I’ve gotten into podcasts in a big way over the past year. It’s pretty lonely when nobody is in the studio but me and the pup, so human voices chatting has really helped that out. Plus when it’s informative, so much the better! Here’s what I’ve been enjoying. (I think there’s some I’m forgetting but these are the ones that crop up most on my radar as of late)

• Back to Work- Dan Benjamin and Merlin Mann talking about productivity, barriers, constraints, fear, etc etc. Some of it is more suited to tech workers but I’ve found some really good points in there and I’ve been listening to it solidly for a year now. Though it’s one of those podcasts that’s probably best listened from the start— as they get more comfortable there’s a lot of meta humor and recurring jokes that crop up, and tangents will often happen so if that’s not your thing, be warned.
• WTF with Marc Maron- interviews with comedians of past and present. Maron can sometimes be a little too neurotic (even for me!) but I really love listening to comedians talk shop and discuss the changing world of comedy so it’s worth it.
• Girl on Guy with Aisha Tyler- I love Aisha (especially in Archer!) and the early episodes were really awesome in a ‘let’s get drunk and chat about stuff’ kind of way—but I’ve fallen out of listening. I’m sure the more recent ones are good too— but I’ve been in a big comedy kick lately so musicians and other folks aren’t on my radar right now.
• Making It with Riki Lindhome- more of a process thing of how people in the entertainment industry have ‘made it’. Really informative and earnest- I’ve enjoyed it a lot.
• The Moth- short true stories from people. Sometimes gut wrenching, sometimes funny, always interesting.
• The Nerdist- more interviews, hosted by Chris Hardwick and his cohorts Matt Mira and Jonah Ray. Though this one branches out some between comedians and other entertainers. I usually just stick to those over the ‘hostful’ episodes.
• The Indoor Kids- hosted by Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon. Discussions about video games— not so much technical stuff, but more discussions with folks about their emotional ties to games. Also some interesting stuff about race/gender in games.
• Your Dreams My Nightmares- technically a radio show. Interviews with illustrators and art directors— hosted by Sam Weber. I’ve thus far only listened to Lisa Hanawalt but I will be listening to more soon!
• Bullseye with Jesse Thorn- I tend to cherry pick these by sticking to entertainment folks I know of- but the interviews can be quite good. I love when they have comedy-compilation episodes, as that introduces me to new comedians.
• You Look Nice Today- I tend to relisten to this often and look forlornly at the fact that it hasn’t updated in over a year. Shame! I wish Scott Simpson, Merlin Mann and Adam Lisagor would make more of these.
• TED: I haven’t kept up with this but there are some really awesome talks in here. Been really inspired by them!
• @Google Talks- not really a podcast, but a YouTube channel. Interesting discussions- I’ve mostly listened to the authors’ ones.

Other things I love listening to but aren’t podcasts: audio commentaries or sitcoms I’ve seen so much that I know what happens already (Parks & Rec, Futurama, Better Off Ted, King of the Hill, britcoms like Black Books, Black Adder, the IT Crowd, Green Wing, etc). I’ve shotgunned through Parks & Rec’s commentaries (and restarted listening to season 2, which is probably the eighth or so time I’ve watched that season?) lately, but I wish I had something that did commentary on more episodes— Futurama and the Simpsons were great for this, as they did commentary on most or all of the episodes. Unfortunately I don’t have the Simpsons on DVD, alas! I’ve been craving watching the old episodes lately.

Hey and with all the comedians doing podcasts lately, how come there aren’t more British comedians doing podcasts? Besides Ricky Gervais, I mean. I would love a podcast with Simon Pegg or Graham Linehan or Chris Morris… there’s so much great talent over there, I’d love an interview or satirical podcast from across the pond!

A couple others I’ve downloaded but intend to listen to soon:

• The Cocktail Napkin- hosted by Jeremy Fuksa. Talking with various creatives about creativity. 
• Storythings- recordings from The Story, a British conference about storytelling.
• Let’s Make Mistakes- hosted by Mark Monteiro and Katie Gillum. Talking about design. 
• Roderick on the Line- Merlin Mann + John Roderick. Weekly candid phone calls discussing all sorts of things.
• Escape from Illustration Island- surprisingly enough I think I only have listened to one or two episodes of this! I’ll have to make an effort— folks on Twitter are recommending it if I want to listen to folks talking shop, and I do.

Okay, this went on pretty long! Got any other ones you might recommend? Or if they’re not podcasts, maybe interesting documentaries/video interviews/TED talks etc?  I’m always looking for something entertaining to keep company while I scrawl and paint on paper!