Nothing like podcasts to make a long trip seem too short! These fiction podcasts will keep awake and entertained during the longest journey. And I thought about your kids, too.

I have already shared with you my favourite English-speaking podcast to travel with, a good mix of literature, drama, trivia, feminism and travel. I won’t repeat myself so you can have a look at it if this post is not enough or if you’re looking for a good mix. I will just mention that Limetown, Tanis, The Rabbit, The Last Movie and The Black Tapes deserve to figure on this list.

I listen to all of my English-speaking podcasts on Stitcher but feel free to look for them on other platforms.

If you are listening while driving, please be careful.

Wolverine: The Long Night

Marvel’s superhero may have died a grandiose death on the big screen, we are not ready to let him rest in peace! In the first season of his podcast adventures, Logan finds himself in Burns, Alaska, where a string of mysterious and violent deaths foresee a long, dark night. Nothing is what it seems, and no one is who they say they are. Including special agents Sally Pierce and Tad Marshall from the FBI.

The second season is already entirely available under the name The Lost Trail, following Logan in New Orleans and the Bayou. I find it a bit less gripping, though.

Blackout: Are We Really Alone Now?

In a similar vein as The Edge Of Sleep, Blackout is the story of a small-town radio DJ fighting to protect his family after the power grid went down in the entire country. Stuck in their town, the family and the other inhabitants must learn to survive while being isolated. Some of them are very much ready to take matters in their own hands, with a little help from outside. It takes little to fall back on a backward white supremacy-based kind of authoritarian society, or so it seems.

Starring Academy Award winner Rami Malek.

Passenger List: What happened to Atlantic Flight 702?

Resonating with current events and mysteries such as the missing flight MH370, Radiotopia’s Passenger List follows Kaitlin Le on her desperate quest to find out what happened to her twin brother. He was a passenger on the flight Atlantic 702 that disappeared over the ocean between London and New York in suspicious circumstances. Everyone tries to tell her it was simply a sad accident, but Kaitlin doesn’t buy it. Did her brother get mixed-up in something fishy with terrible consequences? Mixing mystery and a bit of conspiracy theory, Passenger List will keep you hooked!

Lethal Lit: A Tig Torres Mystery

Tig Torres and her father come back to her hometown years after her beloved aunt died. The entire town thinks her aunt killed herself after murdering many people, earning the nickname Lit Killer, as each death would be accompanied by a literary reference. But Tig Torres doesn’t believe it. Her aunt was a brave and inspired journalist. As Tig sets on a podcast-documented journey with her new high-school friends to find out the truth, the real Lit Killer comes back to town.

Maybe more of a show for teenagers and young adults but highly entertaining in any case.

Are your ears in need of a break? Grab a book! Why not take with you Around the World in 72 Days by the fearless American reporter Nellie Bly? Or one of the titles from my 2019 summer reading list?

The Edge Of Sleep

Imagine going for your night shift as usual, and coming back finding out that all the people who went to bed that night have died. What happened? Who is still alive? And who will remain alive if they go to sleep? Maybe not a podcast to listen with your kids if they have troubles sleeping. Or for you right before going to bed. Will you dare to close your eyes after this?

Carrier: Do you know what’s in your truck?

QCode’s latest podcast. An immersive experience following struggling truck driver Raylene. The young African-American single mother of two has followed her father’s steps in the business. Now, she is desperate to go home to look after him at the hospital. When a state trooper pulls her over and out of schedule, she is ready to do anything to find cargo and get right back on her way to Chicago. So, when a mysterious company reaches out and makes an offer, she feels like she has little choice but to take it. However, as soon as she is back on the road, she realizes that what she is carrying is a very special kind of cargo…

You need to listen to this podcast with a good sound system, or even better: earplugs.

Hello From The Magic Tavern: Welcome to Foon

Enough with the murders and other dark conspiracy theories-fueled radio dramas! Time for a good laugh.

About who knows how many weeks ago, Arnie Niekamp fell through a magical interdimensional portal behind a Burger King in Chicago and into the magic world of Foon. Fortunately, he was carrying his audio recording equipment and can still get a wifi signal through the portal. So he sits down at the Vermilion Minautor tavern with his new friends, Chunt the shapeshifting talking badger and Usidore the wizard, and records his own transdimensional podcast. They meet all sorts of creatures, including a murderous troll and a flower, and plot against the Dark Lord who wants to take over Foon. All this won’t help him go back to his wife and daughter but he can at least tell people where he is and what is this whole new world! Or can he?

This podcast is for fans of impro and geeks. It is full of terrible jokes (lots of the first season involves discussions about how many buttholes should one have) and geeky and pop-culture references. I am here for the fake advertising from Foon’s inhabitants and Usidore’s many names!

Eleanor Amplified – For your kids (and let’s be honest, you too)

Four seasons strong, fearless Eleanor continues to bring the best and most important stories to the public! I swear I didn’t realize this show was really for kids until I heard one of the special public recordings in which kids were asking the funniest questions about the show’s characters.

World-famous reporter Eleanor Amplified travels the world to unfold the most mischevious plots and expose strangely attaching villains. This show is ideal to expose kids to fundamental questions in the funniest way: what is journalism? What does a good journalist do? What is fake news? Why should you be careful with what you do with your phone? What to do when on an island during a volcano eruption? Who runs the world? (Kids).

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