Best BBC Podcasts, and How to Listen Outside the UK
Sixteen BBC podcasts checked on the BBC's own pages: which are still running, which are complete, and where to hear them now that BBC Sounds is UK-only.
Start with You’re Dead to Me if you want to enjoy yourself, and with the Global News Podcast if you want to know what happened today. Both are free and still putting out new episodes.
Where you listen depends on where you are. BBC Sounds closed to listeners outside the UK on 21 July 2025, and the BBC now sends everyone else to BBC.com and the BBC app. Every podcast below has a page on BBC.com that opened for us in Nigeria, and each one is also in Apple Podcasts under the BBC’s own feed.
How to listen outside the UK
The BBC Sounds help pages say it plainly: “BBC Sounds has closed for listeners based outside the UK.” The BBC Sounds site itself now tells visitors from abroad to use BBC.com or the BBC app. These are the routes the BBC gives.
- BBC.com/audio and the BBC app. The BBC says they carry over 1,000 current and archived BBC podcasts, plus Radio 4 and the World Service live. You do not need to sign in to listen. A BBC account is needed to follow, save or download, and downloading is done in the BBC mobile app.
- Your usual podcast app. The BBC says its podcasts are also on third-party podcast services, and that listening on non-BBC platforms is not affected by the change.
- Live radio. Radio 4 and the World Service play on BBC.com. For Radio 1, Radio 2, 5 Live and the rest, the BBC’s page on the change has a direct link to every station.
Three things to know before you go looking. Outside the UK, BBC podcasts carry adverts; the BBC has run them on podcasts delivered abroad since 2018. Some programmes are missing abroad because the BBC does not hold the rights to offer them internationally. And a VPN is not the fix it sounds like: the BBC says that when it detects one, it may block BBC Sounds altogether.
If you live in the UK, BBC Sounds is still where you listen, and the BBC says the app keeps working on holiday abroad for around a month.
BBC podcasts at a glance
| Podcast | What it is | New episodes |
|---|---|---|
| Global News Podcast | World news from the BBC World Service | Twice a day on weekdays, daily at weekends |
| Focus on Africa | Two African news stories, explained | Daily |
| The Documentary Podcast | World Service documentaries | All year round |
| You’re Dead to Me | History with a comedian and a historian | Yes |
| In Our Time | A seminar on one idea, person or event | Yes, hosted by Misha Glenny |
| Witness History | One moment in history in about nine minutes | Every weekday |
| A History of the World in 100 Objects | World history told through 100 things people made | Complete |
| The Infinite Monkey Cage | Science with comedians on the panel | Yes, a 35th series with guest presenters |
| Tech Life | How technology is changing daily life | Weekly |
| The Interface | Apps, gadgets, algorithms and internet culture | Yes, in its second season |
| The Missing Cryptoqueen | The hunt for the woman behind OneCoin | 16 episodes so far |
| World of Secrets | One BBC investigation per season | Yes, a new season is under way |
| Cyber Hack | Hacking gangs and the money they take | In seasons; four so far |
| 50 Things That Made the Modern Economy | Short histories of inventions and ideas | Complete |
| Good Bad Billionaire | How the very rich made their money | Weekly |
| 6 Minute English | English practice built around one topic | Weekly |
News
Global News Podcast. The World Service’s round-up of headlines and current affairs, with politics, business, climate, technology and health in the mix. It comes out twice a day on weekdays and once a day at weekends, with extra episodes when a big story breaks.
Focus on Africa. The BBC’s own description is two essential stories to round off your working day, explaining the news from Africa. Nkechi Ogbonna hosts. For readers in Nigeria this is the BBC podcast most likely to cover something that happened near you.
The Documentary Podcast. The pick of the World Service’s documentaries, built around the people living each story. The BBC says it runs every week, all year round, so there is no off season to wait out.
History
You’re Dead to Me. The BBC calls it the comedy podcast that takes history seriously. Greg Jenner sits a comedian next to an expert historian and they work through one subject, from medieval Korea to the history of tea. It is from Radio 4 and has been going since 2019.
In Our Time. The BBC’s line for it is “a world-class seminar, every week”. Misha Glenny now hosts the new episodes with a panel of academics, and the feed also carries his picks from the archive, which Melvyn Bragg presented. The feed goes back to 1998, so you will not run out.
Witness History. One event, told by someone who was there, in around nine minutes each weekday. It is the easiest show here to fit into a commute.
