The Gardener's Headphones: Top listens from the last six months

As well as reading some books (The Gardener's Bookshelf: Top reads from the past six months | LinkedIn) I have had the luxury of listening to some great podcasts whilst sitting in the garden. I was quite late to this medium, somehow thinking they weren't for me. Needless to say I am completely converted....I hope the return to commuting will allow me the opportunity to keep up this hobby.

Politics

1) The Rest is Politics

I listen to this one religiously each week. They also have a question time episode which follows 24 hours later. I listen to that too. While they sometimes cannot resist reverting to type, Alastair and Rory offer an incredibly insightful and informative, wide-ranging debate on UK and global issues. I even had the opportunity to meet them courtesy of Christopher Hitchins and Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP . They are, almost always, right on the money. If you are looking for sensible centrist commentary on what's going on in the world, this is a good place to get it.

2) Economics/Politics

Technically not a podcast but I listen to the Economist more or less cover to cover every week. Download the issue on Thursday night/Friday morning and then work through it. It takes a long time so I have worked my way up to 1.5x speed (that also takes time to do, or at least it did for me). Normally about 4-5 hours a week. If you want less then Leaders, Bagehot, Charlemagne, Lexington and a selection of Business articles probably would do the trick.

3) Economics/Politics/News

If I do get through the Economist weekly or just fancy a change, The Intelligence is a bite-size daily podcast from the same publication which can fill a gap. Often with interesting contributors from around the world it offers a smart look at daily issues.

4) Leadership

Back to Rory and Alastair again. This series is truly breathtaking in the range and quality of speakers. Each episode is a bit longer (around an hour) and with some interviewees (John Major, Theresa May, Sajid Javid) it is even split into two parts. The content is unbelievably rich. The opportunity to listen to world leaders in all fields from politics to sport to science, speak in a relaxed way about themselves and their careers is a real treat. My favourite was the interview with Anthony Scaramucci but there is so much to enjoy here.

5) Sport

With enormous thanks to Dan Brown I discovered Quickly Kevin Will He Score (or QKWHS to afficionados) which is a 90s football podcast. Incredible interviews with many of my footballing heroes, plenty of comedy and stories. They are up to 14 series now and there are some amazing episodes here with behind the scenes commentary on many of the footballing icons of my childhood. Probably a niche audience but any football fan will find something to listen to here.