Need some good podcasts to listen to on your walk? Here are some recommended podcasts from the Expat Living team to get you moving!
Wind of Change
“Tsundoku” is a Japanese word that refers to the pile of unfinished books you have on your bedside table at home. Not everyone has a tsundoku; but I certainly do!
I’m no better with TV shows. I’ll start a series and be completely enjoying it, only to get distracted by other things. The last Netflix series I actually finished was Making a Murderer. That was in 2016.
A month or so ago, I thought I’d try a podcast – to see if it might have more “stickability” for me. That podcast was Wind of Change. I was sucked in by the show’s awesome premise: could the chartbusting 1980s power ballad “Wind of Change”, by German rock band Scorpions, actually have been written by the CIA as propaganda aimed at destabilising the Soviet Union and bringing down the Iron Curtain?
All the elements were there for me to lap this up: music, history, espionage, pop culture. And, if you have a passing interest in any of those things, I absolutely recommend you give this a go.
Unfortunately, old habits die hard. I’ve had this one paused at the 14th-minute mark of Episode 4 for three weeks. I’m sure I’ll finish it … one day.
– Shamus Sillar
Postcards From Midlife with Trish and Lorraine
Trish Halpin and Lorraine Candy are ex-glossy London magazine editors (InStyle UK and Elle respectively) who are continuing to entertain the masses through their decidedly upbeat, fresh, real and insightful podcast. Between them, they have six children, two dogs, one cat and two husbands, and they’re dealing with all the issues that come with being midlife women. Tune in and listen to them gas about everything from moody teenagers to menopausal hot flushes to the minds of men. Just the tonic we need while we’re missing our girl gangs and a bit of a giggle more than ever.
– Jo Upcraft
Super Soul Sunday
I’m a big fan of Oprah Winfrey and her Super Soul Sunday podcast. These are episodes that nourish the mind, body and spirit while offering insights into living one’s best life. I love how Oprah mixes topics and guests together. One of my fave episodes is the one with Steven Tyler, the lead singer of Aerosmith, where he talks about going full circle with his life. He discusses alcohol and drug abuse, multiple failed marriages, his guilt and relationship with his kids, and about moving back to the town where he grew up and having beautiful grandchildren. Worth downloading and following!
– Susan Knudsen Pickles
Table Manners – Jessy and Lennie Ware
Jessy Ware is an English performing artist with a young family. She and her mum cohost a podcast where they ask a guest around for dinner (now virtual), and they chat about everything from sourdough to sex, their favourite cocktails to their most embarrassing moments. I don’t know half the people they have on the show – mainly British actors, musicians, chefs, activists and relatively unknown people, but most have done interesting things.
Jessy and her mum have a great conversational relationship and are very open about what they enjoy, their families, food they’ve cooked and what they’re missing doing this year. You feel like you’ve been at the table with them after each show. Oh, and you’ll be surprised which guests say they have good table manners – or not!
– Danielle Rossetti
The Shift: On Life after 40 – Sam Baker
The Shift is the brainchild of UK journalist and author Sam Baker (former editor-in-chief of Red magazine). It launched this autumn along with her book of the same name, which is currently being touted as a “menopause memoir”, but in a good way! The podcast is decidedly less biologically based, but it does address a demographic that gets largely ignored: females over 40.
Each week, guests including Marian Keyes, Sara Collins and Jo Whiley join Sam to create a new narrative on subjects such as body confidence, mental health, career reinvention and why they’re not sticking to the stereotypes of women in midlife. Far from offering doom, gloom and daunting stories about what’s ahead, it’s frank, funny, fresh and insightful – and, dare I say it, it makes you feel kind of cool about “growing up”.
– Jo Upcraft
The Michelle Obama Podcast (Spotify)
I love this series of relaxed, intimate interviews Michelle does with husband Barack and her friends and family. She discusses topics around family, community, Black Lives Matter, women’s health, marriage and even menopause! Yes, she wanted to throw Barack out of the window at one stage, and yes, she got irrationally cranky going through menopause, but she is unapologetic about it. Totally honest, thoughtful and funny conversations with a woman you would like to get to know better!
– Danielle Rossetti
Raising Daughters with Tim Jordan, MD
I always try to absorb information on how to be a better parent and how to raise good, levelheaded little individuals . This podcast provides information, awareness, practical tools and inspiration to parents and other adults who work with elementary, middle and high school girls. It’s worth a listen and there are a few gold nuggets to pick up along the way.
– Susan Knudsen-Pickles
The Left Right Game
So, I am a self-confessed audiobook addict. Podcasts normally frustrate me! Recently, a friend told me you could also get stories in the Podcast app. Who would have known? And that’s how I found The Left Right Game. And now I’m addicted and wait with bated breath for Mondays when the next one is released!
The story is told in two different time frames (the past and the present). In the present, we listen to a young man, Tom, who is recovering from a severe accident, but at the same time trying to find an old friend who has apparently disappeared. The past is based on audio diaries that have mysteriously appeared in his inbox of journalist, Alice Sharman, his friend who has vanished. The game that Alice is tracking is possibly paranormal, possibly staged, but possibly horrifyingly real. Cast members include W Earl Brown and Tessa Thompson, and the production (sponsored by Sonos) is as polished as a Hollywood blockbuster. I can’t get enough!
– Kel Flanders
Sidenote
Have you ever wondered about the science behind Tiger King, vaccines, or even which phone to buy? The Sidenote podcast, from the minds behind the ASAPScience YouTube channel, tackles all this and more. Complicated scientific concepts are broken down into digestible studies and anecdotes to keep you engaged the whole time.
– Natasha Lee
Kidnuz
If you want to get your kids interested in news, this is a great resource. The five-minute podcast of daily, age-appropriate news is voiced by an American living right here in Singapore. The podcast covers everything including current events, politics, sports, science, entertainment and more. Their mission is to engage the next generation with news that will inform without fear and educate without opinion. It’s made for an American audience and is popular in US schools. With the time zone difference, we get news that’s a day “old”, but no matter. My kids and I listen to it at breakfast to start the day off right. I think I enjoy it as much as they do! There’s a quiz about the news at the end to make sure the kids pay attention, which my kids actually love.
– Melinda Murphy
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