Best Will Shortz Podcasts (2025)

1
S10E10 - Zach Sherwin, Creator of The Crossword Show 1:20:34

Play Pause

6h ago1:20:34

1:20:34

“ The joy of live performance is that we're all experiencing the same thing together and it unites us as a community.” When I think of crossword puzzles, I think of a quiet, cerebral exercise. It's often a solitary activity, maybe occasionally yelling out if anyone knows a four letter word for "milk's favorite cookie." When Zach Sherwin considered …

1
S10E9 - Legendary Disney Imagineer: Doris Hardoon 1:20:08

7d ago1:20:08

1:20:08

"Guests have become more sophisticated and our product needs to follow suit." Disney Theme Parks have always been at the top when it comes to large scale, interactive entertainment attractions. Doris Hardoon is a legendary Imagineer, and we don't use that term lightly. Her creative vision has graced every Disney Castle Park on the planet, from EPCO…

1
S10E8 - The PuzzleTales of PostCurious with Rita Orlov & Lauren Bello 1:07:51

10d ago1:07:51

1:07:51

"Screenwriting is like a puzzle that the writers are putting together." When a television screenwriter who loves puzzles and immersive experiences turns her attention to creating a boxed puzzle game, the result is beguiling and thoroughly engrossing. The Morrison Game Factory has a deeply intimate and emotional story that pulled at my heartstrings …

1
S10E7 - The Best Escape Room in the World: Jonathan Driscoll and Sacha St. Denis of Escaparium 1:05:48

17d ago1:05:48

1:05:48

" We're evolving the [escape room] experience towards something that's more theatrical, with puzzling, gaming, and immersive art all together." Magnifico is currently (as of November 2025) the top escape room in the world, as voted on by experienced escape room enthusiasts. For 2.5 hours, we were transported to another world where magic is real and…

1
S10E6 - Play as Learning: Breakout EDU with Adam Bellow 1:07:00

24d ago1:07:00

1:07:00

"Bringing the escape room to the classroom." I might be just a teeny bit obsessed with disguising learning as play, and being tricked into learning. There is a joy to figuring things out for yourself, and iterating on past knowledge to further your skills. Besides the fun of solving puzzles, there is also a real sense of collaboration and the payof…

1
S10E5 - Ambitious and Unhinged: Stephen & Stevie Kristof of 60 to Escape 1:11:42

1M ago1:11:42

1:11:42

"Quietly ambitious and a bit unhinged." Somewhere in the Midwest, a talented young couple is quietly building an escape room empire. Their company, 60 to Escape, has over 12 different escape rooms across 3 locations, a puzzle-filled mini-golf experience, and a haunt so extensive and scenic that it was used as the set for a horror movie called Haunt…

1
S10E4 - The Worlds Largest Trivia Contest with Jim "The Oz" Oliva 1:05:52

1M ago1:05:52

1:05:52

" Think of it as a wild Midwestern version of the MIT mystery hunt for a slightly different crowd where people drink quite a bit more." For three whole days, over 10,000 trivia challengers descend on the tiny town of Stevens Point, Wisconsin, for The World's Largest Trivia Contest. The contest runs on the local college radio station at the Univer…

1
S10E3 - Will & Kim Rutherford, Escape Artist Greenville 1:07:28

2M ago1:07:28

1:07:28

"With a performer, players can make their own stories." Will and Kim Rutherford met at a summer pool party while in college. Kim recruited Will to help her win a floaty race across the pool. Alas, they lost. " I thought the floaty race was for fun and apparently it was for, I don't know, life bragging rights or something," says Will. Since then, th…

1
S10E2 - Exploring Stephen Sondheim's Deep Relationship with Puzzles (ft. Barry Joseph) 1:07:29

2M ago1:07:29

1:07:29

"The Shakespeare of our time." Stephen Sondheim practically reinvented musicals with his flair for theatrical storytelling through his lyrics and music. A lesser known fact is that Sondheim also played a huge role in the puzzling world. Before he was famous for musicals like West Side Story, Sweeney Todd, and Sundays in the Park with George, Sondhe…

1
S10E1 - Will Shortz, The Puzzle Master 1:00:58

2M ago1:00:58

1:00:58

"Will Shortz has probably done more to elevate public consciousness of puzzles than any other individual in history." For decades, the name Will Shortz has been synonymous with puzzles. Will Shortz is the crossword editor of The New York Times, the puzzle master on NPR’s Weekend Edition Sunday, and the only person in the world with a college degree…

1
From The Vault: The Nightmare of Eveline Shadow Part 1, Entered & Logiclocks 58:42

3M ago58:42

58:42

The Nightmare of Eveline Shadow was a haunting experience where guests stepped into the nightmarish writings of a horror novelist. They had to navigate a hotel filled with nightmares, while being guided by the narrator’s prompts and scripts. The closure of hotels during the pandemic quarantine era created a golden opportunity for a trio of talented…

1
Season 9, Best of the REPOD Bonus Show 1:12:19

3M ago1:12:19

1:12:19

"I have so many burning questions." Our podcast, Reality Escape Pod, isn't exactly short-form content. Most episodes clock in at over fifty minutes, and yet, I always feel like I didn't get enough time with the guest. "But I've still got some burning questions!" I think to myself. Or maybe I have follow up questions, but I didn't want to interrupt …

