Pick of the Podcasts: Slow Burn, In Good Company, Fall Of Civilisations

Some podcasts transcend their origins as a fancy radio show streaming through on your humble listening device.

True crime podcast Dirty John was made into a hit thriller series and horror non-fiction collection Lore is now an Amazon Prime Video anthology, for instance.

The latest to join those ranks is Slow Burn.

Last week it was announced none other than Oscar-winner Julia Roberts was set to star in a dramatised version of the first series of the hit podcast.

The first, probably the best, series is focused on the Watergate scandal.

In the morning of June 17, 1972, several burglars were arrested in the headquarters of the Democratic Party, located in the Watergate buildings in Washington, D.C.

However the intruders were planting listening devices – a crime which was traced back to the office of the US President Richard Nixon.

It’s common knowledge now Nixon was forced to leave office.

The story of what went on goes deeper than that, of course, and that’s what Slow Burn explores in patient and brilliant detail. You are invited to forget what you know about this scandal, and rediscover what happened in 1972.

You are introduced to characters who “played roles in the story that are larger than history remembers”.

It’s those characters Julia Roberts and Joel Edgerton – he is also involved, both as actor and director – will bring to life on screen.

Slow Burn (Slate)

In Good Company (Spotify)

In Good Company is a podcast for working women, hosted by Otegha Uwagba. Full of practical advice, fresh ideas, and interviews with smart, successful women, this is essential listening for working ladies – whether you’re just starting out, or already have years of experience behind you.

Fall Of Civilisations (Spotify)

A history podcast looking at the collapse of a different civilisation each episode. What did they have in common? Why did they fall? And what did it feel like to watch it happen? Host Paul Cooper has created 10 episodes of this bi-monthly podcast and has looked at the fall of the Aztecs, the Han Dynasty in China and the Greenland Vikings. Episodes range from 60 minutes to four hours. Get comfy!