As 2024 comes to a close, we look back at some of the podcasts which provided entertainment for listeners throughout the year.
The shows we have featured were submitted to us by podcast makers and production companies for review to showcase some of the high quality and captivating offerings this year has seen.
First up, it’s a look at some shows from Wondery:
Hysterical (WONDERY/ PINEAPPLE STREET STUDIOS)
Podcast auteur Dan Taberski returned this year with Hysterical, a spellbinding investigative series about the phenomenon of mass hysteria.
Hysterical follows the outbreak of a mysterious illness affecting otherwise healthy teenage girls in LeRoy, NY that occurred in 2011. As the investigation deepens, other seemingly inexplicable phenomena begin to connect back to a contagion that we thought was long dead but might be the defining illness of our time.
Hosted by Peabody Award-winning podcaster and writer Dan Taberski, Hysterical held the #1 chart position for weeks as listeners flocked to hear Dan singular exploration of this elusive psychological and cultural mystery
The series was critically acclaimed by Vulture, Financial Times, The New Yorker and more.
Empire City (WONDERY/CROOKED MEDIA/PUSHBLACK)
In EEmpire City, Peabody Award-winning host Chenjerai Kumanyika takes listeners on a journey to uncover the hidden history of the largest police force in the world – from its roots in slavery, to rival police gangs battling across the city, to everyday people who resisted every step of the way.
As society debates where policing is going, Empire City: The Untold Origin Story of the NYPD explores where the police came from.
Empire City proves that history repeats itself as the series rolled out right as NYC Mayor Eric Adams and his NYPD commissioner become embroiled in their own corruption scandal, giving Chenjerai’s thorough examination of the past a new urgency
The New York Times called it a “by-turns-panoramic and personal history aimed at untangling the mythology and influence of the nation’s largest police force.”
The Competition (WONDERY/ PINEAPPLE STREET STUDIOS)
Shima Oliaee of Dolly Parton’s America and Pink Card returned with The Competition, an intimate follow-along series about being a teen girl in America today.
Shima travels back to a teen girl scholarship contest she competed in over 20 years ago in Mobile, AL to capture the highs and lows of an impressive cohort of high-achievers representing each US state – the pressures and tension is high, and that’s before the Roe v Wade decision leaks in the middle of the competition.
Shima’s findings as a “teen girl anthropologist” showcase the daily lives and battles of diverse high school girls as they navigate distinctly of-the-moment issues like social media comparison, hyper-competition in college admissions, reproductive rights, and more.
The Guardian calls Shima a “fabulous storyteller.”
Kill List (WONDERY/ NOVEL)
In Kill List, Wondery and Novel traverse the dark web in order to investigate a mysterious online list targeting hundreds of innocent people on a murder for hire website.
Hosted by Carl Miller, author, tech journalist and founder of the digital research team CASM, Carl called this “the scariest, weirdest and certainly the most important work of my life.”
The series hit #1 on the Apple Podcast charts and marks the third collaboration between Wondery and Novel, following Harsh Reality and Stolen Hearts.
The Guardian called it a “gripping story” and said that the series “provides a graphic reminder of how the internet holds up a mirror to human nature.”
Lemme Say This (WONDERY)
Real-life besties and connoisseurs of mess, Hunter Harris and Peyton Dix, entered the pop culture podcast arena this year with their hilarious weekly show Lemme Say This, made especially for the chronically online who need to know if Mark Zuckerberg would take The Substance, who made the best notes app apology of 2024, why Cardi B and Offset are the Black Bennifer, and much more.
Hunter and Peyton’s long-time friendship and deep knowledge on niche, silly celebrity and entertainment news makes Lemme Say This a perfect addition for listeners who are unabashed pop culture scholars, but who also probably subscribe to the Criterion Channel.
Matt Rogers of Las Culturistas said that Lemme Say This “is truly the better version of this podcast” on the “Haters (with Peyton Dix and Hunter Harris)” episode that aired in October.
Happily Never After: Dan & Nancy (WONDERY)
Wondery’s track record of creating chart-topping true crime franchises continued this year with the launch of Happily Never After: Dan & Nancy, the inaugural season of Happily Never After stories exploring love stories gone wrong.
Dan & Nancy hooked listeners with a stranger-than-fiction real life story and podcast host Heidi Joy Tretheway’s connection to the case – she was in a writing club with the convicted killer Nancy Brophy, a romantic suspense writer whose written horrific fictions start bleeding into her real life when her chef husband Dan is found murdered at work.
