PODCASTS/AUDIOBOOKS
Dial F for Football Various platforms, review by Yvette Huddleston
This new six-part comedy series stars Lolly Adefope, Fergus Craig, Jessica Fostekew and Helen Cripps and goes behind the scenes at a fictional sports radio station, Totalsport FM. As the series opens, the station’s management has decided to bring in some new talent, namely dynamic young Youtuber Lisa (Adefope) who is paired with station regular Des (Craig). Lisa’s arrival doesn’t go down well with the traditional listener base and she has to dealing with negative, patronising remarks from both callers to show and her in-studio guests in this predominantly male environment. While the emphasis is on laughs, the series also deals with issues of sexism and racism. Smart and funny with great cameos from the likes of Alan Davies, James Acaster, Lou Sanders, Lucy Beaumont and Phil Wang.
Off the Telly BBC Sounds, review by Yvette Huddleston
In this new podcast series, EastEnders actor Natalie Cassidy and Gavin and Stacey star Joanna Page share their thoughts on what they have been watching on television that week. At the beginning of each episode the hosts read out messages from listeners who give their opinions on some of their recent TV recommendations. In one of the latest episodes, they talk about why The Apprentice is no longer a must-see, in their opinion, the emotional rollercoaster that is One Day and how they feel about the much-awaited comeback of a TV classic – Gladiators. Other episodes in the series include a chat about Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway and how it is their perfect comfort viewing and why they love the coming-of-age drama Boarders.
I’ll Be Back: 40 Years of The Terminator BBC Sounds, review by Yvette Huddleston
It is 40 years since James Cameron’s seminal sic-fi movie first appeared, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger as a murderous cyborg who travelled into the past to change the future. The film was set partly in a bleak future where human beings had been hunted almost to extinction by the machines they had created. The year was 2029, which in 1984 seemed a long way off, but is now only five years away – and we are living in an age where AI is viewed by some as an existential threat to humanity. In this fascinating exploration of the movie’s themes, film critics, academics and the film’s original producer Gale Anne Hurd join Prof Beth Singler, an expert in Artificial Intelligence to discuss film’s themes, impact and legacy.
Miss Me? BBC Sounds, review by Yvette Huddleston
In this twice-weekly podcast series, childhood friends singer-songwriter Lily Allen and TV presenter Miquita Oliver share their transatlantic catch-ups and chat candidly about the ups and downs of their personal lives as well as some of the top pop culture moments. Every Monday, the hosts reply to themed questions they have been sent by listeners, and on Thursdays they do a deep dive into the world around them with no-holds-barred conversations about anything and everything in a comfortable style that you would expect from longtime friends. In recent episodes they have talked about their 1990s boy crushes – for Oliver, Jonathan Taylor Thomas from the US comedy series Home Improvement and for Allen, Stephen Gately from Boyzone. It all makes for entertaining, easy listening.