Podcast festival Crossed Wires is set to return to Sheffield from 4 – 6 July, with Help I Sexted My Boss and No Such Thing As A Fish confirmed as the first headliners.
Last year’s inaugural festival saw over 12,000 people travel to Sheffield’s city centre to see podcasters, DJ sets, Q&As and fan events. Highlights included Katherine Ryan, Danny Robins, Katie Price, Romesh Ranganathan & Tom Davis, Adam Buxton, SELF ESTEEM and Jon Ronson.
Crossed Wires is founded by some of the most respected names in British podcasting and live events, including Alice Levine (Co-host My Dad Wrote A Porno and British Scandal); Dino Sofos (Founder and CEO, Persephonica) and James O’Hara (Co-founder, Tramlines and Day Fever).
Kicking off this year’s headliners is Help I Sexted My Boss, hosted by etiquette expert William Hanson and DJ Jordan North.
The fan favourites will be on stage at Sheffield’s City Hall on Saturday 5 July. After their 2024 tour sold out 15,000 tickets in just three hours and it became the world’s first podcast to be broadcasted into cinemas, this will be Help I Sexted My Boss’ only live show of 2025.
Bonafide cultural phenomenon No Such Thing As A Fish will bring a live show to City Hall on Sunday 6 July.
Their podcast sees QI researchers Dan Schreiber, James Harkin, Anna Ptaszynski and Andrew Hunter Murray share the most bizarre and hilarious facts they’ve discovered. Since 2014, the podcast has racked up 500 million listens.
This year, Crossed Wires’ Festival Fringe, which is free and open to the public, will be bigger this year. Further details on the Festival Fringe will be announced soon.
South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority will again be Crossed Wires’ regional partner and host sponsor. Sheffield City Council has awarded funds for a second year.
Oliver Coppard, South Yorkshire’s Mayor, said: “Last year’s Crossed Wires inaugural festival was a huge success. Audiences from across South Yorkshire and beyond – including me – enjoyed an incredible line-up of well-known podcasters and a vibrant free fringe.
“The festival further underlined South Yorkshire’s reputation as a hub for innovation, arts and culture. We know that the creative industries are part of South Yorkshire’s DNA. They drive our economy and make South Yorkshire an even more exciting place to live.”
Councillor Martin Smith, Chair of the Communities, Parks and Leisure Committee at Sheffield City Council, added: “Following the success of last year’s premier Crossed Wires podcast festival, we are delighted this event will be returning in 2025.
“The event was a big success and boosted business for the city, bringing people into our city centre and our local venues not only from across Sheffield, but from across the UK and beyond.
“Sheffield is a city of culture, which is why this event is the perfect addition to our already thriving culture and events calendar. It joins the likes of literary festival ‘Off the Shelf’, documentary festival ‘Docfest’ and several ground-breaking music festivals. With such good company, it feels right that the UK’s flagship podcasting festival should call us home too.”
Tickets will be available from the Crossed Wires website from this Friday, 14 February.
