The Five Podcasts That I’m Loving Right Now

…and listen to whilst I dust the flat

I remember about two years ago I exclaimed to Mark how I thought that podcasts were the lamest thing ever. I KNOW. Then, approximately 24 hours later I discovered Serial, wore my headphones 24/7 until I got to the end of the series and found myself up to my eyeballs on Reddit info on Adnan Syed for the next two months. Obsessed doesn’t even begin to cover it. Then came ‘My Dad Wrote a Porno’ my first comedy podcast, ‘The Jess Lively Show’ my first self-help podcast and the first one I was ever interviewed for and of course ‘At Home With’ that Lily and I created (and hope to continue in the future). During election season Mark and I listened to a handful of political ones avidly on long journeys to see his family and they all got my cogs turning and put a fire in my belly. I GET IT. Podcasts aren’t lame. I’m an idiot! They’re bloody brilliant and there literally is something for everyone; from self-care to celeb gossip, it’s all there tucked away in your iTunes.

In recent weeks I’ve found myself listening to a snappy 20 minutes of podcasting each morning, which makes for a nice bit of background noise as a I start my day. I mean that’s the best bit of them. You don’t have to sit and be stuck to a screen, you can be free – cleaning your home, driving, making dinner – it’s a form of entertainment that can be accessed at all times. Heck – listen to them regularly enough and they even automatically download to your phone (something I found helpful and distracting during a recent extremely turbulent flight). Here are the five that are top of my charts right now…

Breaking Beauty Podcast. In my mind, beauty is such a visual thing that a purely audio-based show on beauty sounds completely nuts. But you know what? It works, and that’s down to the hosts Jill and Carlene who do a great job of describing everything that that’s hot, not and that they’ve tried in such great detail that you’re like ‘Ahhhh – yep I totally get it’. I really love listening to their reviews, but their interviews with brand founders and fellow beauty fanatics are also a great listen. The story from the founder of Drunk Elephant is a good one, as well as their in-depth review and Q&A with Emily Weiss from Glossier. I’ve also got to give it props for being such a slick production, thumbs up all round.

The High Low. My new life mission is to meet Dolly and Pandora – the presenters of the show – one day and somehow become their real life BFF’s. The premise here is that they split their time on the podcast talking about a high-brow topic and then something a little more light-hearted. Think a discussion over arranged vs forced marriages and then 10 minutes at the end on whether Blac Chyna will succeed in her task of suing the entire Kardashian clan. It’s a great mix and I always leave feeling inspired to do some of their suggested reading (seriously check out the show notes – they’re vast and awesome). It’s the perfect blend of factual and slightly frivolous – one episode contained a sound bite of Louis Theroux singing along to Baccara’s ‘I Can Boogie’ which was AMAZING – and it makes me want to read more which is always a good thing.

The Glossy Podcast. Whenever I listen to this podcast I feel v.intelligent and v.in the know. It features 30 minute conversations with guests that cover how technology is transforming the landscape of the fashion, luxury and beauty industries. Yep, sounds interesting, right? Well it is and so far I’ve listened to episodes with Rachel Zoe, the co-founder of AYR, Mejuri’s founder and Glossier’s VP of Growth. Although I don’t always find their knowledge directly applicable to my business, it’s interesting getting to know how things work behind the scenes and how companies grow from a simple speck of an idea and are transformed into industry giants. A good one to listen to if you want something that’s a brain tickle, but is still an easy listen.

Happy Mum Happy Baby. I’m throwing this one in here with a hint of caution, because I don’t want anyone to get any ideas and I really hope that my Mother-in-Law isn’t reading this, but being someone who is nearing 30 and hoping to have children over the next couple of years, I’m pretty into researching everything to do with babies. JILL – CALM YOURSELF WOMAN. I’m a Type A Virgo who loves nothing more than organisation and preparedness so of course it makes sense in my brain to research the topic of children extensively before we consider it seriously. I know, I’m sure future me will read this one day and laugh hysterically as a mini-me smears yoghurt down the back of my trousers. As part of my research/weird obsession with babies I’ve been listening to Giovanna’s podcast which is really ruddy good. Not only is Giovanna a lovely lass (Lily and I had her as a guest on our podcast!), she also talks to various celeb mums about their experiences in motherhood so you feel like you’re having a coffee with your two mates who are already Mums as you quiz them on ‘Do your bits ever feel the same again?!‘.

Who? Weekly. I’ll let you into another little secret. I’m a sucker for Z-lister gossip. I used to sneak a look at the showbiz pages in my Dad’s newspaper and being someone who grew up in the MTV reality show golden age, I just will forever have an urge to know what is going on in Lauren Conrad’s life. This podcast satisfies this need by telling me ‘all I need to know, about the celebrities that I don’t’. It’s genius and Mark loves nothing more than rolling his eyes at me as he listens to a podcast about how we should all be recycling more and I chortle away as the hosts Lindsey and Bobby dish out the goss on the latest season of The Batchelor. I’m a terrible person but I love it and I am well and truly a Wholigan thanks to a recommendation from a U.S friend who even knows who Gemma Collins is thanks to the podcast. Yep, they discuss Gemma Collins and they bloody love her. I save up all the episodes and listen to them as I clean on a Saturday. Who’s the lame one now, eh?