This week, we’re asking three podcasters to pitch their show to listeners, and we’ll hear a sample of each one.  

We’re starting with George The Poet. His show is called Have You Heard George’s Podcast? It’s won tons of awards, including a Peabody—and if you haven’t heard it, we promise you’ve never heard another show like it. 

Then, Leah sits down with Arshy Mann, host of COMMONS, to talk about why the new season of his show is all about work — the jobs we do, the conditions we work in, and why things feel like they’ve gotten so much harder for working people. 

Plus, actor and comedian Allan McLeod will tell us about his new show, Walkin’ About. It’s a loving and funny tribute to the simple act of walking, the places it can take us, and the people we do it with. 

For links and more info, head to cbc.ca/podcastplaylist.

In the early days of the war on terror, the US captured thousands of alleged “enemy combatants” overseas, but they needed somewhere to hold and interrogate them… without worrying about those pesky Geneva Conventions. 

Guantánamo Bay was the perfect solution. But not long after it opened, the truth of its makeshift justice system started coming to light. 

The new season of Serial offers an unprecedented look behind the scenes at the island prison. Today, Leah sits down with co-hosts Sarah Koenig and Dana Chivvis to hear the story behind their reporting.

Plus, you know the song "Tainted Love" by Soft Cell? Well, did you know it was actually an obscure soul song written in the 1960s? We'll hear that story from Lost Notes, plus Leah talks to co-hosts Novena Carmel and Michael Barnes about the show.

All that and more this week on Podcast Playlist.

Featuring: Serial, Lost Notes, Broomgate, White Devil

For links and more info, head to cbc.ca/podcastplaylist.

This week on Podcast Playlist, Leah is joined by Josh Gwynn, host of the new CBC podcast Split Screen: Kid Nation. 

The podcast revisits the 2007 reality TV show Kid Nation, where 40 children were left in the desert to fend for themselves for more than a month. Through interviews with former contestants, producers and parents, Josh tries to piece together how this show actually got made, and what impact it had on those kids now that they’re all grown up. 

We’ll hear from Josh about that show’s legacy. Plus, we’ll listen to some of his favourite podcasts.

Featuring: Split Screen: Kid Nation, Today Explained, The Stoop, Classy, Scam Goddess

For links and more info head to cbc.ca/podcastplaylist. Have a podcast to recommend? Send us an email!

Whether it's in your high school English class or one of the many Shakespeare-inspired 90s rom-coms (10 Things I Hate About You, anybody?), most of us have encountered Shakespeare in some form or another. 

Another place you can find the Bard? California's Centinela State Prison. The podcast Where There's a Will: Finding Shakespeare tells us about how performing Shakespeare can be transformative for incarcerated individuals.

Also: in 1986, NASA's space shuttle Challenger exploded, killing all of its seven crew members. Among them was Christa McAuliffe, a social studies teacher who would have been the first private citizen in space. 

Christa was one of 10 finalists from Ronald Reagan's "Teacher in Space" project. Chosen from more than 10,000 teacher applicants, the finalists participated in weeks of rigorous testing and training. NASA called it "space camp," but the process was far from fun and games. 

In Slate's One Year: 1986, we hear about that intense experience from the former candidates themselves.

All that and more, this week on Podcast Playlist.

Featuring: If Books Could Kill, Where There's A Will: Finding Shakespeare, One Year: 1986, Missing and Murdered: Who Killed Alberta Williams, Future Perfect

For links and more info head to cbc.ca/podcastplaylist.

This week on Podcast Playlist, we’re listening to true crime. 

During the Johnny Depp-Amber Heard trial, there was a huge amount of online hate directed towards Amber. But what if that was all part of an organized campaign? We’ll find out on Who Trolled Amber. 

Plus, even if you’ve never heard of Peter Ivers, you’ve probably heard some of his music without realizing it. He was murdered in 1983, and the case was never solved. Now, a new podcast called Peter And The Acid King is trying to get to the bottom of it. It’s hosted by Penelope Spheeris, a friend of Peter’s and the director of Wayne’s World. Leah will sit down with Penelope to talk about the show, and Peter’s legacy. 

All that and more, this week on Podcast Playlist. 

Featuring: Peter And The Acid King, Stolen, White Lies, Who Trolled Amber, Ghost In The Machine

For links and more info head to cbc.ca/podcastplaylist.

To make this show, our team listens through hours upon hours of audio. But sometimes, a few excellent shows will slip through the cracks.

