Category Archives: Current Affairs

Jun 20 2016

The best podcasts for true crime addicts

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Intro

If there’s one thing Katie Price and I have in common (aside from big boobs and an unhealthy obsession with fake tan) it’s true crime. She recently stated on Loose Women that she had a real fascination with serial killers, and had even exchanged private messages with Oscar Pistorius during the Steenkamp trial that destroyed his career.

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Like Katie, I’ll read anything I can get my hands on about serial killers. My bookshelves are literally bulging with the likes of Bugliosi, Masters & Olsen - authors who delve into the psyche of murderers, terrorists and the falsely accused. I’ll even sit beside Craig on the sofa with headphones on, ass-deep in documentaries on my mobile whilst he’s streaming something gun-heavy on Netflix.

Yet this is a burgeoning genre of entertainment. Those who binge-watched Making of a Murderer, are now slowly discovering the likes of The Staircase, The Jinx and Paradise Lost - edge-of-your-seat television with seemingly unimpeded access to the protagonists. And now we see the rise of the podcast; Although an altogether less expensive way for true crime broadcasters to flex their muscles, this is hardly a second-rate medium with top shows boasting millions of downloads a year.

If you’re keen to dip your toes into the true crime podcast world, get ready to get hooked. You’ll find yourself doing the washing up, cooking and even walking the kids to school with headphones on. To help you find the best free content on iTunes, here’s my list of the best podcasts for true crime addicts:

Serial

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The daddy of all true crime podcasts, Serial has to be the ideal starting point for those craving a true crime saga. Whilst series two has strayed away from the popularist angle, series one is a serious binge-listen. Covering the 1999 murder of 18-year-old student Hae Min Lee, the podcast has received world-wide coverage and propelled the protagonists (maybe unwittingly) into the world’s consciousness. Not to give too much away, ex-boyfriend, Adnan Syed was convicted with first degree murder and, despite resolutely pleading his innocence, is currently serving a life sentence. This is the podcast’s starting point, and boy does it stray some distance from here.

Downloaded over 68 million times, Sarah Koenig’s podcast has won awards and was arguably the catalyst for the re-examination of the case that might see a new Trial for Syed. It has everything. A horrific murder, sinister characters, racism, a mistrial, a seemingly innocent man… Download and prepare to be sucked in.

Sword and Scale

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Often regarded as the best podcast for true crime seekers, Sword and Scale is a must-listen. Often using entirely real audio footage, this podcast is a mash-up of 911 calls, court feeds and YouTube content juxtaposed against intentionally monotone and intelligent commentary by host Mike Boudet. The result? The most intense, disturbing and slickest podcast of the bunch.

Tackling high-profile trials, unsolved murders and missing persons cases, Boudet masterfully recreates some truly heinous crimes, from rape to murder to child abuse. In short, this is the ultimate before-bed podcast that will sate the most ardent true crime addict.

Start with: Episode 51 (Brit case), Episode 49, Episode 66 - or any of them - they’re all brilliant

Casefile True Crime

Another must-listen, this Australian podcast series deserves serious praise for being among the most thorough out there. If you’re big into your true crime and want to cut through the waffle, Casefile is the podcast for you. With most (although not all) the cases being Australian, you’ll find a fresh set of really intriguing cases not covered elsewhere. Now 23 episodes in, the host has really got into his stride. The nerves are gone, the scripts are excellent and each case is treated with real respect.

Start with: Snowtown and The Erikkson Twins (Brit case)

True Crime Garage

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Perhaps the most divisive true crime podcast, True Crime Garage has me in stitches every week. It’s not meant to be funny, and is actually a well-researched podcast hosted by friends Nic & ‘The Captain’, but the former’s ‘couldn’t give a shit’ attitude just gets me every time. The format is random - two guys, in a garage, drinking beer and talking true crime. Thing is, Nic is clearly the workhorse and barely has a moment to take a swig, whereas you can reasonably imagine The Captain is half-cut at the end of each episode. His interjections verge on the unintelligible, but he’s endeared himself to long-time listeners and it wouldn’t be the same without him.

