In times of crisis, podcasts can provide us with much needed comfort and company.

As countries around the world ramp up efforts to halt of the spread of the new coronavirus (COVID-19), people who are in a position to do so are practicing social distancing.

You might have spotted people on social media urging friends and followers to stay home, to avoid bars, restaurants, and crowded public places. That's because social distancing is the most effective tool we can use in order to slow the spread of the virus and protect other people (particularly people who are immunocompromised or elderly).

Those of us who are able to practice social distancing will be spending a lot more time at home over the coming weeks. This does represent a big lifestyle change — and it can mean spending a lot more time alone and an increase in feelings of loneliness.

If your home is feeling eerily quiet right now (mine certainly is), then there's one solution that can really help right now: podcasts.

You can play chatty, cheerful podcasts either on a low volume as background noise, or louder if you want to give them your full attention. You don't need to feel like you're living in A Quiet Place, right now. And you don't need to fill that silence with rolling news coverage if it's having an adverse effect on your mental health.

Inject some positive vibes into your home with the following chatty podcasts.

Each episode, singer Jessie Ware and her mum Lennie cook up a storm and host a dinner party with a celebrity, including the likes of Sam Smith, Nigella Lawson, Emilia Clarke, and HAIM. The format makes for absolutely delightful listening. It's basically like being a fly on the wall at an A-list dinner party where the food is absolutely top-notch. If you love food and a good natter, then this is right up your street. My fave episode features Alan Carr chatting about Adele hosting his wedding.

If you're missing your friends right now, then The Receipts Podcast will make you feel like you're sitting with your mates. The Receipts is hosted by three women — Tolani (Tolly) Shoneye, Audrey Indome, and Milena Sanchez — who chat about relationship dilemmas and dramas in a hilarious in a hilarious, unfiltered way. As Indome once put it, the podcast is "an unfiltered girl chat, it’s a WhatsApp group chat come to life."

If you're missing your fix of pop culture conversation, get stuck in to Keep It!. Hosted by Ira Madison III, Louis Virtel, and Aida Osman, this podcast homes in on the intersection of pop culture and entertainment with society. Quick-witted banter and incisive cultural commentary abounds.

RuPaul's Drag Race fans, gather round. Everyone's favourite BFF dynamic duo RuPaul and Michelle Visage sit back and chat pop culture, Drag Race, beauty, and general life advice. If you need a bit of joy and cheering up, then RuPaul's infectious laugh will do the trick.

In need of a good chuckle? Comedians Patrick Monahan, Kath Barbadoro, and Eli Yudin recap the myriad things of the week that have made us collectively say "what a time to be alive." They even recorded an episode while social distancing in their respective apartments. Truly a podcast for our times.

Fancy yourself something of a cricket fan? This podcast will hit the spot. Hosted by beloved Radio 1 presenter Greg James along with international cricketer Jimmy Anderson and Felix White from the indie band The Maccabees, this podcast is a funny, alternative, and animated look at cricket.

Hosted by Christene Barberich, the global editor-in-chief of Refinery29, UnStyled is an interview format podcast that explores life, work, love, and the clothes we wear. My favourite episodes include Jane Fonda talking about Fire Drill Fridays and Jenny Slate on not allowing relationships to define you.

If you're the type of nosy person who loves to eavesdrop on other people's conversations, you'll probably enjoy this. Each episode, Chris Gethard (yes, that guy off Broad City) opens his phone up to an anonymous caller and talks to them about any manner of things: darkest secrets, shocking confessions, as well as lofty debates ab out philosophical matters.

We've a lot of thinking time on our hands right now. This podcast, hosted by journalist and author Elizabeth Day, is a thoughtful, uplifting approach to learning from your past mistakes and failings and turning them into success stories. Each episode, Day interviews a famous person, like Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Andrew Scott, and Samin Nosrat, about their personal and professional failings and how they became the people they are today.

Everyone loves a good fact. The brainy swots behind the BBC show QI have teamed up to make a podcast, delving into the fascinating discoveries they've made that week. Turn your self-isolation into fact collecting. Time well spent!

Happy listening!

Want more podcasts? Try these storytelling podcasts (or these ones), news podcasts, fictional podcasts or comedy podcasts.





Source: Mashable

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