Tales with an Imagined twist

If you’re dragging yourself through the last few weeks of work, a great way to escape early could be diving head first into someone else’s life via a great pod.

This is the premise of Imagined Life. Each episode explores the life of a well-known person before they became famous.

The twist is that you don’t know who the subject is until the end.

This pod reminds me of a ‘‘Who Am I?’’ quiz, where you get clues to the person’s identity along the way.

If it’s an otherworldly escape you seek, then imagine what it would be like to live on Mars for a year.

The Habitat podcast follows six volunteers picked to live as astronauts for a year as part of a Nasa-funded research programme.

In a plastic dome the size of half a tennis court, everything is set up to simulate a Mars experience, including emails that take 20 minutes to send and dried food stocks that can last a year.

The series explores the personal experiences of the group – how they cope, stories of romance, and stories of blocked toilets.

It’s fascinating, and worthy of a binge.

Closer to home, if it’s comedy escapism you prefer, then look no further than The Agenda by the hilarious people who make up the Alternative Commentary Collective.

It’s sports news combined with innuendo and a healthy dose of laughs.

I have been enjoying tittering along with these guys on my summer morning commute. Well played.