Happily Never After: Dan & Nancy hit #1 on Apple Podcasts and HuffPost called the show “snappy” and praised Heidi for “offer[ing] unique insights into the murderous mind of a fellow romance novelist.”
Wondery also provides numerous “Always On” shows that top the charts and drive pop culture conversations, including:
Comedy
- Baby, this is Keke Palmer
- Armchair Expert
- The Big Flop
- We Playin’ Spades
Sports:
- Six Trophies with Jason Concepcion and Shea Serrano
- The Offensive Line with Annie Agar
- New Heights with Jason and Travis Kelce
True Crime:
- MrBallen’s Medical Mysteries
- MrBallen Podcast: Strange, Dark & Mysterious Stories
- Morbid
- Scamfluencers
Next, it’s highlights from BBC World Service:
World of Secrets
World of Secrets is the BBC’s global investigations podcast – uncovering stories from around the world and telling them week by week, episode by episode.
Since it was launched just over a year ago, World of Secrets investigations have already had a major impact.
World of Secrets: Al Fayed, Predator at Harrods (season four) heard accounts of rape and sexual assault from women who worked for Mohammed Al Fayed, then the billionaire owner of one of the most famous department stores in the world.
Since the first five episodes of this season were published in September, many more women have now come forward to say they were also abused by him.
The police are investigating, and the Met are themselves being reviewed for the way they handled two complaints they received several years ago.
World of Secrets: The Abercrombie Guys (season one) has led to sex trafficking and prostitution charges against Mike Jeffries, the former CEO of high-street fashion chain, Abercrombie & Fitch.
The investigation unearthed evidence of a sophisticated global operation involving a network of recruiters and a middleman scouting young men for sex. There have been three recent update episodes.
World of Secrets: The Disciples (season two) was a ground-breaking investigation into the world-famous preacher, TB Joshua.
World of Secrets: The Apartheid Killer (season three) investigated convicted murderer Louis van Schoor who killed at least 39 people in South Africa during the 1980s.
All the victims were black and the youngest was just 12 years old. In piecing together the story of Van Schoor, The Apartheid Killer exposes the disturbed past and racial injustices of South Africa itself.
The latest season, World of Secrets: Finding Mr. Fox (season five), tracks down a man Brazilian police accuse of being a drug trafficking mastermind, known as ‘Fox’.
Hollywood Exiles
Hollywood Exiles tells the gripping story of how Tinseltown star, Charlie Chaplin, became a key figure in a decades-long FBI campaign aimed at rooting out communism from Hollywood.
His granddaughter, Oona Chaplin (Game of Thrones) explores why he was exiled and unravels the real-life events that led to the notorious House Un-American Activities Committee hearings and the era of the infamous “Hollywood blacklist.”
The series sheds light on the extent and impact of the FBI’s investigation into Chaplin and other figures right across the film industry. Some were barred from the Hollywood Walk of Fame, others from the Oscars – all had their reputations, careers or families torn apart.
Hollywood Exiles is a collaboration between BBC World Service and CBC Podcasts.
Good Bad Billionaire
Good Bad Billionaire unravels tales of fortune, power, ambition and moral responsibility. Described as “irresistible” by The Daily Telegraph, this podcast explores how the planet’s richest people made their billions.
From celebrities and secretive CEOs to sporting legends and tech titans – you’re invited to make up your minds, are they good, bad or just another billionaire?
Simon Jack is the BBC’s Business Editor and Zing Tsjeng is a journalist, author and podcaster. Good Bad Billionaire won Best Business Podcast at the British Podcast Awards 2024. Season two featured famous faces including Tiger Woods, Roman Abramovich, Miuccia Prada and Jerry Seinfeld.
Amazing Sport Stories: The Black 14
In Amazing Sport Stories: The Black 14, American writer and presenter B.A. Parker takes listeners back to the turbulent 1960s to explore the story of the fourteen young, black American football players who were kicked off their university team in Wyoming for wanting to protest against racism.
Throughout the four-episode season, Parker speaks with eight surviving team members to reflect on the profound impact this event has had on their lives and the U.S. sporting community.
The story of the Black 14 would go on to help reform and change the perception of national sporting figures who take a stand.
The Six Billion Dollar Gold Scam
The Six Billion Dollar Gold Scam tells the story of one of the biggest goldmining frauds of all time. It was the biggest gold discovery in history… until it wasn’t.
In 1995, Canadian mining company Bre X announced to the world it had found gold deep in the jungles of Indonesia.