Format aside (I recommend forwarding through the first 5 minutes (the beer chat / admin)) I haven’t missed an episode of this podcast and really like it. The variety of cases, level of detail, and the theories provided are spot on. These guys are also bang on social media-wise too (Thanks Captain) - so you can ask the odd question via Twitter if they’ve piqued your interest.

Start with: DEFINITELY Brian Shaffer, or Slender Man

Thinking Sideways

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A refreshing take on the true crime genre, Thinking Sideways is hosted by friends Steve, Devin & Joe. These guys will tackle most things unexplained, with the hosts sharing the caseload fairly evenly between them. It breaks the mould in the sense that they’ll do the odd downed plane, shipwreck or historical mystery too - some of which don’t do it for me, however each are interesting in themselves.

Although I’m usually impressed by the level of research these guys have done, you do get the odd in-joke, insensitive comment or fit of giggles (Devin will sometimes veer off-script and ask questions too) - but this is what makes the format work for me - they haven’t sold out to corporate sponsorship either so they’re doing it for the love of it, and not to make their millions.

Start with: The Disappearance of Andrew Gosden (Brit case) or The Beaumont Children

The Generation Why Podcast

Another weekly longer length show (averaging 1-1.5hrs each), Gen Why is hosted by friends Aaron & Justin, who discuss theories on unsolved murders, controversies and conspiracies. For some reason, this show is oft criticised online as lacking in structure and being irreverent, however I sit firmly on the other side of the fence. It has covered some of the most infamous (en vogue) cases such as Ted Bundy, Aileen Wuornos, The Enfield Poltergeist, JonBenet Ramsey as well as lesser known cases that will have you Google imaging within minutes

Although not known for its level of detail, folks listening whilst commuting or cracking on with the housework will appreciate the conversational tone. It’s almost like having a natter with your mates down the pub, and I appreciate how the hosts don’t take themselves too seriously either (trust me, some of them really do). I also like how these guys will take on virtually any case, regardless of where it is, making it far less US-centric than some of the other big players.

Start with: The Robert Durst Case (116) or Amanda Knox (86)

Breakdown

Breakdown is a weekly podcast series produced by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Series one featured the case of Justin Chapman, now serving life in prison having been found guilty of burning down his rented home and killing his elderly neighbour. Host Bill Rankin is resolute that Chapman is innocent and sets out to prove why in a way that’s unapologetically reminiscent of Serial.

Yet for me series two (Death in Hot Car) is where this podcast really comes into its own. This deals with the death of toddler Cooper Harris who was “mistakenly” left in a baking hot car by his father Justin Ross Harris. Perhaps it’s because I find the case more compelling, or because it is still ongoing, or because Justin Ross Harris is so controversial (a womaniser and serial sexter), but this really hits the mark with me. Now on a break whilst the case is brought to court, it’s an opportunity to join a podcast in the throes of a case that really has divided opinion.

Someone Knows Something

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I was a latecomer to this podcast and therefore binge-listened to catch-up earlier this year. Someone Knows Something was an eleven part venture (now finished) by Canadian award-winning filmmaker and writer David Ridgen, first released in March 2016. With episodes lasting anywhere between 15-40 minutes, David Ridgen does an amazing job of bringing this cold case to life. Focusing on the 1972 disappearance of Adrien McNaughton, a five-year-old boy who vanished during a family fishing trip in Eastern Ontario, Ridgen goes on location to try and solve the mystery; was this a tragic accident or something more sinister?

Without giving anything away, the case is really quite harrowing. Featuring interviews with the McNaughton family, their heartbreak will resonate with any parent, and Ridgen narrates with such compassion, impartiality and genuine enthusiasm, I’m excited for the next case he tackles.

