Pick of the Podcasts: Dead and Gone, The Game Changers, Trust Me I’m a Leader

The true crime podcast market is a saturated one, so it requires something special to stand out from the pack.

Dead And Gone achieves that.

It investigates the group of missing and murdered people from across America who are seemingly linked by just one commonality – their love of The Grateful Dead, the iconic 60s rock band led by Jerry Garcia.

Fans of the band are known as Dead Heads, and several have mysteriously died or gone missing over the past five decades. Presented by Payne Lindsey and Jake Brennan, who respectively present the smash-hit Up And Vanished and Disgraceland true crime podcasts, this series is sure to spark plenty of debate.

Payne and Jake originally set out to investigate the dozens of cases of missing or murdered Grateful Dead fans, but their inquiries took a turn when they received a tip from a fellow Dead Head about one particular case, where it was suggested an innocent man may have been sent to jail for the double murder of two of the band’s fans in Berkeley, California.

In August 1986, the bodies of Mary Regina Gioia, 22, and Gregory Allen Kniffin, 18, were found beaten and with gunshot wounds. Ralph International Thomas, a 31-year-old black man, was arrested and sentenced to the death penalty for the murders. Dead And Gone looks deeper at the lack of evidence surrounding the case, conflicting witness testimonies and potential new suspects to uncover whether Thomas was actually guilty of the crimes.

“I knew we would encounter surprises throughout this investigation because of the strange coincidences, mysterious circumstances and rock and roll at the centre of it, but I never predicted to come across such a tragic case with so many unanswered questions,” said Payne.

Dead and Gone, (Spotify, Apple)

The Game Changers (Spotify, Apple)

Now in its fifth series, this podcast tells the stories of extraordinary women in sport, with the aim of encouraging women of all ages and backgrounds.

Hosted by Sue Anstiss, a founding trustee of the Women’s Sport Trust charity, this series’ line-up of guests includes Sunday Post columnist and tennis coach Judy Murray, Olympic champion Dame Jessica Ennis-Hill and round-the-world sailor Tracy Edwards.

Trust Me, I’m A Leader (The Big Light)

Two leading business specialists, Martin Ewart and Suzanne Lamont, present a new podcast aimed at supporting Scotland’s business community in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Topics up for discussion in the weekly series, which will feature special guests, include supply chain disruptions, worst-case economic scenarios, remote working challenges, mass unemployment and crisis response strategies.