I have always been a huge fan of podcasts, I have listened to podcasts as far back at 2008 I think it was although I never really listened to them until a few years later. My first real introduction to the world of podcasts was when I was in my last year of university and had to spend hours in the classroom with two of my friends working on our coursework into the very early hours of the morning. It would just be the three of us, myself, Matt and Tom and whilst we were working, the podcasts of The Ricky Gervais show was blasting out into the room. It was in the moment I realised that podcasts can create so much comedy and can really sort of act like a ‘best friend.’ It also sort of created a special bonding moment between the three of us and I am still very much close friends with them today.

Over the years, I have learnt that podcasts can really be so much more then the ‘laugh’ and whilst I do listen to a lot of podcasts to help get me through the tough days, the good days and the times I have to work through the night, I also have found that it can be so much more.

Over the years, the idea of what a podcast is has obviously developed, especially with the pandemic and so many more have arisen and so much more content is now available and in a saturated market it can be hard to find really good shows. I have learnt that sometimes episodes of certain podcasts can really have an effect and over time I have shown my appreciation for these episodes on my social media channels.

We have spoken before about the podcast episode that inspired me to start writing this feature, and you can read more about it here. This week we look at a podcast episode that had people giving me funny looks in public…

Podcast Episodes That Changed My Life –
Episode: Mates
Podcast: Tom Craine’s Story Show

I came across Tom Craine a long time ago, back in the early 2010’s Josh Widdicombe had a radio show on Radio X (it was XFM at the time) and I came across the podcast series by accident and it was the best thing I ever found as it was pure magic.

From this podcast which was highlights of the radio show, I discovered so many comedians that have become some of my favourites just because of how funny they were on the show. James Acaster was the star with his Classic Scrapes segments and many times I was laughing my head off to his stories, Nish Kumar’s stories about conspiracy theories always made me giggle along to his infectious laugh and Joe Lycett’s section where he would read segments of celebrity autobiographies actually persuaded me to read more of them because he made them so funny. Yes, this podcast basically melded my comedy tastes and gave me a chance to see them all live before they all hit the big time on television and in the stand up world.

There was another comedian that was always on the show and that was none other then Tom Craine, he was another comic that was a pleasant to listen to and it always created some great content that I became an instant fan. Throughout the years, I have followed his and Josh’s work, everything from the Josh Television show, Hypothetical to the podcast My Favourite Takeaway, however there is one particular thing that he created that I was a huge fan of and I wish it was still around because it was so hilarious but try as I might I cannot find it anymore and it makes me very sad but I still feel that today we have to mention it because I have so much to say about it and it deserves to be put into this article feature.

“…I was listening to this on a crowded train in London and burst out laughing so loud I got some very weird looks…”

Tom Craine’s Story Show is a podcast where he talks to two comedians in each episode and they all tell a different story depending on the topic that the show is about. In total, there was only 42 episodes and I would say you can check the out online but you can’t! I have spent ages looking for them and just cannot find them anywhere which is such a shame. There is one episode that will always stand out to me more then the rest of them and that is the episode starring Alex Brooker and Tiernan Douieb about the subject of Mates.

The most annoying thing is, that I forgot about this podcast until the last month and I was so gutted when I went to try and relisten to this episode and I remember very vividly that this was an episode I listened to a lot. In 2013, I was starting out in television and was working gruelling shifts as a runner and there was a lot of tough days and when they happened podcasts were the things that pushed me through. (You can read more about this on the podcast article I wrote about Talk Easy )

I really cherished when I found podcasts that made me laugh, it is these early experiences that have actually made me still listen to podcasts that create comedy out of nowhere and you will discover that there are a lot that will be written about in this article.

Luckily for me and for you readers, I actually wrote about this podcast on the week it was released so I can actually tell you more about it by looking at the archives of The Phoenix Remix! Now, this podcast was actually released in 2015 but the comedy in the episodes still got me through the tough days. Here is a quote of what I said about the podcast when I was advertising it for ‘podcast of the week’ in January of that year:

With this podcast every episode you are welcomed by a cheery Tom, sometimes stumbling over his words, but not in a bad way in a great way as you can tell that he is excited about the guests, the show and the stories up ahead. The only thing if I had to criticise the show I would say is that I personally feel it Is not long enough. They are about 20 minutes each which is great if you want a short little comedic blast in the morning but I feel as soon as you’re really getting into it, it unfortunately ends.

“…Tom Craine, was another comic that was a pleasant to listen to and always created some great content that I became an instant fan...”

In this article, I also came across a review of episodes that I enjoyed the most and whilst I cannot listen to it with fresh ears, I hope that this description I have written about the episode Mates is enough for you:

In this episode, Alex Brookers story is so funny that I was listening to this on a crowded train in London and burst out laughing so loud I got some very weird looks. Usually I can keep my laughter in or be able to silently laugh to myself but the story was so unexpected I sort of just burst. If you want a similar experience to that then you must listen to this episode.

That quote there is the reason I had to mention this podcast because this episode was one of and still is one of the funniest podcast episodes I have ever heard. I am so annoyed that I cannot remember the story but I know for a fact that I listened to this episode more then once and every time it had the same effect where I would laugh so much that I had to make sure that I wasn’t in a public space because of the weird looks I would get from other members of the public.

This episode changed my life because it gave me a reason to laugh, it was always there when I needed it and it was a show that I will always be thankful for because it was so unique. I think it is important to hold onto those things that make you laugh out loud as you know if it happens once it will happen again and again and again. It is such a shame that this podcast is not available anymore, however I want to take this opportunity to thank Tom Craine for creating something that gave me so much joy for a section of my life.