Top 5 podcasts of 2024: All our top picks that had the nation talking

There’s no better way to catch up on the latest and greatest stories and gossip from around the world than through a gripping podcast.

So whether you’re throwing on a pair of headphones while doing the housework or blasting it through your car speakers on a long drive, here are some of the best series that had the nation talking throughout 2024.

Shameless

Described as a pop culture podcast for smart people who love dumb stuff.

And it seemed there were a lot of us who indeed love dumb stuff as, according to Triton’s Australian podcast ranker, there were — on average — at least more than 500,000 listeners a month this year.

Hosted by Michelle Andrews and Zara McDonald, the pair chat about anything and everything from what your 30s look like to celebrity lawsuits.

Listeners love the podcast for being “entertaining and educational”.

As one said: “Long-time weekly listener and I never miss an episode. So amazed by what they have achieved! Am going to be lost when they go on Christmas break.”

Another fan added: “All the sugar and spice we need to get us through our week.”

Call Her Daddy

As one of the most listened-to podcasts by women, Alex Cooper creates conversation by “cutting through the bullsh*t” with a range of topics and celebrity guests.

Cooper asks the burning questions her listeners want the answers to.

While some might call it just another podcast to go viral on TikTok it has certainly had some impact as Cooper gets access to some of the world’s biggest names and builds a rapport that shows off her interviewing talent. Cheeky, unflinching and confident, Cooper has secured the likes of Miley Cyrus, Julia Fox and Kamala Harris.

The Imperfects

On this podcast, Hugh van Cuylenburg, founder of The Resilience Project, chats to a range of thought-provoking people who are willing to get vulnerable by sharing personal struggles and imperfections.

Along with his good friend Ryan Shelton, they then discuss some valuable takeaways for people to apply in their lives.

Guests on the show this year have included Pat Cummins, Michael Klim, Poh Ling Yeow, Zan Rowe, Grace Tame, Nathan Buckley, Peter Bol and Jim Rogers.

One listener raved about the Jim Rogers episode where the 55-year-old talks about his diagnosis with younger-onset dementia, saying: “I hope the episode with Jim Rogers becomes the most listened-to podcast episode of the year, a truly amazing, emotional, joyful and heartbreaking episode.”

Noble

A true-crime fan working for The New Yorker has listed this podcast as their favourite for the year.

Atlanta-based journalist Shaun Raviv takes listeners through a gripping story of the 2002 discovery of 339 dead bodies scattered across the grounds of a regional Georgia crematorium.

It was one of the biggest and most expensive investigations in the history of the American South.

“(Noble) tells a riveting, troubling story ethically and with respect for the people at its heart,” TNY wrote.

Hysterical

From director and film producer Dan Taberski comes this new sharp podcast that revisits the story of a mysterious contagion that spread among a group of high-school girls in Western New York about 10 years ago.

It’s likened to something similar to Tourette’s syndrome but eventually, the girls are deemed to be suffering from a case of “mass hysteria”.

The seven-part series examines the outbreak in Leroy believed by some to the most severe case of hysteria since the Salem Witch Trials. Taberski and his team of producers thoughtfully examinations the human fear of the unknown — and what that fear does to people.