PODCASTS THE BEST AUDIO SHOWS TO LISTEN TO THIS WEEK

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HOW DID WE GET HERE? A survival guide to lockdown family life

For better or worse, the pandemic has sent many of us back to our family units, and this podcast could be a lifeline to those looking to detoxify dynamics at home. Each week psychologist Tanya Byron meets someone who is struggling with a relationship, including a woman whose husband wants to transition, and a man who feels rejected by his dad. As the conversation unfolds, Byron’s friend Claudia Winkleman (right, with Byron) listens in another room, and they discuss the interview afterwards. The podcast is an uplifting reminder of how much we can learn about ourselves from others.

THE NOW SHOW The gag reel gets a new feel

Controversial view klaxon: I’ve always found Radio 4’s The Now Show pretty grating, largely because of the quantity and volume of audience laughter that erupts at jokes that deserve a titter at best. But now that the programme is being recorded from comedians’ homes, with no pesky audience interaction allowed, it has become more intimate and distinctively podcast-like. The format, however, hasn’t changed and is as perfect as ever, comprising jokes about the news (also known as Covid-19), interspersed with sketches, songs and jolly anecdotes.

THE RACHMAN REVIEW Superlative foreign affairs discussions

This podcast from the FT’s foreign affairs heavyweight, Gideon Rachman, has become one of my weekly must-listens. Each week for about 20 minutes he talks to leading academics and decision-makers about stories that are unfolding abroad. His recent conversation with writer

Anne Applebaum about how Viktor Orban is using coronavirus to clamp down on dissent in Hungary is fascinating.