Our team's favourite podcasts of 2022 … so far
It's hard to believe we're already halfway through 2022. True to form, our team's done a lot of listening. While we normally wait until December to talk about our faves, this year, we couldn't wait.
From the mysterious story of two boys who emerge from the British Columbian woods, seemingly out of nowhere, to a hilarious behind the scenes look at what it takes to produce a sci-fi series, to a live investigation into the king of all catfishers … we've got some recommendations for bingeable hits you'll want to add to your playlist.
Our whole team recently met on a virtual call with host Leah-Simone Bowen to share our favourite selects. So if you feel spoiled for choice, and don't know where to start when it comes to finding your next audio thrill, we've got you covered.
And let's be real: there are many more worthy gems to come! We'll be back in December with a comprehensive look at the year's contribution to the podcast hall of fame.
Podcasts featured this week:
Host Leah-Simone Bowen's Pick: Sweet Bobby: "I liked everything about it, to be honest. It has all the elements of a great podcast. It takes you on a journey to a place where, I wasn't expecting to go. I don't want to spoil it for the audience or really overhype it too much, but I genuinely think it has one of the most shocking reveals in the catfishing, scammer genre."
Earlier this year Leah spoke with the host of Sweet Bobby, investigative journalist Alexi Mostrous, for the inside-scoop on his experience producing the podcast. You can listen to that episode of Podcast Playlist, here.
Senior Producer Kate Evans's Pick: Ghost Church by Jamie Loftus: Our senior producer is a very big fan of Jamie Loftus' work and she says this latest series digging deep into spiritualism doesn't disappoint.
"In a nutshell, spiritualists believe that it's possible to communicate with the dead. Spiritualism was really popular starting around the 1840s. Honestly, it was quite trendy, but interest in spiritualism declined after the start of the 20th century. What I like about the show is Jamie's genuine curiosity about Spiritualism. It's really interesting to learn more about the small communities, mostly in the US, that still participate in Spiritualist practices today. She comes at it very neutral, very non-judgmental, with an open mind, which I think is really important when you're telling a story like this."
Associate Producer Julian Uzielli's Pick: Let's Make a Sci-Fi: "It is legit my favourite podcast I've heard this year, I've actually listened to the whole thing twice. It's hosted by three comedians, and the premise of this podcast is the three of them get together and they're going to write a sci-fi TV pilot, and you hear the whole process from start to finish. You listen as they develop characters and build the world and think of storylines…and it's really good. I would watch this show without question."
Associate Producer Kelsey Cueva's Pick: Chameleon: The Wild Boys: "The story takes place in Canada. It's 2003, and we're in the small town of Vernon, British Columbia when, out of nowhere two brothers mysteriously emerge from the wilderness. I easily binged this in a couple of days and the first half of the podcast kind of uncovers the who of the story, and the second half uncovers the why. And when you think you know where the story's going to go, it'll take turns in places you couldn't even imagine."
Digital Producer Lauren Donnelly's Pick: The Experiment: "I'm a big fan of The Atlantic's journalism. Their stories are deeply researched and reported and they do a really good job of making intangible policy stories really personal. This podcast does the same thing but in a way that feels even more intimate. This episode is about a man who devoted his life's work as a rehabilitation engineer. So he built all these devices to help people recover from serious brain trauma. Then, his own daughter suffers a brain injury, and he kind of finds himself on the other end of rehab technology and comes to the realization that tech can't fix everything."
What's your favourite thing you've heard this year so far? Email, tweet us @PodcastPlaylist, or find us on Facebook.
For more great podcasts, check out CBC's podcast portal, subscribe in Apple Podcasts.