Best Dirty Slides Podcasts (2025)

1
Best of 2025: Don’t call it morning sickness: ‘At times in my pregnancy I wondered if this was death coming for me’ 32:45

Play Pause

1d ago32:45

32:45

Each week for the rest of December we will publish some of our favourite audio long reads of 2025, in case you missed them, with an introduction from the editorial team to explain why we’ve chosen it. From July: the Victorians called it ‘pernicious vomiting of pregnancy’, but modern medicine has offered no end to the torture of hyperemesis gravidar…

1
The snail farm don: is this the most brazen tax avoidance scheme of all time? 33:27

32m ago33:27

33:27

Terry Ball – renowned shoe salesman, friend to former mafiosi – has vowed to spend his remaining years finding ways to cheat authorities he feels have cheated him. His greatest ruse? A tax-dodging snail empire By Jim Waterson. Read by Nicholas Camm. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod…

1
The Birth Keepers: I choose this – episode one 36:59

4m ago36:59

36:59

The Free Birth Society was selling pregnant women a simple message. They could exit the medical system and take back their power. By free birthing. But Nicole Garrison believes FBS ideology nearly cost her her life. This is episode one of a year-long investigation by Guardian journalists Sirin Kale and Lucy Osborne Listen to the full series from Th…

1
‘DeepSeek is humane. Doctors are more like machines’: my mother’s worrying reliance on AI for health advice 32:45

23m ago32:45

32:45

Tired of a two-day commute to see her overworked doctor, my mother turned to tech for help with her kidney disease. She bonded with the bot so much I was scared she would refuse to see a real medic By Viola Zhou. Read by Vivian Full This essay was originally published on Rest of world. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/long…

1
Say Now Talks DM Sliding, Heartbreak Experiences & Hit Single ’Supermarket’ 57:40

2d ago57:40

57:40

In this episode Amelia, Madeleine & Ysabelle from British girl group Say Now discuss how they met, hit single ’Supermarket’, pinch me moments & more! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

1
From the archive: is the IMF fit for purpose? 39:32

2d ago39:32

39:32

We are raiding the Guardian long read archives to bring you some classic pieces from years past, with new introductions from the authors. This week, from 2022: as the world faces the worst debt crisis in decades, the need for a global lender of last resort is clearer than ever. But many nations view the IMF as overbearing, or even neocolonial – and…

1
‘The police weren’t interested’: what’s driving the rise in private prosecutions? 33:27

7d ago33:27

33:27

As the police and courts continue to struggle with the legacy of austerity, many people are seeking alternative routes to justice – but it could be making matters worse By Hettie O’Brien. Read by Rebecca Trehearn. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpodBy The Guardian

1
When I met Craig he was 13 and homeless. I still thought his life might turn around. I was tragically wrong 31:29

4d ago31:29

31:29

I knew he was running away from something. It wasn’t until many years later that I discovered the truth Written and read by Pamela Gordon. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpodBy The Guardian

1
Money talks: the deep ties between Twitter and Saudi Arabia 31:48

5d ago31:48

31:48

Saudi Arabia’s investment in Twitter increased its influence in Silicon Valley while being used at home to shut down critics of the regime By Jacob Silverman.. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpodBy The Guardian

1
Teezee Talks Detty December Scandals, Nigerian vs Ghanaian Women & Lagos Fashion 1:00:31

13d ago1:00:31

1:00:31

In this episode Teezee discusses ups and downs of artist management, sharing locations with your partner, running a business with family & more! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

1
From the archive: A day in the life of (almost) every vending machine in the world 47:46

14d ago47:46

47:46

We are raiding the Guardian long read archives to bring you some classic pieces from years past, with new introductions from the authors. This week, from 2022: what’s behind the indestructible appeal of the robotic snack? By Tom Lamont. Read by Andrew McGregor. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod…

1
‘They take the money and go’: why not everyone is mourning the end of USAID 41:29

8d ago41:29

41:29

When Donald Trump set about dismantling USAID, many around the world were shocked. But on the ground in Sierra Leone, the latest betrayal was not unexpected By Mara Kardas-Nelson. Read by Lanna Joffrey. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpodBy The Guardian