1
REPOD Season 9 Key Moments: Editor’s Choice by Steve Ewing 1:09:03

4M ago1:09:03

1:09:03

"Highlighting the most interesting, entertaining, and impactful moments." Have you been feverishly refreshing your podcatcher in anticipation of the return of Reality Escape Pod? Don’t worry, Season 10 of the podcast will be here in the very near future. To pass the time, have a listen to some memorable clips our editor Steve Ewing selected from ea…

1
Leaked! Blood on the Clocktower Bonus Show 51:46

4M ago51:46

51:46

In this episode, David and Peih-Gee were joined by Steve, the creator of Blood on the Clocktower... and they talked a whole lot more about Blood on the Clocktower. The conversation spans the overlaps between Clocktower and Survivor, the difficulties of being the Storyteller, and a potential business opportunity for escape room operators (or people …

1
Any Questions #691: "Goodbyes" 7:57

5M ago7:57

7:57

1
Any Questions #690: "More or less" 4:13

5M ago4:13

4:13

1
Death of a Swinger And Other Mysteries (ft. Reality Escape Pod) 52:05

5M ago52:05

52:05

A few months ago David and Peih-Gee appeared as guests on the Aurelius Whitlock's Murder Mystery Museum. They had learned about the show from our of our Patreon members, and after listening to the show for a few minutes, both of them were convinced that they had to go play. Hosts Marcus and Nathan are a ton of fun, and care so deeply about their sh…

6M ago4:04

4:04

1
S9E11: Top Takeaways from 100 Episodes of REPOD 1:14:22

6M ago1:14:22

1:14:22

" Challenging yourself is how you produce growth in your own life." Countless late nights, occasional tears, and many great conversations later, we did it. We made it to 100 episodes of REPOD! We've had so many incredible guests come on the show, fully willing to share the secret sauce to their success. These guests have been a treasure trove of cr…

6M ago4:11

4:11

1
S9E7: Omescape Sunnyvale's Sarah Zhang 59:07

6M ago59:07

59:07

"It's not about the size of the room, it's about the richness of the details." Whether you're making new robot friends, investigating a haunted school, or cooking up some puzzles, the escape rooms at Omescape Sunnyvale are all absolute bangers. Omescape Sunnyvale is a rare gem in the escape room world. Their games are all massive (or feel massive) …

1
S9E6: Steven Medway, Creator of Blood on the Clocktower 1:07:37

7M ago1:07:37

1:07:37

" It's a quirky and complex puzzle." In the sleepy town of Ravenswood Bluff, on the stroke of midnight during a hellish thunderstorm, you hear a scream. You all rushed to the town square to find that your beloved storyteller has been murdered! This is the work of a nefarious demon... a demon that kills by night and takes on human form by day. Bloo…

7M ago4:19

4:19

1
S9E4: Magical Underworld of NYC, Great Gotham Challenge 1:07:56

7M ago1:07:56

1:07:56

"Hiding interesting objects in plain sight is a hallmark of Great Gotham Challenge." In New York, everyone’s got a story. A gimmick. A hustle. The city’s crawling with characters. Some are just colorful. Others... well, others are part of something bigger. A secret. A puzzle. That hot dog vendor on the corner? A whispered password might just gran…

1
Any Questions #682: "May Day Rhyme Time" 4:18

7M ago4:18

4:18

1
S9E3: Mama Bazooka: Finding Your Muse 55:13

7M ago55:13

55:13

In fact, over the course of the interview, Eric often came back to the importance of finding your inspiration. His two most well-received games were both conceived when an inspiration "lit a fire inside (of him)." He also very candidly tells us about losing that inspiration while in the process of playtesting The Dome, and how he needed to step awa…

1
Any Questions #681: "Planetary names" 4:13

8M ago4:13

4:13

1
S9E2: Empirically Impossible: Neil Patrick Harris & Jonathan Bayme, Box Two 1:33:27

8M ago1:33:27

1:33:27

" Am I really playing with Neil Patrick Harris?" In keeping with the theme of Box Two, Neil Patrick Harris is back for his second appearance on our podcast. And not only that, he also brought a friend. Jonathan Bayme, CEO of theory11, is a longtime collaborator and Neil's bestie. They first met at a magic show Jonathan created for the Nomad Hotel i…

8M ago4:39

4:39

1
Any Questions #678: "Ends with 'mb'" 4:24

9M ago4:24

4:24

1
Any Questions #677: "Seeds" 4:31

9M ago4:31

4:31

1
David Spira on The ESCAPUZZLED Podcast 1:14:57

9M ago1:14:57

1:14:57

A few months ago, David was interviewed by Corey and Helena on the ESCAPUZZLED Podcast, a UK-based show that interviews folks from around the escape room world. They talked about Room Escape Artist, Reality Escape Pod, and covered a wide variety of topics. If you want to hear David pontificating, this is him at his most self-indulgent. If you'd lik…

1
Any Questions #676: "Categories P-A-T" 5:42

9M ago5:42

5:42

1
Spoilers Club: Escape Woods 4:50

9M ago4:50

4:50

In this clip, Lisa and David share their truly wild experience of visiting the outdoor escape rooms of Escape Woods. Listen to the Whole Episode: When you support Room Escape Artist on Patreon at $15 per month (or above), you get access to the Spoilers Club, our exclusive podcast where hosts David Spira and Peih-Gee Law chat in depth with creators …