48 Hours

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This CBS newsmagazine podcast is bringing up the rear as us Brits will find it harder to see past the countless ads and hyperbole. The trick is definitely to view this podcast as a tv-show-by-audio. Yet if you can get past the irritating narration from the likes of US crime correspondents Erin Moriarty, Peter Van Sant and Troy Roberts, this show is treasure-trove for true crime addicts. Featuring a new (American) murder every week, you’re entreated to interviews with key people involved in each investigation, and in many cases, actual 911 recordings relating to the event. If you’re busy and just need something light to listen to, this is a ideal choice as it’s less information-heavy.

Start with: The Hannah Graham case (a rare case featuring a British ex-pat murdered in 2014)

There you have it! If you decide to listen to any of my recommendations, do drop by later and let me know what you think. Similarly, if you have any other to add to this list - feel free to comment below or hit me up on Twitter.

Aug 28 2015

Brits Abroad - Fessing up

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We’ve all done it (well most of us anyway) - headed to Magaluf, Ibiza, Kavos, {INSERT DESTINATION HERE} and partied just a little too hard. Give us a little sun and a fishbowl cocktail and all our inhibitions disappear.

Brits abroad have a bad reputation, fact. Not only are we least likely to bother attempting to say please and thank you in a foreign language, we’re also notoriously bad for hitting the sauce and getting into trouble. The ill-feeling has reached such fever pitch that Benidorm is rumoured to be following Ibiza and Magaluf’s lead and deploying Bristish police officers to keep alcohol-fueled holidaymakers out of trouble. Yet having found this infographic by My Voucher Codes, it would seem all the press about our antics in Spanish resorts might not be as clear cut as it seems.

Ill and ill minded - An infographic by the team at Where Brits get into trouble abroad

Yet although this suggests we’re not as bad as the media would have us believe, there’s more to this than simply arrests. Having seen how us Brits behave on various party strips around the world, I’m thinking we’re either too drunk to commit arrestable offences, or else too inebriated to know we’ve been the victim of crime. We might not be pinching wallets, defacing shop fronts or thumping each other, but we are absolutely guilty of crimes against decency.

I’ve seen it all. Lads playing drinking games and downing their own urine, girls flashing anyone and everyone, and public displays of, let’s call it, affection. Young people aged no more than 20 stumbling back to apartments bloodied and disorientated - totally incapable of knowing if they’ve been assaulted or not. It’s scary, messy and appalling in equal measure, and sadly I’ve experienced it myself.

Magaluf

Ten years or so ago, that was me. Heading out on a girls holiday without my parents, mistakenly thinking €400 was enough to feed me for a week and get me obliterated every night. I’d packed little more than bikinis and barely-there dresses and my friends were the same.

Stepping off the plane we headed straight for a bar, dragging our suitcases along beside us (we didn’t even drop them off at our hotel). Excited to be on our own making our own rules we drank steadily for some 5 hours, in the blazing sun with no water to hydrate us. We had met some lads and were flirting outrageously and making fools out of ourselves. It was a case of who could be the most controversial and best flutter their fake eyelashes - that girl would bag the tallest guy with the six pack.

It’s the same theme that has been popularised & normalised by BBC3′s Sun, Sex and Suspicious Parents and The Inbetweeners Movie; the usual immature hedonism that so many of us explain away by dubbing it “a rite of passage”. And that was the moment we had our luggage stolen.

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Reporting this to foreign policemen whilst intoxicated was a necessary but ridiculous endeavour and we we’re not sure to this day if the crime was even properly recorded. Needless to say we all placed shouty calls to our parents and had them send us money to buy clothes and toiletries - the first of many that would put us all back several months in proving how responsible we could be.

Memories of that holiday are hazy. I know we had a sort of scorecard to brag about how many times we’d been sick and how many guys we’d kissed. It was all a bit tacky and we were lucky to leave the island without any serious injuries or worse.

