Big Lives

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Society & Culture
Updated weekly

Every legend has a twist. From pop culture icons to music and comedy greats, award-winning journalists Kai Wright and Emmanuel Dzotsi dig into the BBC archive to unpick the story behind the icons who shape our culture. Each week on Big Lives, Kai and Emmanuel take an iconic figure — from musical trailblazers like David Bowie, Amy Winehouse and Tina Turner to stars of the screen like Richard Pryor, Meg Ryan and Jane Fonda — and dissect their lives. Join them as they see these icons in a new light, uncover deep cuts from the BBC's archive, and learn how each legend set the stage for our contemporary cultural landscape. After all, you can't understand today's culture until you understand the icons who built it. Smart, curious, and full of heart. The Guardian: "A smart and chatty show" The Telegraph: "Presenters sift wittily through the BBC archive" Listen ad-free with a Pushkin+ subscription. Sign up on the Big Lives show page on Apple Podcasts or at pushkin.fm/plus. Subscribe to BBC on Apple Podcasts and on BBC.com.

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Trailer

Introducing Big Lives with Kai Wright and Emmanuel Dzotsi

Big Lives is a show about the cultural giants we think we know - until the archive proves we don’t. Each episode, acclaimed journalists Kai Wright and Emmanuel Dzotsi dive into the BBC’s century‑deep vault of interviews, performances, and forgotten tape to rediscover the humans buried beneath the headlines. Jane Fonda, George Michael, Richard Pryor, Amy Winehouse and more: the people who shaped modern culture, but were flattened into punchlines, scandals, or single defining images. New episodes release on Mondays, starting March 23. Listen ad-free with a Pushkin+ subscription. Sign up on the Big Lives show page on Apple Podcasts or at pushkin.fm/plus. Follow Pushkin on Instagram, LinkedIn or X. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Happiness Lab is serving up scientifically-backed takes this summer that are so hot, even your SPF 50 won’t protect you. With the help of behavioral scientists, historians, and cultural critics, Yale psychologist Dr. Laurie Santos challenges some of our biggest assumptions about what it takes to live a good life. Dr. Laurie explores topics like why we should forget about TMI and lean into oversharing, how dumping small talk makes for better conversations, why the kids these days are actually doing just fine, and how men can establish strong bromances. Each episode unpacks a bold, counterintuitive claim — using research, data, and expert insight to question the conventional wisdom around happiness and wellbeing.

4.6 (53)

Society & Culture
We tell our children unsettling fairy tales to teach them valuable lessons, but these Cautionary Tales are for the education of the grown ups – and they are all true. Tim Harford (Financial Times, BBC, author of “The Data Detective”) brings you stories of awful human error, tragic catastrophes, and hilarious fiascos. They'll delight you, scare you, but also make you wiser. New episodes every Friday.

4.7 (15)

History
On the 250th anniversary of the United States, Revisionist History investigates the overlooked story of what was, at the time, the biggest secession movement in the U.S. since the Civil War. A movement that took place on a small island miles out to sea from New York City. An early example of the politics of resentment that dominates America today. What do you do when a democracy looks like it’s falling apart? Over the course of five episodes, The Staten Island Problem reconstructs the battle for New York City amidst the turbulent early 1990s — the rise of Rudy Giuliani, the peak of the homicide rate, the Wu-Tang Clan, young Donald Trump, and the first Black mayor of New York — all through the prism of the city’s Forgotten Borough. Through colorful characters and never-before-heard archival audio, The Staten Island Problem reveals what can happen when a disgruntled minority manages to take over — and fracture — a democracy. To get early access to ad-free episodes and extra content, subscribe to Pushkin+ in Apple Podcasts or at pushkin.fm/plus. Revisionist History is Malcolm Gladwell's journey through the overlooked and the misunderstood. Every episode re-examines something from the past—an event, a person, an idea, even a song—and asks whether we got it right the first time. From Pushkin Industries. Because sometimes the past deserves a second chance. iHeartMedia is the exclusive podcast partner of Pushkin Industries.

