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A very special transatlantic comedy – podcasts of the week

The Pin, AKA Alex Owen and Ben Ashenden, lead a starry mockumentary about deluded comics taking on America. Plus: what makes people do things they shouldn’t?

The Special Relationship (from 4 Aug)
The Pin (Alex Owen and Ben Ashenden) are perfect mockumentary fodder in Audible’s new podcast about a pair of delusional comedians on a mission to break America. Their stand-up routine is interspersed with documentary-style footage as an investigative reporter reluctantly follows their every move with disappointment dripping from every sentence she utters. Meanwhile, Americans make jokes about “British banter”, Harry Potter and Monty Python. Stath Lets Flats’ Jamie Demetriou, Veep’s Sally Phillips, Saturday Night Live’s Cecily Strong, Fred Armisen and more also pop up in the cast. Hannah Verdier

Bad People
Why do people do bad things, and why do so many people want to hear all about them on podcasts? Sofie Hagen (The Guilty Feminist, Made of Human) is out to find the answer, and as a self-confessed true crime lover she’s fascinated by the idea of what makes people evil. Criminal psychologist Dr Julia Shaw gives the expert view, looking back at real cases and giving her perspective on false memories, what it means to be a psychopath and why people confess to crimes they didn’t commit. HV

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from Culture | The Guardian https://ift.tt/30fQtvi
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