Subsequent holidays saw me get food poisoning on day 1 and spend 3 days on a drip in a dirty hospital, break my nose as a result of falling from a bar stool and witnessing friends go home with boys who looked in need of a wash and some jail time. I’m not proud of any it and can’t say any of it made me stronger, more self-aware or happier. When I think of how we simply threw polystyrene chip packets on the street, relieved ourselves behind bushes and went out cashless yet still got stand-up drunk - I feel completely ashamed. I know my own children won’t be let out of the country in a group until they’re emotionally ready to cope with the temptation to do the same.

I just think we all need to look at the way we act when holidaying. Arrests or no arrests, many of us are still letting ourselves down.

Jan 16 2014

Why I’m Furious with Celebrity Big Brother

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We’ve all done things we’re ashamed of under the influence of alcohol. But how many of us can say we’ve been unfortunate enough to have our antics splashed across the tabloids and broadcast on live television? What’s more, who can honestly say they’ve had their reputations destroyed due to a momentary leave of their senses?

Unfortunately, Luisa Zissmann can now take her seat among those unfortunate few.

You see, I was unfortunate enough to catch a brief glimpse of Celebrity Big Brother a few nights ago, and have been watching with horror ever since. I’m not watching because I find it exciting, I’m watching because I’m witnessing something so psychologically damaging it’s difficult to switch off. It’s the same morbid curiosity that was so famously played out within the film Crash (2004).

If you’re mature enough to have avoided this horror-show so far, you’ll have hopefully missed seeing the latest casualty of rating-grabbing and morally bankrupt reality television. Yep you’ll have missed Luisa Zissmann forget where and who she was during an alcohol-fueled truth or dare game. You see, last night she bowed under the pressure of her new housemates (just 12 days in) and allowed herself to be publicly degraded by the simple-minded (and too eager to join in) Dappy. He was instructed to lick her somewhere inappropriate, and she showed herself to be an expert mannikin.

CBB Luisa Zissmann

Quite frankly you can pick your source… The Mirror, Heatworld, The Sun…

I suspect we’ll she a very contrite and regretful Luisa leave the Big Brother house in a few weeks time. On BBC’s Apprentice she showed herself to be a strong, articulate and confident young woman - primed to really make something out of herself. Now she’ll be forced to claw back her dignity and try to reclaim a once-burgeoning business empire as investors and clients will have lost confidence in her. Not only this, but she’s a mother. When both are reunited I can only imagine she’ll be horrified at the message she’s sent to her young daughter.

I can only see this ending badly for her as she lands with an uncomfortable thump back to her daily life. We’ll see her gracing the This Morning couch in tears. We’ll see pictures of her looking distraught, pathetic and vulnerable as she recounts her experience of Big Brother in the papers. We’ll see another young woman’s life torn apart by the relentless sex-obsessed media machine.

The great sadness is, she won’t be able to take any of her actions back. They’re ‘out there’ in the most spectacular technicolour our Great British press can muster, and searchable by her daughter when she’s old enough to do so. It’s truly heartbreaking that the image she’s worked so hard to cultivate until now, now lays around her ankles like those pink knickers we’ve all now had the displeasure of seeing.

Rather than lingering on the fact that Luisa Zeissman has let herself down in a moment of sheer stupidity, we should look to Channel 5 and the Big Brother format as the culprits here. Celebrity Big Brother has systematically plied these young people with alcohol, and placed them in pressurising and sexually-charged situations purely to exploit them. Take the cringe-worthy X-rated task for example, where housemates were encouraged act ‘extreme’ for a luxury food budget. Everything that room was set up to bring about the worst in them - including the table full of alcohol. It’s not surprising that the more experienced, media savvy, and conservative housemates were placed in an altogether less intimidating environment - they would have left via the diary room door in outrage, tearing up their contracts as they go.

It’s not on, it’s not entertaining, and it’s completely irresponsible. I honestly pity the poor girl. Once again we see another promising young woman fall prey to the nation’s insatiable appetite for the provocative and titillating.

Pull the plug now Celebrity Big Brother. I can’t even bring myself to say please. Enough is enough.

 

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