Which podcast educates you? No Such Thing As A Fish. It’s a font of information you’ll find yourself regurgitating at parties or to your mates in the pub, and it’s funny too. 

Which podcast makes you laugh? I’m a huge admirer of Jon Holmes and his show The Skewer. I’ve known Jon for years since we used to write topical sketch comedy together for BBC Radio 4 and am very impressed by the consistently funny (and award-winning) shows he makes. 

Which podcast makes you sad or angry? In The Dark is a powerful American podcast exploring miscarriages of justice. In season two they took on a case of a black man who had been seemingly framed by a vindictive white prosecutor. Shows like that make me both sad and angry.

Which podcast is your guilty pleasure? I sometimes feel guilty listening to true-crime podcasts as I’m always aware that someone’s suffering or loss has been repackaged as entertainment. I found myself very gripped by the first series of Up And Vanished but then felt a little awkward hearing the host do adverts for comfortable underpants in between discussing someone being murdered.

Name someone who currently doesn’t have a podcast but totally should When I was out in the States recording Uncanny USA recently, I met a former cop whose job had been deprogramming hardcore criminal gang members in LA and then helping them start new lives. He was fascinating. 

Pitch us a new podcast idea in exactly 25 words I go on a mission to find the holy grail. I’ve always fancied myself as a podcast Indiana Jones. Either that, or I find Atlantis!
New episodes of Uncanny USA are available on Radio 4/BBC Sounds every Tuesday; Uncanny is on tour until Monday 22 July; main picture: Zach Thomas.