of podcast recommendations as a way to catalaogue the variety of podcasts I enjoy listening to. Audio entertainment is a major part of my media consumption and I simply must bring my knowledge to anyone who is curious about getting into it. I will try to give short descriptions of why each one deserves your audience. Audio Drama This is a list of immersive fiction productions. Different from listening to audiobooks because there is a whole cast of voice actors, extensive soundscaping and wonderful soundtracks. I will first be mentioning the ones that have a limited story. Alice Isn't Dead - A woman spots her missing wife, who was presumed dead, in the background of a public news story, and slowly, more and more places. What ensues is a road trip across USA to find her. Surrealist thriller, I love it for the quiet moments of reflection on the nature of loneliness. The Silt Verses - Followers of an ancient, outlawed river god try to revive their faith. I love it because it is only the best piece of writing I have ever witnessed, along with the most hardcore worldbuilding. Folk-fantasy horror, dystopia. I have religious reverance for this (how ironic). Rabbits - An investigative journalist descends into an ARG (alternative reality game) in an effort to find her missing best friend. I love it because of its setting of vintage gaming, early internet and arcade nostalgia. Mystery thriller. The Magnus Archives - Technically, this is a long, monster-of-the-week style show, but the 5 seasons together make up a solid arc and cohesive world. Told as an archival style retelling of written statements, it has top notch writing and voice acting from Jonathan Sims. One of the legendary shows out there. Cosmic horror. Limetown - A research town disappears overnight, leaving behind no traces of the people that lived there or what happened. Investigative thriller, sci-fi. This one isn't that close to my heart, but I thought it was decent entertainment. The Last Movie- By the creators of Rabbits (Minnow Beats Whale), it's like a shorter version of rabbits, but set in the world of 70s indie films in LA, USA. A search for a movie that supposedly doesn't exist and also causes mass violence when it resurfaces every 10 years. Investigative mystery. This one is actually close to my heart despite not being very good. It got me into the world of art house cinema, weird films and cinema history. Special mentions, for shows that I didn't quite finish but I listened to a decent chunk and can endorse the quality. Mabel - Yuri alertttt. Very immersive folk horror fantasy told through old voice mails. Think fucked up fairy tales, like Pan's Labrynth. Tanis - I actually did finish this one, and it is also very close to my heart. I just can't recommend it in good conscience, because it is so confusing and narratively disjointed. This is also by Minnow Beats Whale, and it really highlights its setting in the Pacific North West, USA. I have always been fascinated by this location and the atmosphere of the show is great and very moody. I am even relistening to it right now. I don't know, it's really hard to explain my frustrations with the show :'| ... This is the only person I found that could capture the issues and love-hate relationship many people have with this show. The Black Tapes - also by Minnow Beats Whale, they are so hit and miss; this is another show I did finish but can't recommend ;-;. Even though I don't like paranormal investigation themed stuff (a lot of conspiracy nuts tend to be in this field), this actually started out great. In fact, it continued to be very interesting... right up until the end. One of the worst endings to a show known to podcast-dom. I had heard many tales about this legendary infamous ending, and I was still shocked by how bad it was. Not worth getting invested in, they're gonna leave your ass out to dry :( Homecoming - This one got turned into an Amazon Prime show at some point. A mystery around a covert military operation, told from the point of view of a therapist who is sure that her soldier client has gaps in his memory. Good atmosphere, but I just don't enjoy the military setting that much. Mockery Manor - A cast of characters working in a twisted amusement park, slowly stumbling onto it's dirty secrets. Very british for some reason. Orbiting Human Circus Of The Air- A surrealist fantasy about an audio circus(!!) broadcasting from the top of the Eiffel Tower. Very charming characters, and I loved their little story-telling segments. Long Running Shows (Fiction or Fiction Adjacent) Welcome To Nightvale - Ahh, my favourite, the show that gave us "Wednesday has been cancelled due to a scheduling error". A lovely dystopian comedy radio show from the fictional desert town of Nightvale. While the first 4-5 episodes of the show do feel a bit random and disjoint, it quickly wraps right back around into a very colourful and tight-knit cast of oddball characters, with many tongue-in-cheek parodies of current events. Many queer characters too. WTNV productions also produced Alice Isn't Dead and Orbiting Human Circus. Not Another DND Podcast - An actual play DND podcast, hosted by Emily, Murph, Jake and Caldwell from the original CollegeHumor cast from the 2010s. They have completed 3 major and 5-6 minor campaigns on the show, and are beloved for the absolutely hilarious banter. If you like TTRPGs and want to listen to something lighthearted and funny, you will be addicted to this in no time. They also do DND court, where the public submits their home-game quarrels and the cast makes rulings on who is at fault. These work as standalone episodes, so you can check out just these episodes if you like. 8 Bit Book Club - Hosted by Emily, Murph and Caldwell from the above show, this is an even more nonsensical show where they read books that were written to promote video games. I listen to it because sometimes I am in the mood for banter that means literally nothing in real life and is still funny. I Don't Want To Talk About Fight Club Anymore - Jacob Wysocki (of Dropout cast fame), watches Fight Club over-and-over again for 72 hours straight, for some reason. It had no reason to be actually interesting to listen to, but Jacob's just that entertaining I guess. Non-Fiction Shows Lateral by Tom Scott - yes its the same Tom Scott from youtube. Very interesting format, where guests try to solve lateral thinking puzzles on every ep, and it is really fun to try to solve these alongside them. No Such Thing As A Fish - If you are familiar with the BBC game show QI, this show is hosted by the researchers behind that show. The format is simply that each presenter brings their favourite fact of the week, and all of them add onto these facts with their own knowledge. They're pretty funny, it is nice easy listening. Lore by Aaron Mahke - episodic deep dives into dark historical tales. I liked it, even though I don't listen to it very often. The Empty Bowl - Justin McElroy (of McElroy brothers fame) with Dan Goubert, just chat about cereal brands in the USA. It is designed to be a sleep podcast, so very soothing to listen to, and the sheer insanity of cereal brand capitalism in america really blew me away. However, it did make me hungry while I was trying to fall asleep. The Bald and The Beautiful - our favourite bald biological women, Trixie and Katya, chatting with each other and guests from the drag/fashion world. They are hilarious as usual. Whoo, that was so many, I can't believe I did another longer post. In other news, I started watching Twin Peaks finally. The show has incredible direction and cinematography, and the soundtrack is simple but haunting. I mean every other element of the show (writing, acting, casting) is great too, but the direction and visual work is what really launches the show into greatness. Can't wait to get haunted by Laura Palmer. Toodles! Love, Aeish <3