5 new podcasts to listen to this week

From hungry chefs cooking up a storm to fitness and wellbeing, there are a variety of great listens here this week.

1. A Study In Scarlet

Streaming platform: All podcast platforms and ad-free on BBC Sounds

Genre: History and entertainment

“A scarlet thread of murder running through the colourless skein of life” is brought to life in an atmospheric Noiser podcast of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s classic Sherlock Holmes detective mystery narrated by national treasure Hugh Bonneville.

Dr Conan Doyle wrote A Study In Scarlet story aged 27, and Beeton’s Christmas Annual paid him a flat fee to publish it in 1887.

Now, a new seven-part podcast of the author’s debut tale takes us back to the first deliciously detailed meeting between Sherlock Holmes and Dr John Watson.

Downton Abbey star Hugh Bonneville doesn’t just narrate, he vividly brings to life all the characters in foggy 19th-century London. We meet Holmes and Dr Watson as they set up in shared lodgings in Baker Street, but rather struggling with flat-share problems such as who is stealing all the milk. And Watson worries about his flatmate’s drug-induced “torpur”.

The author’s medical knowledge makes Holmes’ fictional forensic breakthroughs in this tale very believable. But as the pair work together to solve a bizarre London murder, the story suddenly shifts to the Mormon community in Utah.

This slows things down, but in the hands of a highly professional production, the podcast keeps its pace, and makes it an ideal way to discover the origins of the world’s most famous detective duo.

(By Siobhan McNally)

2. This Is History: The Tudors

Streaming platform: All podcast platforms and YouTube

Genre: History

The Tudors might be familiar territory, but Dan Jones finds a fresh way in. The first episode opens in 1486 with Henry VII washing the feet of beggars, a striking image for a king still trying to convince England that he belongs on the throne.

Jones moves between the ceremony and the trouble brewing beyond it. Henry has won the Battle of Bosworth, but victory alone cannot secure a new dynasty. He needs the right marriage, a convincing royal story and a way to deal with Lord Lovell, a loyal supporter of Richard III who remains on the run.

The episode also steps back into Henry’s family history to explain how he reached the crown.

Jones promises to show us the Tudors “up close and very personal”, and the detail delivers. Henry is pictured as a 29-year-old man with long, wavy brown hair, while the foot washing reveals how carefully a monarch could display his faith and humility. Sound effects add atmosphere to a story already full of tension.

This is an engaging start that makes Henry’s reign feel precarious. If you think you know the Tudors through Shakespeare, the Reformation and the Spanish Armada, Jones makes a case for beginning with the man who had to establish the dynasty.

(By Sara Keenan)

3. The Two Hungry Chefs 

Streaming Platform: All streaming platforms and YouTube

Genre: Food & drink

The Two Hungry Chefs is a sit-down conversation with TV chefs Mike Reid and Jeremy Pang as they take on a new format to talk about all things food. The duo’s new series is celebrating the A-Z of food, with this week’s episode featuring Anna Haugh – Irish chef, restaurateur, and television personality – as they discuss letter A: ‘Always in a Chef’s fridge?’

Throughout the episode, Haugh explains her journey to becoming a chef, her Irish influences in cooking and working alongside some world-class names. She also opens up about how she wanted to both be a mother and open her own restaurant, which she did successfully.

“There’s nothing worse than failing because of listening to someone else’s advice,” Haugh says as the trio discuss taking risks – agreeing that if they don’t work, at least it was your own decision and a mistake to learn from.

Reid and Pang then go on to cook up a meltingly tender 72-hour short rib and juicy beef meatball dish, with fermented red tofu. The episode ends with the three of them sitting down to enjoy the meal together. This podcast puts a refreshing spin on cooking and welcomes everyone in whether they are a seasoned chef or a beginner in the kitchen.

(By Sara Keenan)

4. The Body Coach: Joe Wicks

Streaming Platform: All streaming platforms and YouTube

Genre: Health & fitness

Many of us were first introduced to Joe Wicks’ energetic personality and enthusiasm through his PE with Joe YouTube series during lockdown, but what happens when this famously active fitness coach dramatically reduces his daily movement? That is the focus of the first episode of his brand-new Health or Hype podcast, created in partnership with Bupa.

In this episode, Joe takes part in a three-day “movement fast” social experiment, limiting himself to just 2,000 steps a day and finds out how this sudden reduction in movement affects his mood, metabolism and energy levels.

Joe also speaks to movement coach, author and speaker Darryl Edwards about the power of play, movement snacks and ways exercise can influence our brain chemistry.

The episode also features conversations with GB Paralympian Richard Whitehead, who shares his personal experiences and perspective on movement and running, and dancer Katya Jones, who discusses both the physical and mental benefits of dancing.

The range of experts and perspectives featured throughout the episode adds real value and variety to the podcast and the digestible tips interwoven throughout makes it feel informative without feeling overwhelming.

Joe’s willingness to throw himself into every challenge, whether that’s taking part in the movement fast experiment or learning to dance, is infectious and showcases his passion for the subject.

Joe’s approach to fitness has always been centred around keeping things simple, inclusive and fun, and this high-quality podcast reflects those values perfectly.

(By Camilla Foster)

5. The Bear Hunt

Streaming Platform: All streaming platforms

Genre: Thriller

It feels like the vast majority of podcasts are non-fiction: from audio talk shows to interviews and history series. But that risks ignoring the growing trend for fictional podcasts – immersive storytelling that is totally gripping.

Bear Hunt falls into this category, and is perfect for anyone interested in geopolitics and thrillers. It starts with a British passenger plane crashing into the North Sea, with 350 people dead. UK PM Alex Kernoway is given intelligence suggesting it was a hostile move from Russia, but Washington doesn’t want to go there. Weeks away from an election, Kernoway is unsure what path to take – but as the episodes go on, the story turns into a covert mission to kill the president of the Russian Federation.

This is interspersed with scenes of British soldiers fighting in Afghanistan in 2010, following the perspective of Tom ‘Duffy’ MacDuff.

Well-produced and high-octane, the podcast encounters a few stumbling blocks. The story is told predominantly via dialogue, meaning it’s occasionally hard to follow when you’re plunged into a new scene. Plus, the separate strands of narrative take a while to come together, meaning this is a podcast that rewards continued listening, rather than instant gratification.

(By Prudence Wade)