The podcast for sceptics

Science Fictions
This weekly UK series is properly nerdy stuff. Artfully hapless (but smart and credentialed) presenters, Tom Chivers and Stuart Ritchie, unmask bad science and interrogate over-hyped media stories. The vibe is chatty, but with a rigorous approach to exposing misinformation and disinformation (they even have an episode putting these terms through the wringer). Go-to segments include ‘Medical Marijuana’ and ‘Oliver Sacks’ (impressive takedown). ‘Critical Thinking’ is a good starting point for sceptical minds. Bonus: Ritchie is a Scot with a David Tennant-like burr and the duo’s banter makes science approachable.

The podcast for your inner child

Ologies With Alie Ward
A comedic but super-brainy podcast with Emmy Award-winning science writer and TV host Alie Ward. We defy you not to be enthralled and charmed by the recent episode on asinology (donkey studies to you and me) with guest expert Faith Burden. These are single-topic deep dives (from ‘Why Teeth Exist’ to ‘Sexually Transmitted Infections’), running for 60 to 90 minutes. And for actual kids, there is baby sister pod, Smologies (aww!): shorter episodes, ‘all the science with none of the swearing’.

The podcast for sci sleuths

Unexplainable
If you love mysteries, this twice-weekly show is for you. Featuring investigative science reporting from the field and, in the case of recent episode ‘The Amazing Extremophiles’, that field work may involve wading through inner-city toxic sludge, otherwise known as ‘black mayonnaise’. The reporter-led production team points out that scientists don’t know what 95% of the universe is made of, which is both terrifying and thrilling. Slick production from Vox, with multiple hosts probing the unknowns of the science world.

The podcast for time-pressed listeners

Science Weekly
The award for science pod with the most boring name goes to Science Weekly. Don’t be put off: The Guardian’s offering is deeply reported, expert-heavy and so well-produced it delivers an intelligent hug for the ears. From ‘Why We Have Chins’ to ‘What Bots Talk About When They Think Humans Aren’t Listening’, this is reassuringly non-cranky stuff. Produced in the UK, so more relevant than the dominant US pods.

The podcast for over-ear headphones

Radiolab
If school science lessons were this much fun, we’d have paid more attention. US show Radiolab is so sonically rich (think interview clips smooshed with a symphonic soundtrack, then spliced with factoids), it’s as if Nile Rodgers produced it. Topics are fun and intriguing, from the pop psychology of self-esteem to the science of symmetry, or the reason why website servers mimic the actions of honey bees. Expertly researched, the only downside is the over-animated presenting style (to non-American ears) of co-hosts Lulu Miller and Latif Nasser.

The cosy science podcast

The Curious Cases Of Rutherford And Fry
Few things are more reassuring (or more BBC) than listeners sending in questions and presenters answering them in chummy and erudite fashion. Enter Hannah Fry, the most famous mathematician ever (at least right now), and Adam Rutherford (or possibly Dara Ó Briain who took over from Rutherford after 21 series, with the show renamed Curious Cases). Anyway, this podcast has covered déjà vu, the maths of present wrapping and Victoria sponge baking; basically everything the caller from Surrey could wish to know. With 24 series, there’s plenty to stick on in the car and entertain the family.

Related articles

• Helen Sharman on becoming Britain's first astronaut: 'We could have damaged our spacecraft and never returned to Earth'
• Gayle Chong Kwan on The Great Instauration: 'There is a joy in bringing these things to the fore'
• Paul Dale: 'Sci-fi, particularly in its televisual long form, is many things to many people'