1
‘I knew in my head we were dying’: the last voyage of the Scandies Rose 28:20

15d ago28:20

28:20

When a fishing boat left port in Alaska in December 2019 with an experienced crew, an icy storm was brewing. What happened to them shows why deep sea fishing is one of the most dangerous professions in the world By Rose George. Read by Rosalie Craig. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod…

1
Skyla Tyler Talks Detty December, DJ Icks & Danish Deception 1:00:41

20d ago1:00:41

1:00:41

In this episode Skyla discusses working with Wizkid and Drake, maintaining friendships, dating life & more! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

1
From the archive: ‘If you decide to cut staff, people die’: how Nottingham prison descended into chaos 50:08

21d ago50:08

50:08

We are raiding the Guardian long read archives to bring you some classic pieces from years past, with new introductions from the authors. This week, from 2022: as violence, drug use and suicide at HMP Nottingham reached shocking new levels, the prison became a symbol of a system crumbling into crisis By Isobel Thompson. Read by Simon Darwen. Help s…

1
‘Scamming became the new farming’: inside India’s cybercrime villages 41:11

21d ago41:11

41:11

How did an obscure district in a neglected state become India’s byword for digital deceit? By Snigdha Poonam. Read by Mikhail Sen. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpodBy The Guardian

1
Madame Joyce Talks Pregnancy Scares, Why Lover Girls are Dying & Summer Walker’s Album 1:00:14

28d ago1:00:14

1:00:14

In this episode Joyce discusses Detty December ticket prices, Only Fans creators mental health, Disrespectful Pastors & more! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

1
From the archive: how we lost our sensory connection with food – and how to restore it 35:36

20d ago35:36

35:36

We are raiding the Guardian long read archives to bring you some classic pieces from years past, with new introductions from the authors. This week, from 2022: to eat in the modern world is often to eat in a state of profound sensory disengagement. It shouldn’t have to be this way By Bee Wilson. Read by Lucy Scott. Help support our independent jour…

1
The Pushkin job: unmasking the thieves behind an international rare books heist 40:00

1M ago40:00

40:00

Between 2022 and 2023, as many as 170 rare and valuable editions of Russian classics were stolen from libraries across Europe. Were the thieves merely low-level opportunists, or were bigger forces at work? By Philip Oltermann. Read by Daniela Denby Ashe. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod…

1
‘The jobless should lead the attack’: a radical Jamaican journalist in 1920s London 31:38

1M ago31:38

31:38

Economic insecurity, race riots, incendiary media … Claude McKay was one of the few Black journalists covering a turbulent period that sounds all too familiar to us today By Yvonne Singh. Read by Karl Queensborough. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpodBy The Guardian

1
Moliy Talks Body confidence, Tyla Collab & Dating Life 55:19

30d ago55:19

55:19

In this episode Moliy discusses the backstory to viral song ’Shake it to the Max’, Lessons learnt in last four years, her upbringing & more! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

1
From the archive: ‘We are so divided now’: how China controls thought and speech beyond its borders 40:42

23d ago40:42

40:42

We are raiding the Guardian long read archives to bring you some classic pieces from years past, with new introductions from the authors. This week, from 2021: the arrest of a Tibetan New York city cop on spying charges plays into the community’s long-held suspicions that the People’s Republic is watching them By Lauren Hilgers. Read by Emily Woo Z…

1
Special Edition: Behind the scenes at the Long Read 19:57

30d ago19:57

19:57

To celebrate the launch of the new Guardian Long Read magazine this week, join the long read editor David Wolf in discussion with regular contributors Charlotte Higgins and Hettie O’Brien. The Guardian long read magazine is available to order at theguardian.com/longreadmag In this issue, you’ll find pieces on how MrBeast became the world’s biggest …

1
Counting down to zero: the final warning from a climate diplomat 27:16

1M ago27:16

27:16

Before Peter Betts died in 2023, he wanted to pass on what he had learned over many years of negotiating at Cops – including how Paris 2015 was saved at the last bell By Peter Betts. Read by Andrew McGregor. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpodBy The Guardian

