The Wodcast is a fortnightly podcast exploring the words that shape our lives, cultures, relationships, and imagination. Hosted by Benjamin Aston and Mabel Evans, each episode unfolds into conversations, stories, ideas, and perspectives from writers, thinkers, artists, and cultural voices. From love and belonging to courage, grief, joy, identity, and everything in between, the Wodcast invites you to slow down and look more closely at the language that shapes how we see ourselves and one another.
What this show covers
languageCreativitycommunityAIetymologyStephen FrywritingsongwritingstorytellingTim RicelyricsSyriadisplacementfreedomgrief
What listeners will find here
Stephen Fry on why no word can ever mean exactly what we want
Stephen Fry explores the limits and pleasures of language, from the origins of “happy” to the idea that there are no pure or absolute words. The episode ranges through etymology, translation, writing, storytelling, and AI’s challenge to how we think about minds and meaning.
Tim Rice on how the right words turn songs into cultural memory
Sir Tim Rice joins Wodcast for a conversation about lyric writing, storytelling, and why certain words stay with us for decades. The episode explores titles, rhyme, rhythm, character, and the stories behind lines from works including The Lion King, Evita, Chess, and Jesus Christ Superstar.
Waad Al-Kateab on freedom, exile, language, and imagining life after survival
Freedom is the heart of this conversation with Waad Al-Kateab, who reflects on Syria, displacement, language, and the meaning of home. It moves between personal memory and political reality, asking how words, community, and action shape the futures people fight for.
When success stops fitting: Remi Olajoyegbe on language, grief, and wholeness
This episode explores the gap between outward success and inner truth through a personal conversation with Remi Olajoyegbe. It moves through grief, belonging, leadership, ritual, and the power of language to reshape identity, desire, and transformation.
David Nutt on how words can outweigh evidence in psychedelics and policy
Language, consciousness, and psychedelic science sit at the center of this conversation with Professor David Nutt. The episode explores how terms like psychedelic and empathy shape public perception, policy, and mental health debates, while asking what happens when labels become more powerful than evidence.
Episodes
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