A History of the World in 100 Objects. Neil MacGregor, then director of the British Museum, tells the story of humanity through 100 objects, one per episode. The series finished in 2010, with an “Object 101” added in 2020. There is a catch for listeners abroad: BBC.com lists only two episodes. The BBC’s podcast feed still has all 100, so use a podcast app for this one.
Science and technology
The Infinite Monkey Cage. A panel of scientists and comedians takes one subject per episode, from nuclear fusion to eels. Brian Cox and Robin Ince presented it through series 34. The BBC’s pages announce a 35th series with Adam Rutherford and the comedian Jessica Fostekew as guest presenters.
Tech Life. The World Service’s weekly technology programme. It reports on how technology changes the way people work, learn and play around the world, and says it holds the tech giants to account. Its recent episodes lean heavily on AI.
The Interface. A newer and lighter show about apps, gadgets, algorithms and whatever the internet is obsessed with that week. BBC technology journalist Thomas Germain and Professor Jessica Maddox host the second season.
Crime and investigations
The Missing Cryptoqueen. Dr Ruja Ignatova persuaded millions of people to buy into her cryptocurrency, OneCoin, and then disappeared. Jamie Bartlett has been looking for her since 2019. It began as eight episodes and the BBC keeps adding to it: the feed now runs to 16.
World of Secrets. Each season is one BBC investigation. Earlier seasons covered the former boss of Abercrombie & Fitch and Mohamed Al Fayed at Harrods. The newest, Catching My Teacher, follows students at boarding schools in Indonesia.
Cyber Hack. This is the show that used to be called The Lazarus Heist, about the Lazarus Group, the hackers investigators link to North Korea and blame for raiding the Bank of Bangladesh. It now takes a different hacking gang each season, with Evil Corp and The Conti Files following the two Lazarus seasons. One episode of the second season is titled Hushpuppi.
Money
50 Things That Made the Modern Economy. Tim Harford on the inventions and ideas behind the economy we live in, such as the diesel engine and the Gutenberg press. It is finished, and all of it is still there to hear.
Good Bad Billionaire. BBC business editor Simon Jack and the journalist Zing Tsjeng take one billionaire per episode, explain how the money was made, and then judge whether the person is good, bad or just another billionaire. Subjects range from Beyoncé and Cristiano Ronaldo to MrBeast.
Learning English
6 Minute English. A weekly conversation about one topic, with the useful words and phrases explained along the way. The BBC has a whole shelf of these on BBC.com, including Learning English Grammar, Learning English Vocabulary and Learning English from the News.
What happened to our old list
Two podcasts from the earlier version of this list are no longer BBC shows.
- That Peter Crouch Podcast. The BBC’s feed stops in May 2021, at 79 episodes. The show carries on elsewhere: Apple Podcasts lists a second feed of the same name, published by Tall or Nothing, and that one is still releasing episodes. For football from the BBC, Football Daily from 5 Live is the running show.
- BBC Earth Podcast. A search of the BBC’s site did not find it. Apple Podcasts lists it under BBC Earth with 50 episodes, the last from December 2022.
If you would rather have live radio than podcasts, see our list of radio apps for Android. And two of the BBC’s Africa Eye films are in our list of documentaries on YouTube.
Where to start
- If you pick one: You’re Dead to Me. Every episode stands alone, so you can start with whichever subject you like.
- If you are in Africa: Focus on Africa.
- If you want one story from start to finish: The Missing Cryptoqueen, in order from episode one.
- If you have ten minutes: Witness History.
- If you follow tech: Tech Life for the reporting, The Interface for the arguments.
- If you are learning English: 6 Minute English.
Quick answers
Can I use BBC Sounds outside the UK?
No. The BBC closed BBC Sounds to listeners based outside the UK on 21 July 2025. People who live in the UK can still use the app abroad on holiday for around a month.
How do I listen to BBC podcasts outside the UK?
On BBC.com/audio, in the BBC app, or in a podcast app such as Apple Podcasts. No sign-in is needed to listen on BBC.com.
Are BBC podcasts free?
Yes. Outside the UK they come with adverts.
What are the best BBC true crime podcasts?
From this list, The Missing Cryptoqueen, World of Secrets and Cyber Hack. BBC.com also has a True Crime category with more.
Can I download BBC podcasts to listen offline?
Yes. The BBC says its mobile app has a Download option on each episode’s page, and you need a BBC account to use it. A podcast app will download them too.
If something here is out of date, tell us and we will fix it.
