What’s new to listen to
Ximena Smith rounds up the best of recent podcasts.
The Evaporated: Gone with the Gods
This new series from Campside Media and Sony Music Entertainment examines the Japanese phenomenon of johatsu. The phrase literally translates to ‘‘evaporated people’’ and thousands choose to disappear without a trace in Japan each year. Hosted by the Japan-based investigative reporter Jake Adelstein and the JapaneseAmerican journalist Shoko Plambeck, the show is really two parallel stories – the first is a personal one for Adelstein, and it involves trying to track down his missing accountant who vanished a week before tax day in 2018, while the second story takes a broader look at the issue of johatsu. At points, I felt the show could have done with a bit more signposting – there were a few occasions throughout the nine episodes where I felt a bit lost and found myself wondering whether the narrative would ever get back to the story about the missing accountant. Overall though, it’s a fascinating and original true-crime series that’s worth a listen during a long, lazy day at the beach. New episodes free on all major podcast services every Monday, or you can listen to the whole series now by subscribing to The Binge on Apple Podcasts.
Where There’s a Will, There’s a Wake
This delightful new black comedy series, hosted by actress Kathy Burke, has a simple premise: If you could plan your perfect death, what would you do? Every episode, Burke sits down with a different British comedian to talk through the logistics of their hypothetical expiry and subsequent funeral, as well as other pertinent details, such as who will meet them at the pearly gates and how they will spend their time in the afterlife. The first episode with Dawn French is utterly charming and uproariously funny. I cackled at French’s description of what should be done to her former lovers upon her departure. Other guests include the likes of James Acaster, Jamali Maddix and Joe Lycett, and bonus episodes feature listeners’ death-andfuneral-related stories. New episodes every Tuesday on all major podcast platforms.
Working It: Four Days’ Work for Five Days’ Pay
This new mini-series from the team behind the Financial Times (FT) podcast Working It looks at the ins and outs of the four-day work week revolution. Over the course of four episodes, host Isabel Berwick speaks to the FT’s Emma Jacobs about four UK businesses that are taking part in the biggest ever trial of the fourday working week, including an asset management firm, a gaming company and a fish and chip shop. Berwick and Jacobs both have the right mixture of scepticism and open-mindedness throughout the series, which results in a frank, honest picture of what a four-day week looks like in practice. After all, there are inevitable consequences to cramming five days of work into four, and Berwick and Jacobs certainly don’t shy away from talking about them. All episodes of Four Days’ Work for Five Days’ Pay are available now in the Working It podcast feed on all major podcast platforms.