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How male celebs really feel about their bodies – podcasts of the week

<span>Photograph: Ian MacNicol/Getty Images</span>
Photograph: Ian MacNicol/Getty Images

Picks of the week

Manatomy
Danny Wallace and Phil Hilton’s podcast about men and their appearance goes beyond the usual “dad bod” conversation, as a range of celebrities reveal their insecurities and triumphs. Guests include Sir Chris Hoy, Tim Minchin and Jason Manford. First up is Jameela Jamil, who is particularly good value when covering the dad-as-idiot TV trope as well as recounting seeing actors paint on their six packs. She doesn’t hold back on her mission to prevent men facing the same body pressures as women have. Hannah Verdier

What The F*** Is Going On …? with Mark Steel
Mark Steel’s new podcast sees the comic pose that very question to his guests, with government u-turns and culture wars providing him with much to rant and rave about (a monologue on anti-vaxxers, “who drink water that’s come through pipes that have been there since Queen Victoria” and take illegal drugs, is particularly astute). Steel’s son Elliot, 25, offers a ‘youth’ perspective, while Peep Show’s Isy Suttie and Guardian columnist Owen Jones are among those who join him as he speaks gruff truth to power. Hannah J Davies

Producer pick: The Other Latif

Chosen by Danielle Stephens

Guantanamo Bay.
How exactly did Abdul Latif Nasser get here? ... Guantanamo Bay. Photograph: Thomas Watkins/AFP/Getty Images

Radiolab’s The Other Latif passed me by in March 2020 when it first came out, but this week I saw a tweet from the show’s presenter Latif Nasser announcing some news that intrigued me (I’m not giving any spoilers). The premise of the show lies with Latif finding out that his one and only namesake in the US is actually detainee 244 at Guantanamo Bay. What follows is Latif’s journey to figure out exactly how Abdul Latif Nasser got to where he was – 15 years incarcerated in one of the most notorious prisons in the world without trial, or even charge.

In trying to figure out whether detainee 244 really is the monster the US government painted him to be, presenter Latif takes a broader look at American values and the system that allows a man to be held with sketchy evidence at best.

Talking points

  • Guardian columnist Marina Hyde made a rare appearance on Today in Focus to discuss the political mayhem of the past five years (and liken Theresa May to Vin Diesel) for Anushka Asthana’s last episode before new presenters Nosheen Iqbal and Michael Safi take the helm.

  • Why not try: Blind Landing | RedHanded

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