The fascinating tale of a heart that died twice: best podcasts of the weekNEWS | 20 October 2026Pick of the week
Heart
This fascinating series opens with the death of a man from a gunshot wound – and the revelation that this isn’t the first time his heart has stopped beating. It previously belonged to another man who died the same way, and who also had the same wife. Hosted by Karen Kilgariff, what follows is an intriguing eight-part tale that veers between a scientific exploration and a gripping true-crime saga. Alexi Duggins
Apple, from Monday 19 October
Inheritance: Fiat
View image in fullscreen Geared up … Gianni Agnelli and his family are under the spotlight in Inheritance: Fiat. Photograph: 2018 Collection/Alamy
Another series of the slick podcast about powerful business dynasties, and the beef behind the scenes of some of the world’s best-known brands. This time, Sofia Bettiza investigates the Agnelli family, sometimes called “the Kennedys of Italy”, who founded the car giant Fiat and were rocked by the death of their powerful patriarch Gianni. Hannah J Davies
BBC Sounds, all episodes out from Monday 19 October
Disclosure: Killer on the Ward
Colin Norris was a Leeds nurse who became known as “the angel of death”, convicted for murdering four elderly patients and attempting to kill two more. But new evidence suggests they weren’t murdered. Louise Shorter investigates, starting with the insulin poisoning of Ethel Hall. Hollie Richardson
Widely available, episodes weekly
The Playground Murder
Journalist Audrey Gillan takes an appropriately delicate approach to the story of a 16-year-old girl murdered by a classmate. Diane Watson died in Glasgow in 1991, but the pain for those who knew her continues. In this six-part BBC Scotland series, Gillan looks not only at the consequences for her killer, but also Diane’s family’s fight to stop the press from defaming their late daughter. HJD
BBC Sounds, all episodes out from Monday 19 October
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Sold a Story
After the first season of this podcast’s reporting on the US educational system, 26 states changed the way they teach reading. Now, education journalist Emily Hanford offers a colourful tale of a US maths experiment that left four-year-olds fluent in algebra – only for it to be shunned. AD
Widely available, episodes weeklyAuthor: Hollie Richardson. Alexi Duggins. Hannah J Davies. Source
