Criminal is part of the Radiotopia network, a selection of well-produced shows from hosts that all have wonderfully smooth and captivating voices. I have listened to a few of them over the weeks and months, and Criminal is one of the few that has stuck. They describe themselves as a podcast with a different take on crime. This, from the about page:

Criminal is a podcast about crime. Not so much the “if it bleeds, it leads,” kind of crime, but something a little more complex. Stories of people who’ve done wrong, been wronged, or gotten caught somewhere in the middle.

That’s exactly what is great about it. Sometimes the stories are from people affected by crime, sometimes it’s by the criminals themselves, occasionally it is of crimes that are ongoing, more often they have taken place and are worthy of investigation.

This is no Serial, we’re not trying to overturn convictions or highlight failings in the system, it’s more about just shining a light on the many different facets that make up crime. Truth and lies, good and evil, justice and redemption, there’s a fine line between all these things and that’s the line the podcast explores. And it’s all hosted by someone called Phoebe Judge, it couldn’t be more perfect.

Recent episodes include the legality of keeping a tiger at your truck stop for entertainment, how to deal with a relentless stalker when you’re just trying to talk about Harry Potter, and one of my favourites, the legal and not-so-legal ways to get hold of some incredibly limited edition alcohol.

Criminal is full of oddities and fascinations, told without judgement or prejudice, and it’s well worth a listen.