Stock prices soared as investors worldwide fought to stake their claim. But when the chief geologist mysteriously fell from a helicopter over the jungle, the story of the billion-dollar discovery began to unravel.
Host Suzanne Wilton investigates what really happened and finds out more about the man behind one of the world’s most notorious goldmining frauds.
The Six Billion Dollar Gold Scam is a collaboration between BBC World Service and CBC Podcasts.
The Global Story
The Global Story, BBC’s daily in-depth news podcast, provides listeners with a global perspective on one big story a day, making sense of major world moments from U.S. politics to the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East.
Throughout the build up to the U.S. presidential election, The Global Story ran special episodes on what the result would mean for the rest of the world, as well as taking a sharp focus on the big themes for voters. BBC correspondents continue to give insight into the global impact of the new administration.
The BBC has also revealed the Top 10 most popular podcasts of 2024.
The next set comes from Sony Podcasts:
Denise Didn’t Come Home
Karen Falasca last saw her 15-year-old sister Denise on 14 July 1969, when they parted ways not far from their Bergen County home. The next day, Denise’s body was found strangled next to a cemetery.
For almost 50 years, Karen searched for her sister’s killer. In Denise Didn’t Come Home, host Anthony Scalia joins her in her search and discovers an unexpected truth.
Dinners on Me with Jesse Tyler Ferguson
Acclaimed actor and cookbook author Jesse Tyler Ferguson sits down with star musicians and actors to break bread in a favourite restaurant he’s chosen for his guest.
Conversation is always better over food and wine which ensures guests open up about everything from relationships and family history to mental health and imposter syndrome.
Getting Curious with Jonathan Van Ness
A weekly exploration of all the things Jonathan Van Ness is curious about. Travel on a journey with Jonathan and experts in their respective fields as they explore everything under (and sometimes beyond!) the sun with scientists, historians, activists, entertainers, and other guest experts.
Additionally, once a week Jonathan puts out an episode of Pretty Curious, which focuses on all things beauty-related!
How to Fail with Elizabeth Day
The #1 female podcaster in the UK, Elizabeth Day hosts How to Fail, a podcast that celebrates the things in life that haven’t gone right and what we might learn from them along the way.
Every week, Elizabeth’s guest explores three failures, and what these failures have taught them about how to grow and succeed better.
Liam & Millie
Watch and listen to Liam & Millie every Tuesday! Get ready for all the drama, laughs, and non-stop chaos with Liam and Millie.
Your fave Love Island winners are here to drop piping hot tea on their long-distance relationship, wild adventures, and everything in between.
Expect unfiltered convos, juicy gossip, and some seriously funny stories. It’s the podcast you didn’t know you needed – full of vibes, laughs, and all the realness you can handle!
Lipstick on the Rim
Consider Molly Sims and her best friend Emese Gormley your new girlfriends on speed dial for all your pressing beauty and wellness needs. Is Botox a good idea? Should you try that new diet you saw on the Today Show? Molly and Emese have your back.
With guests ranging from top health and beauty experts to their industry friends, you’ll get the scoop on the latest trends, which products and procedures to try, and which to run from– and they just might be doing it all with a drink in hand. Prepare to be obsessed!
My Friend the Serial Stalker
In the 1970s, Steve Fishman was an intern at his local newspaper, when one day he hitched a ride back from Boston with Robert Carr III, better known as “Red”.
Red seemed trustworthy enough, but he was hiding a secret: by the time he had picked up Steve, he had already killed three people—and all of his prior victims were hitchhikers themselves.
This chilling car ride was the first time Steve would meet the man he came to call “Red”, but it wasn’t the last… Join Steve Fishman himself as un unravels and recounts this harrowing tale that is equally terrifying as it is fascinating, uncovering new revelations all these years later.
Night Shift
Hosted by crime-writer and the author of Tokyo Vice, Jake Adelstein, Witnessed: Night Shift takes listeners inside Ward 4 East at the local VA hospital where a trio of doctors discovered a suspicious increase in patient deaths all occurring in the overnight hours, with the same nurse present at their bedsides.
With a personal connection to the story, Adelstein goes back to his hometown to explore the unsolved 30-year mystery of what might’ve been one of the most prolific serial killers in U.S. history, what really happened during the night shift, and why the hospital tried so hard to hide it.
Origins with Cush Jumbo
Even the most successful people had to start somewhere. Origins transports listeners and celebrity guests back in time – from childhood tales to teenage misadventures and early career struggles of their favourite stars before the limelight, offering never-before-heard stories and intimate insights into their early years.