4.9 (100)

Society & Culture
In 2020, the Financial Times exposed a €2 billion fraud at Wirecard, a high-flying German fintech. Many thought that was the end of the story. But for reporter Sam Jones, it was just the beginning. This season on Hot Money: Agent of Chaos, Jones investigates Wirecard’s chief operating officer, who vanished just as Wirecard collapsed. And turned out to also be a Russian spy. From an Ibizan sting operation to an attempted takeover of the Austrian intelligence service, his reporting spirals into a world of warlords, espionage, and disinformation. All in an attempt to answer one question: Who is the real Jan Marsalek? And what does his secret life reveal about the powerful forces he serves?

5.0 (2)

Business
The Last Archive is a show about the history of truth, and the historical context for our current fake news, post-truth moment. It’s a show about how we know what we know, and why it seems, these days, as if we don’t know anything at all anymore. The show is written & hosted by Ben Naddaff-Hafrey, and was created by the historian Jill Lepore. iHeartMedia is the exclusive podcast partner of Pushkin Industries.

4.7 (6)

History
Deep Cover is a show about people who lead double lives. Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Jake Halpern reveals webs of deception and dark underworlds, through interviews with federal agents and convicted criminals. Deep Cover: The Family Man: Elise and Marissa grew up in a seemingly normal house in the suburbs of St. Louis, but it was a house built on secrets. There were things their father never told them—like how he really made his money. One night, the police showed up, raided their house, and seized boxes of evidence. Hours later, the sisters turned on the TV and saw something surreal: their father’s car, in the aftermath of a police chase. The local news identified him as “The Boonie Hat Bandit.” The girls were stunned. They struggled to accept the truth: Dad had been living a double life. How long had he been lying to them? What had he done? And who, exactly, was their father? Deep Cover: The Family Man is a story about the way parents deceive their children and the crimes a desperate father will commit to save his family. It’s also a story about justice—and the question of what punishment these crimes deserve. Deep Cover Presents: Snowball. A special limited series from the Unravel Podcast team at the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Ollie Wards' family lost everything after their brush with a charming Californian con woman. As he embarks on a quest to find out how she did it, why she did it, and where she is now, he opens the door on a mystery that spans decades and across continents. In the sixth season of Deep Cover: The Truth About Sarah, Jake Halpern and acclaimed investigative journalist Jess McHugh unravel an epic six-year deception that upended lives of countless people. Sarah Cavanaugh was many things: A decorated veteran. A Marine who saved her comrades. A young woman fighting cancer. She was stoic, humble, tough. In short: a hero. Sarah was everything people wanted her to be—until she wasn’t. Turns out, no one knew the real Sarah. Not her comrades. Not her wife. No one. Jake and Jess interview all of the key sources—including Sarah, herself—to tell this sprawling tale. Season five covers the rise and fall of George Santos, the former Republican Congressman from New York, and the stories—many of which were not true—he told about his life and credentials. Season four, The Nameless Man, tells the epic tale of two federal agents who investigate a rumor about a murder that supposedly took place 15 years prior. It is also the story of a family searching for answers about why their brother was killed. These two storylines collide in a courtroom in Philadelphia, where murder, memory, and morality go on trial. Season three, Never Seen Again, tells the story of two women living on opposite sides of the country, who went missing in the summer of 1999. Seven years later, their stories collided when a small town detective got a tip and became convinced that if he could solve one mystery, he’d solve the other. Season two, Mob Land, is about a high-rolling lawyer who joins forces with the feds to try to bring down one of the most powerful criminal syndicates in the country. Season one, The Drug Wars, tells the story of an FBI agent who goes undercover with a biker gang, and follows a trail of clues that eventually leads to the US invasion of a foreign country. Deep Cover drops on Mondays. To hear episodes early and ad-free, subscribe to Pushkin+ in Apple Podcasts or at pushkin.fm/plus. iHeartMedia is the exclusive podcast partner of Pushkin Industries.

5.0 (2)

True Crime

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Channel

Pushkin
Creator

Pushkin Industries and BBC Studios
Years Active

2026
Episodes

24
Rating

Explicit
Copyright

2026 2026 iHeartMedia, Inc. © Any use of this intellectual property for text and data mining or computational analysis including as training material for artificial intelligence systems is strictly prohibited without express written consent from iHeartMedia
Show Website

Big Lives
Provider

Pushkin Industries Inc.