The Independent Podcast Awards 2026: shortlist revealed

Now in their fourth year, the Independent Podcast Awards were co-founded by Verbal Diorama and whynow to recognise the grassroots indie talent that wasn’t getting the recognition it deserved elsewhere. Since then the awards have attracted around 2000 entries, shortlisted 600+ podcasts, and celebrated 75 winners. The class of ‘26 winners will be announced on Wednesday 4th November in London, and will add a further 29 podcasts to that tally.

Emma Turner, co-founder of the Independent Podcast Awards said: “It has been another great year for independent podcasts. We had a record number of entries and the judges found it harder than ever to pick the shortlists, which shows how grassroots podcasting is going from strength to strength.”

The awards couldn’t take place without the support of the industry sponsors added the organisers, who in 2026 are the Headline Partner, YouTube; the After Party Sponsor, Acast; the event supporters Advertising Week, AudioUK, Captivate, Rusty Quill and True Fans, along with the Media Partner, Podnews.

The event takes place on Wednesday 4th November at Kings Place in Kings Cross, London. Tickets are on sale now through the Kings Place box office, with both in-person and live streaming options available, and have been frozen at 2025’s prices.

The Independent Podcast Awards 2026 shortlist is as follows:

• Almost 40
• Folk on Foot
• Hellish
• Irish Books
• Mag Hags
• The Failing Writers Podcast
• The Secret Life of Songs
• War Hall: A Theatre of the Mind
• What I Really Really Want
• What the Austen?

• Irish Books
• The Failing Writers
• The Fourth Bookmark
• The Reading Cafe
• Tom’s Book Club

• If You Were In Charge
• Creative Life Story Work - winner
• Dementia Perspective Podcast
• Lighting the Fires Podcast
• The Top Surgery Podcast with Iaonnis Ntanos
• The Ultimate Football Heroes Podcast

• Due Diligence Download
• How to Own the Room
• Indie Business Club
• Made For Us
• Mum Means Business
• Resilient Retail Game Plan
• Stronger Business Together
• The Factory Next Door
• The Fairer Finance Podcast
• What’s the Chari-tea?

• Beatrice Hart and The Curse of the Golden Fleece
• Dexplorers
• Sevenoaks Prepcast
• Taking The Dis
• Chronicles of Wild Hollow: Highperion Day (Vol1)
• The Copper Connection Podcast

• Austen After Dark
• Crushed By Margaret Cabourn-Smith
• Leyline High Rewind
• Limited TIme Only
• Listen Through The Brown Window
• Malcy and Midge - Fun and Frolics with Glasgow's Quirkiest Couple!
• NonCensored
• Ramon Fear's Terror Tapes
• The Rules
• This Paranormal Life

• As The Season Turns
• BatChat
• Folk on Foot
• Our Plant Stories
• Bell Witch Podcast
• BEST FICTION PODCAST
• Broken Veil
• Harford: An Oral History
• Shorts
• Spooky Story Time
• The Kingdom Sleeps
• The Scottish Folklore Podcast

• 90 Minutes Or Less
• All British Comedy
• All The Right Movies
• Dharma Fish Biscuits
• Fetch The Smelling Salts
• SpyHards

• Dice Company
• Dungeons & Dickheads
• PastMaster: Reshaping History
• The Apocalypse Players
• The Players Keep

• Dear Derry
• Dexplorers
• Mag Hags
• The British Broadcasting Century
• The Log Books
• Uncovering Roots

• How Haunted
• Killers Cults & Queens
• Macabre London
• Ramon Fear's Terror Tapes
• Spooky Storytime
• Welcome to the Hole

• A Dose of Wellbeing: The Pharmacist Support Podcast
• Beer Fridge Podcast
• IN RECOVERY - The Ark House Podcast
• Kind
• Not Another Whisky Podcast
• The Tyrekickers
• Voice It Out

• 1000 Words For Belonging
• Anglia Square: The Little City
• Austen After Dark
• Highlands Reimagined
• Mostly Book Talk: The Reading Crisis
• Own My Life
• The Chronicles of Wild Hollow: Hyperion Day
• The Secret Life of Songs
• Uncovering Roots: The Paraguay Scheme
• What I Really Really Want
• Who Owns the Clyde: Clyde Reflections

• 101 Part Time Jobs with Giles Bidder
• Bob Dylan Approximately
• Hellish
• If These Walls Could Talk
• The Secret Life of Songs
• War Hall: A Theatre of the Mind

• American Friction
• Fallacious Trump
• If You Were in Charge
• Take or Give
• The Tea with Myriam Francios
• The Trawl

• Alphabites
• Lessons from Our Mothers
• Love Needs No Words
• Neuroshambles
• Parent Teacher Loop

• 1000 Words for Belonging
• 40ish
• Becky & Ben’s Fertility Spotlight
• Dear Derry
• Do I Detect A Problem?
• In Recovery - The Ark House Podcast
• Keep It Grief
• Spooky Story Time
• Still Life
• You Look Happier

• Dear Derry
• Great Days Out on the Bus from Buxton
• Highlands Reimagined
• In Tune with Tradition
• The Nature Garden
• The Sheppertonian

• Made For Us
• Marketing B2B Technology
• Somewhere on Earth: The Global Tech Podcast
• The Ballpark - Artificial Intelligence and the US
• Websites Made Simple

• Believe in People Podcast | Addiction, Recovery and Stigma
• How to Own The Room
• Hurt to Healing
• In Recovery: The Ark House Podcast
• The Lighting Fires Podcast
• Voice it Out Podcast with Amrita
• When Life Gives You Lemons
• WomenKind Collective: Spill the Tea

• Austen After Dark
• Come Curious
• Crushed by Margaret Cabourn-Smith
• Sexonomic
• Telling Tinder Tales - dating and romance stories from around the world

• Board Women
• Grand Pricks
• Green Jumper
• Hospital Ball
• Top 100 in 10 Golf

• Do I Detect A Problem
• Great Days Out On The Bus From Buxton
• Mind The Pod
• The Adventure Podcast
• The Ski Podcast
• The Water Road

• Ghastly Women
• Killer in the Family
• Murder Mile UK True Crime
• Prash’s Murder Map
• REAL
• The Overturn

• Books on the Beach
• Killers, Cults, Queens
• Mná na hÉireann (Women of Ireland)
• Prash’s Murder Map:True Crime Podcast
• Vintage Politics
• What we did before

• BenLunar
• Fallacious Trump
• Great Days Out On The Bus From Buxton
• Hail Chaos
• Hellish
• Santa Confidential
• STAN
• The Chronicles of Wild Hollow
• The Factory Next Door
• The Kingdom Sleeps

• 101 Part Time Jobs
• Beer Fridge Podcast
• BenLunar
• Dexplores
• Folk on Foot
• Garlic & Pearls
• Keeping The Zoo
• The Bell Witch Podcast
• The Failing Writers Podcast
• The Uncharted Sounds podcast

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