Each episode unravels the formative moments that shaped the trajectory of success for some of the world’s most celebrated personalities.
Kermode and Mayo’s Take
The new home of Mark Kermode and Simon Mayo. They’re back, and it’s bigger, and better and larger-er and more-er. Film reviews, TV reviews, and all your conversation around movie and non-movie related stuff.
There’s also a whole bunch of recommendations to watch in cinemas, on all streaming services and on physical media.
As well as the film and TV reviews, Mark and Simon talk about anything and everything. Punctuation, Thunderbirds, obscure German pop music, fax machines, subtitles, MRI scans, magic, school assemblies, Scandinavia, and don’t forget the dad jokes.
Finally, Apple has shared the most popular podcasts of 2024, with year-end charts localised for listeners in nearly 100 countries and regions:
Top Shows of 2024:
The Diary Of A CEO with Steven Bartlett
The Rest Is Politics
The Rest Is History
The News Agents
Off Menu with Ed Gamble and James Acaster
ZOE Science & Nutrition
Leading
The Rest Is Entertainment
Feel Better, Live More with Dr Rangan Chatterjee
The Rest Is Football
Top New Shows of 2024:
The Rest Is Entertainment
The Rest Is Politics: US
Olivia Attwood’s So Wrong It’s Right
Miss Me?
Great Company with Jamie Laing
Charlotte Dawson’s Naughty Corner
The Spy Who
The Price of Paradise
Springleaf
Kill List
Top Episodes of 2024:
How one night transformed British politics
Ep 215: Paul Rudd
Angela Rayner: From zero GCSEs to Britain’s most powerful woman?
Titanic: The Tragedy Begins (Part 1)
Simon Cowell Opens Up About His Heartbreaking Loss, “losing them was the hardest thing that happened to me”!
S2 EP9: Adam Buxton on podcast rivalry, problematic musical heroes, and abandoning social media.
The Only State Trump Needs to Win
The Return Of Phillip Schofield
Keir Starmer, our new Prime Minister. What now?
EP.216 – JOE LYCETT
Top Subscriber Shows of 2024:
The Rest Is History
The Rest Is Politics
Leading
RedHanded
Kermode & Mayo’s Take
Scamtown
British Scandal
The Story of Classical
Kill List
Answers for Claudia
Most Followed Shows of 2024:
The Rest Is Politics
The Rest Is Entertainment
The Diary Of A CEO with Steven Bartlett
The Rest Is History
The Rest Is Politics: US
The Louis Theroux Podcast
The Rest Is Football
ZOE Science & Nutrition
Stick to Football
The News Agents
Most Shared Shows of 2024:
ZOE Science & Nutrition
The Rest Is Politics
The Rest Is History
The Diary Of A CEO with Steven Bartlett
The Rest Is Entertainment
Feel Better, Live More with Dr Rangan Chatterjee
Ghost Story
Leading
Empire
The News Agents
Most Shared Episodes of 2024:
The No.1 Menopause Doctor: They’re Lying To You About Menopause! Brand New Science! (Men Need To Listen Too!): Mary Claire Haver
Angela Rayner: From zero GCSEs to Britain’s most powerful woman?
#456 How Smartphones Are Rewiring Our Brains, Why Social Media is Eradicating Childhood & The Truth About The Mental Health Epidemic with Jonathan Haidt
How to eat in 2024: 7 essential strategies
Titanic: The Tragedy Begins (Part 1)
Kate Silverton: Parenting, emotional regulation, and screen time
Dr. Stacy Sims: Female-Specific Exercise & Nutrition for Health, Performance & Longevity
Inflammation Special – with Prof Janet Lord
GAZZA: Turning Down Man Utd & Liverpool, Calls From The Pope & Smashing Up The Training Ground With A Tractor
The #1 Menopause Doctor: How to Lose Belly Fat, Sleep Better, & Stop Suffering Now
Top Channels of 2024:
BBC Podcasts
Wondery
Flight Studio
The Rest Is Politics
Global Originals
The Rest is History Club
The News Agents
The Guardian
iHeartPodcasts
Plosive
Top Series of 2024:
British Scandal
Serial
Elon’s Spies | Tortoise Investigates
Ghost Story
Carrie Jade Does Not Exist
The Trial of Daniel Khalife
My Dad Wrote A Porno
The Spy Who
The Price of Paradise
Springleaf