1
Extremely offline: what happened when a Pacific island was cut off from the internet 32:53

1M ago32:53

32:53

A colossal volcanic eruption in January 2022 ripped apart the underwater cables that connect Tonga to the world – and exposed the fragility of 21st-century life By Samanth Subramanian. Read by Raj Ghatak. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpodBy The Guardian

1
From the archive: A drowning world: Kenya’s quiet slide underwater 27:35

1M ago27:35

27:35

We are raiding the Guardian long read archives to bring you some classic pieces from years past, with new introductions from the authors. This week, from 2022: Kenya’s great lakes are flooding, in a devastating and long-ignored environmental disaster that is displacing hundreds of thousands of people By Carey Baraka. Read by Reice Weathers. Help su…

1
‘Americans are democracy’s equivalent of second-generation wealth’: a Chinese journalist on the US under Trump 30:32

1M ago30:32

30:32

Once a stalwart of Hong Kong’s journalism scene, Wang Jian has found a new audience on YouTube, dissecting global politics and US-China relations since the pandemic. To his fans, he’s part newscaster, part professor, part friend By Lauren Hilgers. Read by G Cheng. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod…

1
The human stain remover: what Britain’s greatest extreme cleaner learned from 25 years on the job 30:46

1M ago30:46

30:46

From murder scenes to whale blubber, Ben Giles has seen it – and cleaned it – all. In their stickiest hours, people rely on him to restore order By Tom Lamont. Read by Elis James. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpodBy The Guardian

1
Shenseea Talks How to Boss Up, Davido & Chioma’s Wedding & Maintaining Boundaries 55:07

1M ago55:07

55:07

In this episode Shenseea discusses her dating life, building confidence, cooking skills & more! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

1
From the archive: The queen of crime-solving 41:55

1M ago41:55

41:55

We are raiding the Guardian long read archives to bring you some classic pieces from years past, with new introductions from the authors. This week, from 2022: forensic scientist Angela Gallop has helped to crack many of the UK’s most notorious murder cases. But today she fears the whole field – and justice itself – is at risk By Imogen West-Knight…

1
A critique of pure stupidity: understanding Trump 2.0 25:45

2M ago25:45

25:45

If the first term of Donald Trump provoked anxiety over the fate of objective knowledge, the second has led to claims we live in a world-historical age of stupid, accelerated by big tech. But might there be a way out? By William Davies. Read by Dan Starkey. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod…

1
‘Resistance is when I put an end to what I don’t like’: The rise and fall of the Baader-Meinhof gang 36:37

2M ago36:37

36:37

In the 1970s, the radical leftwing German terrorist organisation may have spread fear through public acts of violence – but its inner workings were characterised by vanity and incompetence By Jason Burke. Read by Noof Ousellam. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpodBy The Guardian

1
From the archive: Who owns Einstein? The battle for the world’s most famous face 48:46

2M ago48:46

48:46

We are raiding the Guardian long read archives to bring you some classic pieces from years past, with new introductions from the authors. This week, from 2022: Thanks to a savvy California lawyer, Albert Einstein has earned far more posthumously than he ever did in his lifetime. But is that what the great scientist would have wanted? By Simon Parki…

1
The origins of today’s conflict between American Jews over Israel 28:35

2M ago28:35

28:35

In the early years, American Jewish support for Israel was a fraught issue. The turning point was the six-day war of 1967, which solidified a strength of feeling that has only recently begun to fracture By Mark Mazower. Read by Kerry Shale. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod…

1
‘I have to do it’: why one of the world’s most brilliant AI scientists left the US for China 54:50

2M ago54:50

54:50

In 2020, after spending half his life in the US, Song-Chun Zhu took a one-way ticket to China. Now he might hold the key to who wins the global AI race By Chang Che. Read by Vincent Lai. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpodBy The Guardian

1
Shank Comics Talks UK Vs Nigerian Men, Streamers University & Struggles of London Living 1:00:18

2M ago1:00:18

1:00:18

In this episode Shank Comics discusses Issues he faces with his Nigerian Passport, dating life, Detty December 2026 and more! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

1
From the archive: ‘Infertility stung me’: Black motherhood and me 33:25

2M ago33:25

33:25

We are raiding the Guardian long read archives to bring you some classic pieces from years past, with new introductions from the authors. This week, from 2022: I assumed I would be part of the first generation to have full agency over my reproduction – but I was wrong By Edna Bonhomme. Read by Nerissa Bradley. Help support our independent journalis…

