We are living in the golden age of podcasts, particularly true crime podcasts, a genre that continues to see a boom.
2022 was no different. So, after the year came to a close, it’s only right we recognise some of the best of its offerings. These are some of 2022’s top new true crime podcasts.
The Catch: The Real Freshwater Five Story
An exclusive from Audible, The Catch: The Real Freshwater Five Story won the award for Best True Crime Podcast at the 2022 British Podcast Awards. Hosted by journalist Raphael Rowe, a man who spent 12 years imprisoned for a crime he didn’t commit, the investigative series explores the story of the Freshwater Five. This group of fishermen from the Isle of Wight was convicted of one of the biggest British drug-smuggling plots in 2011. However, they’ve always maintained their innocence and are fighting to clear their names. Was it a giant miscarriage of justice?
Stolen: Surviving St. Michael’s
From the award-winning investigative reporter Connie Walker comes Stolen: Surviving St. Michael’s. Over eight episodes Walker (whose track record includes her work with CBC investigating crimes committed against Indigenous women), looks into her own past with a story about her late father and Canada’s residential school system.
Sympathy Pains
From Laura Beil, the award-winning host of Dr Death, this six-part investigative series looks into the case of Sarah Delashmit. Delashmit spent years claiming she had various severe medical conditions, as well as other serious misfortunes, taking in co-workers, friends and charities in the process. This is the story of those she lied to and the harm she caused, through the eyes of those directly affected.
The Commune
Winning the Gold award for the best true crime podcast in New Zealand’s Podcast Awards, The Commune is a 12-part series on the free-love commune Centrepoint. Described as not a whodunnit but a whydunnit, the documentary series explores what went on in the notorious commune, as well as its leader and guru, Bert, a man who called himself God.
Chameleon: Wild Boys
In 2003 in British Columbia, two brothers emerged from the woods. Appearing to be starving, claiming they had run away from their parents and were living off the grid, they were welcomed by the local community. But it turned out, it was all a lie. Hosted by Sam Mullins, who has a personal connection to the community and the case, Chameleon: Wild Boys examines who the boys were and how they deceived an entire community.
Burn Wild
Taking in climate change and eco-activism, journalist Leah Sottile hosts this podcast from the BBC, the story of two of America’s most wanted environmental activists, Joseph Mahmoud Dibee and Josephine Sunshine Overaker. While Dibee was caught (his trial a part of the series), Overaker remains on the run. Ultimately, this podcast seeks to make you question how far is too far when it comes to saving the planet.
Death of an Artist
Hosted by art historian Helen Molesworth, Death of an Artist explores the case of Ana Mendieta, who fell from her 34th floor Manhattan apartment window in 1985, during an argument with her husband, the famous sculptor Carl Andre. A prime suspect, Andre was acquitted of the case three years later. With interviews from major figures in the art world, scholars and journalist Robert Katz, who worked extensively on the case, this podcast offers a thorough look into the crime.
What About Holly?
In 1981, the remains of a young couple were found by a student’s dog in woods outside of Houston, Texas. For 40 years, the victims remained unidentified, until late 2021, when they were revealed to be Dean and Tina Clouse. But this was only the start of the mystery. What About Holly? investigates not only the murder of the couple but the disappearance of their 10-month-old daughter Holly.
Finding Tamika
Another offering from Audible, Finding Tamika is hosted by actress and activist Erika Alexander and investigates the disappearance of 25-year-old Tamika Huston, who went missing in 2005. Raising attention to the fact that cases of missing Black women continue to be ignored by both police and the media, this podcast examines how the investigation was handled and how Tamika’s race played a part in its failings. It also includes bigger conversations over what the legacy of her disappearance continues to mean.
Will Be Wild
An eight-part series from Wondery, Will Be Wild takes in the January 6th insurrection. An ultra-thorough examination of all the forces that led up to the infamous events of that day, it includes in-depth stories from numerous people involved - from those who wanted to stop it to those who took part.
The Trojan Horse Affair
A collaboration from Serial Podcasts and The New York Times, hosted by British journalist Hamza Syed and reporter Brian Reed, The Trojan Horse Affair investigates a letter sent to a Birmingham city councillor. The details of the letter: an elaborate plot by Islamic extremists aiming to convert the city’s primary schools into Islamist academies. Was it all a hoax? And if so, why was it used to justify firing Muslim teachers and administrators? Taking its name from the supposed plot’s code name, this podcast examines the case, ultimately asking who wrote the letter and why?
Bone Valley
Hosted by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Gilbert King, Bone Valley is leading a lot of people’s top true crime podcast lists this year. It covers the case of the 1987 murder of Michelle Schofield, whose husband Leo has been incarcerated for the crime. A series about a wrongful conviction, this not only takes listeners through the justice system’s convection based on shaky evidence and subsequent refusal to release Schofield (despite physical evidence pointing entirely elsewhere), it even manages to include a confession from someone thought to be the real killer. In other words, this one has it all.
Check out our true crime podcast hub for podcast features and interviews, plus full episodes of the Murdertown podcast.
