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What do you do while you knit?

I have a preference for either watching stuff, or listening to stuff. Since much of my knitting gets done on the train these days, I like to listen to podcasts while I knit. I’ve got a few favourites and I’m always on the lookout for more.

Knitting Podcasts

First there’s the one that got me listening in the first place - Brenda Dayne’s Cast On. It’s very professional sounding; she incorporates music, interviews, ads for other podcasts, reviews and segments. Brenda’s voice is warm and rich, like sticky toffee pudding. Just like sticky toffee pudding, there are times when you can’t get enough of it, times when the serving you get is just right, and times when it’s just too rich. Most of the time, it’s in the “just right” category.

If Brenda is sticky toffee pudding, Lime and Violet are a big bag of Allen’s jelly lollies - Snakes, or Party Mix. Lots of flavours and colours, lots of fun, and good for a quick fix - but eat too much too quickly and it’s a bit sickly. I like L&V in small doses, and I listen to their podcast in two or three parts, because that way I enjoy the fun without beginning to feel irritation at the injokes and the overt zaniness. Admittedly, I probably only feel that way because I’m grumpy in the mornings

Then there’s Sticks and String. David provides a more straighforward podcast, with more meat and less attempting to win the listener over. It’s like a really good quality gourmet pie - steak and Guinness, with delicious flaky pastry, filling and tasty. David has segments, interviews and music as well, but his podcasts are a bit shorter and they’re chock-full of real information; whatever he talks about, he describes, explains or reviews. I’m a big fan of information in my podcasts, so I like his very much.

Non-Knitting Podcasts

My favourite ’serious’ non-knitting podcast is the BBC World Service Documentary Archive. They’re absolutely wonderful, and give a much wider and deeper perspective on the world than through the mainstream media. They’re also absolutely fascinating. I especially recommend downloading some of the older ones if you’re hard pressed for something to listen to. Among the better ones for me were: The New Arab World; By Their Own Hand; Call That Justice; Inside the World of Google.

Betty in the Sky with a Suitcase is a podcast by a flight attendant with a lovely voice, who provides stories from many other flight attendants, pilots and some passengers. Similarly, Fly with Me is a commercial pilot’s podcast, with lots of interesting insights.

And a couple of ABC Radio National podcasts: All in the Mind, which is all about what goes on in our brains and personalities; and Ockham’s Razor, which is presented by the wonderful Robyn Williams and is about… stuff. Basically it’s a guest essay every week; the subjects range from science to religion to art to politics to just about everything else. Good stuff.