This week, Leah is joined by the Podcast Playlist crew to share some amazing podcasts that you may have missed.

Like Once upon a time...at Bennington College. Our senior producer Kate Evans likes it because listening feels like, "a summer page turner, but for a podcast." The show shares the history of the unique Liberal arts college where authors Brett Easton Ellis, Jonathan Lethem and Donna Tartt all went to school together. 

Plus, producer Julian Uzielli shares a heartfelt podcast about a group of Armenian soliders who survived months of being trapped behind enemy lines.

That and more, this week on Podcast Playlist.

Featuring: Once Upon A Time...At Bennington College, Freeway Phantom, The Ballad of Billy Balls, Country Of Dust

For more info, head to cbc.ca/podcastplaylist.

You might have heard of a popular conspiracy theory about one of Canada's most famous rock stars. Avril Lavigne died in 2003, and her record label secretly replaced her with a body double who has been living as an impostor ever since. 

Could it be true? Probably not, but comedian Joanne McNally helps us find out on the new podcast Who Replaced Avril Lavigne. 

Plus, a lot of people think history is boring. Depending on how you were taught, that's pretty understandable. Simply memorizing a bunch of dates or names can make history feel about as dead as that fourth prime minister (whose name you've already forgotten).

To Simone Polanen, the opposite is true– history is all around us, woven into the fabric of everyday life. Simone joins us to talk about her podcasts Past Perfect, a history trivia show, and Not Past It, a story-driven show about the links between the past and the present.

All that and more of this month's top picks, this week on Podcast Playlist.

FEATURING: Who Replaced Avril Lavigne? // City Space // Past Perfect // The Ultimate Choice // The Recipe with Kenji and Deb

For links and more info, head to cbc.ca/podcastplaylist.

This week on Podcast Playlist we're listening to stories about late bloomers.

The first time Jean Westcott auditioned for Jeopardy, she had to wait 18 months to see if she made it. She never got the call. But instead of giving up, she auditioned again… and again… and again… for 20 years. We’ll hear her story.

Plus, what does it take to swim from Cuba to Key West? We’ll hear from record-breaking swimmer Diana Nyad on completing that swim at 64 years old.

All that and more this week.

Featuring: Snap Judgement, This Is Love, Death, Sex & Money, 70 Over 70, Grown from The Moth

For more info head to our website, cbc.ca/podcastplaylist.

This week on Podcast Playlist, we’re featuring podcasts about rock and roll. 

Sister Rosetta Tharpe is often called “The Godmother of Rock and Roll” and inspired artists like Elvis, Johnny Cash, and Aretha Franklin… Yet she’s been largely left out of the history books. The podcast They Did That tells her story.

Plus, churches are often the venue for a unique but hugely influential subset of rock music: Christian rock. PRX’s Rock That Doesn’t Roll explores how contemporary Christian music shaped the youths of Church kids everywhere– in sometimes unexpected ways.

Featuring: Decoder Ring, The Moth, Rock That Doesn't Roll, They Did That, Switched On Pop, Disgraceland

For links and more info, head to cbc.ca/podcastplaylist.

One early morning in December 2010, Tony Carleo rolled up to the Bellagio Hotel and Casino on the Las Vegas Strip. Dressed in a full motorcycle jumpsuit, gloves and helmet, he took out a pistol and robbed $1.5 million worth of casino chips. 

But that wasn’t all. Soon after he returned, and he used the very money he stole to check into the hotel and live like a king – for free.

We’ll hear that story, plus other tales about scammers and thieves, this week on Podcast Playlist.

Featuring: The High Roller Heist, Hot White Heist, Code Switch, Chameleon: Scam Likely, Life Kit

For links and more info head to cbc.ca/podcastplaylist.

When you think of Canadian cultural exports, you probably don’t think of porn. But Montreal is home to a little website you may have heard of: Pornhub. 

On The Pornhub Empire: Understood, we’ll hear the little-known story of the company’s history. Plus, Leah sits down with host Samantha Cole to learn more.

And: Telling personal stories in the form of podcasts can move us, create empathy, and drive positive change...right? Jess Shane isn't so sure. Listen to Leah's conversation with Jess about her new series Shocking, Heartbreaking, Transformative.

All that and more, this week on Podcast Playlist.

Featuring: Shocking, Heartbreaking, Transformative | Sounds Gay | The Pornhub Empire: Understood | Ripple

For links and more info, head to cbc.ca/podcastplaylist.