Whether your train is late, your flight is delayed or the traffic is jammed, it’s nice to have a podcast in your back pocket. The holiday travel window is officially open, and if you’re leaving home, you’re going to need some help filling the time.
So we asked our Washington Post colleagues to pick 10 podcasts of any format — biography, true-crime, feel-good journalism, vintage TV recaps — to share some of their recent favorites.
See some of our past podcast recommendations here. Would you rather listen to an audiobook? Check out 10 of the year’s best.
‘Articles of Interest’
Born out of a recurring feature on the excellent podcast 99% Invisible, “Articles of Interest” is full of superlatives: best episodic podcast about fashion history, best mastery of how to tell a visual story in an audio format, best pack-a-day-sounding raspy voice from host Avery Trufelman. It’s a rare show about clothes that can be equally enjoyed by fashion nerds and “Just grab what’s at the top of the drawer” types.
Standout episode: This season is about gear and the surprising links between the outdoor industry and the U.S. military. The episode on camouflage is particularly wild. — Shane O’Neill
‘Darknet Diaries’
This is about cybercrime … and while that may sound intimidating, I would describe it as a true-crime podcast about the internet, told in a way that is suspenseful and understandable to beginners.
Standout episode: XBox Underground (Part 1) — Aaron Schaffer
‘Fela Kuti: Fear No Man’
The bio-pod from Radiolab creator Jad Abumrad asks big questions about a larger-than-life character and delivers on an equal scale. Interviews with famous fans, musical collaborators, children and wives of the titular Afrobeat pioneer add emotional insights and astounding anecdotes to fill out the life of a superstar who invented his own genre and used it to stand up to an oppressive government. The reporting is first-rate, and the music is undeniably funky.
Standout episodes: The pieces devoted to Sandra Izsadore, who introduced Fela to the American civil rights movement, and Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti, his mother and an activist in her own right, are inspiring and illuminating. The story behind the song named for “expensive” s–t will leave your jaw on the floor. — Gabe Hiatt
‘House of R’
Hosts Mallory Rubin and Joanna Robinson geek out about fictional universes, including Star Wars offshoots, “House of the Dragon” and “Stranger Things.” There is nothing better than watching an incredible few episodes of “Andor” and then racing to hear Mal and Jo dive deep into the nuances (and maybe even get as emotional as you did). They are astute watchers and chroniclers of nerd culture, offerings rankings of favorite musical moments, speeches and villains of the century.
Standout episode: An appreciation of “Back to the Future” on its 40th anniversary. An absolute delight for anyone who has ever uttered the words “Think, McFly!” – Hannah Sampson
‘Mike Birbiglia’s Working it Out’
The comedian, actor and director brings fellow performers on to talk jokes, creative process and career arcs. Saturday Night Live stars, musical-theater genius Lin-Manuel Miranda and comedy-guy-turned-superhero Kumail Nanjiani all drop in. Listening to funny people crack each other up is great fun, but Birbiglia dives into the fundamentals of comedy and storytelling in a way that is also thoughtful and revealing.
Standout episode: Bob Odenkirk unexpectedly makes parents everywhere tear up when he answers a simple question: Who are you jealous of? – H.S.
‘The Optimist’
While most journalists hunt for what is wrong in the world, The Washington Post’s Maggie Penman seeks out what is going right in a series of weekend episodes on Post Reports.
Standout episodes: Maggie introduces us to all kinds of people — super-agers, mega party hosts, dog whisperers, old ladies diving for garbage — who share their wisdom. Each episode is distinct, but once you start, you won’t want to stop hearing these stories. — Elahe Izadi
‘Pod Meets World’
The “Boy Meets World” rewatch podcast brings back a carefree, joyous feeling, but you don’t have to be a child of the “TGIF” era to appreciate it. Hosts Rider Strong, Danielle Fishel and Will Friedle — the actors who play Shawn, Topanga and Eric on the show — take listeners back to the ’90s days of Mr. Feeneyand the Matthews family. Millennials’ hearts will burst with nostalgia, but the show is more about the hosts’ perspectives and experiences growing up in front of the cameras. Inside stories about the production and young fame make this a must-listen.
Standout episode: Any episode featuring William Daniels, the actor who played Mr. Feeney. There is a particularly emotional and vulnerable interview with Danny McNulty, who played the bully Harley Keiner. The recap of the famous “Scream” episode. And a tense interview exchange between Fishel and former castmate Maitland Ward. — Nick DiMarco
‘Scamanda’
This podcast investigates a woman named Amanda who led her friends and following to believe that she was dying of cancer. It’s just fascinating hearing the story unfold and seeing how far people will dig a hole rather than just admit they were caught. There is also an ABC News docuseries if you’d rather watch it that way. — Monica Rodman
‘Swindled’
This is a bingeworthy true-crime podcast about scams, cons and, well, swindles.
Standout episode: The Horse Queen (Rita Crundwell) — A.S.
‘What Went Wrong’
Each episode is packed with all the lore and trivia and gossip that you want to know about how your favorite movies were made (and how every movie is almost not made).
Standout episodes: “Back to the Future” and “Dirty Dancing” are must-listens (did you know Sarah Jessica Parker was in the running for Baby?!) but I have yet to hear a bad episode. — S.O.
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