Picks of the week

Go Ask Your MotherWhile theres no shortage of parenting podcasts, theres something instantly likeable about listening to Sindy and Vanel cackling as they talk about their family set-up in this new BBC Sounds series. The first episode is all about dating and how Sindy went from being a single mum to having a family of four via a chance meeting, drunk goggles and Vanel tracking her down months later on Twitter. So far, so fairytale. Then Sindy had to navigate meeting the parents for the first time while pregnant, while Vanel adjusted to being a stepdad, all told with warmth and many a Destinys Child reference. Hannah Verdier

GuruWondery, makers of real-life fright fests Dirty John and Dr Death, are sure to make you even more fearful of human interaction with their latest series, subtitled The Dark Side of Enlightenment. Focusing on the lure of self-proclaimed spiritual guides, we hear from former followers of James Arthur Ray, an Oprah-endorsed self-help impresario who told braying crowds that if youre not growing, youre dying. Naturally, his retreats were not what they seemed to be, proving fatal in some cases. Chilling, occasionally gruesome stuff. Hannah J Davies

Sorry your browser does not support audio - but you can download here and listen https://audio.guim.co.uk/2020/07/13-26903-gnl.im.20200714.ms.episode_four.mp3

In life, there are things we are told we should do like learning how to ride a bike or being kind to those who are grieving. But, as Hima and Bernard reveal to Leah Green in our fourth episode of Innermost from the Guardian, doing the right thing isnt always as straightforward as we like to think.

Chosen by Max Sanderson

As is now commonplace, The British Podcast Awards were live streamed this year, including the door-stepping of winners. It was a good night for The Guardian, with our Today in Focus team bagging a gold (Current Affairs) and two silvers (Best Interview and Best Daily) and our entire suite of podcasts winning a bronze in the Best Network category. But it was also a good night for discovering new podcasts, including, for me, The Rob Auton Daily Podcast.

Its hard to explain exactly what this podcast is, so I urge people to just give it a listen especially those of you who are fans of the likes of illustrator David Shrigley or comedian Joe Wilkinson. As per the show notes, each episode features the eponymous writer and performer reciting some of what he writes whether that be insights into why seagulls arent good at climbing trees, or, my favourite thus far, musings on his own body (the closest thing I own to a solar system is my digestive system).

Juxtaposed with episodes of a more sincere tone his response to George Floyd was short and powerful there are an array of instalments that keeps you guessing and get you excited for what each new day will bring (or did bring; Im still working my way through the 200-strong archive).

The production is simple and pared back, and rightfully so because its the writing and Yorkshire-tinted delivery that youre here for. And for those of you, like me, thinking the last thing I need is yet another podcast to add to my daily listening, fear not as each episode is only a couple of minutes long. A small temporal sacrifice for a sizeable and indefinable reward.

Read more:

The parenting show that rises above the surfeit podcasts of the week - The Guardian