1
‘What reconciliation? What forgiveness?’: Syria’s deadly reckoning 42:49

2M ago42:49

42:49

Over a few brutal days in March, as sectarian violence and revenge killings tore through parts of Syria, two friends from different communities tried to find a way to survive By Ghaith Abdul-Ahad. Read by Mo Ayoub. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpodBy The Guardian

1
Take away our language and we will forget who we are: Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o and the language of conquest 30:27

2M ago30:27

30:27

The late Kenyan novelist and activist believed erasing language was the most lasting weapon of oppression. Here, Aminatta Forna recalls the man and introduces his essay on decolonisation By Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o with introduction by Aminatta Forna. Read by Kobna Holdbrook-Smith and Aminatta Forna. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.…

1
Boj Talks UK Boarding School, Alté Culture & Black People Timing 59:49

2M ago59:49

59:49

In this episode Boj gives us an exclusive on his new album 'Duplicity', discusses Nigerians born in UK vs Nigeria, wild fan experiences & more! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

1
From the archive: The Blackstone rebellion: how one country took on the world’s biggest commercial landlord 44:48

2M ago44:48

44:48

By The Guardian

1
‘We’ve done it before’: how not to lose hope in the fight against ecological disaster 29:36

2M ago29:36

29:36

Some days it can feel as if climate catastrophe is inevitable. But history is full of cases – such as the banning of whaling and CFCs – that show humanity can come together to avert disaster By Kate Marvel. Read by Norma Butikofer. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod…

1
From bank robber to scholar: the Knoxville dropout fighting to change how we see addiction 31:55

2M ago31:55

31:55

Kirsten Smith was 19 when she first tried heroin; within a few years she was in prison. She says she willingly made bad choices and wants society to stop treating addiction as a disease By Xi Chen. Read by Katherine Fenton. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpodBy The Guardian

1
Madame Joyce Talks Dating In London, Wicked Women & People Pleasing 1:00:34

2M ago1:00:34

1:00:34

In this birthday special Madame Joyce discusses overcoming the need to people please, reflects on her past and future self, the state of the London dating scene and more! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

1
From the archive: Divine comedy: the standup double act who turned to the priesthood 45:08

2M ago45:08

45:08

We are raiding the Guardian long read archives to bring you some classic pieces from years past, with new introductions from the authors. This week, from 2022: Josh and Jack used to interrogate life via absurdist jokes and sketches. But the questions they had just kept getting bigger – and led them both to embark upon a profound transformation By L…

1
‘A climate of unparalleled malevolence’: are we on our way to the sixth major mass extinction? 30:38

2M ago30:38

30:38

Churning quantities of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere at the rate we are going could lead the planet to another Great Dying By Peter Brannen. Read by Lincoln Conway. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpodBy The Guardian

1
Bland, easy to follow, for fans of everything: what has the Netflix algorithm done to our films? 40:58

3M ago40:58

40:58

When the streaming giant began making films guided by data that aimed to please a vast audience, the results were often generic, forgettable, artless affairs. But is there a happy ending? By Phil Hoad. Read by Adam Sims. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpodBy The Guardian

1
Madame Joyce Talks ADHD Bandits, Nando's Dirty Secrets & Weird Food Combinations 55:48

3M ago55:48

55:48

In this episode Joyce discusses friends who share your secrets, breaking the Guiness World Record, Nando's dirty secrets & more! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

1
From the archive: Forgetting the apocalypse: why our nuclear fears faded – and why that’s dangerous 44:32

3M ago44:32

44:32

We are raiding the Guardian long read archives to bring you some classic pieces from years past, with new introductions from the authors. This week, from 2022: The horrors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki made the whole world afraid of the atomic bomb – even those who might launch one. Today that fear has mostly passed out of living memory, and with it we…

1
‘The forest had gone’: the storm that moved a mountain 46:22

3M ago46:22

46:22

On a small ledge in the Swiss mountains, 200 people were enjoying a summer football tournament. As night fell, they had no idea what was coming By Jonah Goodman. Read by Evelyn Miller. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpodBy The Guardian