The Best New True Crime Podcasts of 2022!
These are the true crime investigative Podcasts that I have been binging on in December 2021 and continue to follow into the new year! I am sure they will have you hooked from the first episode. True crime is my most listened to genre of Podcast by a long shot so these recommendations are top notch!
1. Inside The Crime: The Whelan Family Story with Frank Greaney for Newstalk.
On Christmas morning 2008 the Whelan family’s lives changed forever. Christy Whelan and his wife Nancy lost their beloved daughter Sharon Whelan and her two beautiful children, their grandchildren, Zarah and Nadia. Sharon, Zarah and Nadia were murdered by a local postman, 23 year old Brian Hennessy. As you may have already surmised, this Podcast is extremely sad, absolutely heartbreaking. We hear directly from Christy and Nancy and other Whelan family members as they tell us about the events leading up to Christmas 2008 and the day their world shattered.
In this Podcast:
“Frank Greaney investigates the murders of Sharon Whelan and her young daughters Zarah and Nadia on Christmas morning 2008.” (Source here).
Host Frank Greaney is excellent throughout this Podcast. He allows the interviewees to speak without interruption, allowing their story to unfold, raw and unfiltered. Grief is a major theme throughout the Podcast. Below is a quote from Frank Greaney:
“The grief that lives with the Whelan’s is unimaginable, you wouldn’t wish it on your worst enemy and even after spending all this time with them, I still can’t even begin to understand what they are going through.” (Quote from Frank Greaney Podcast Episode 5).
And the following is another poignant quote from Sharon’s brother John, again about grief:
“Time allows you to live and adjust and to live your life in a separate way, with the grief, it is not going to go away, its always going to be there but its how you live with it and how you choose to live with it.” (Quote from John Whelan, Podcast Episode 5).
This is a Podcast that will stay with you long after you have finished listening.
2. The Making of a Detective - Hosted By Stephen Breen for The Irish Sun.
This true crime Podcast discusses five of Ireland’s most serious murder cases, all of which involved (and were solved by) the work of one particular Garda by the name of Pat Marry. Pat Marry spent over thirty years with An Garda Síochána and is highly respected and acknowledged for his work and success in solving many crimes.
“What exactly happens on the hunt for a killer? The Making Of A Detective tells the story of 5 of Ireland’s most notorious murder cases, told through the lens of the man who once solved them. In over three decades working in An Garda Síochána, Pat Marry has seen it all. Each episode features a step-by-step account of how justice was ultimately served, with interviews from victims’ friends and family, Pat’s former colleagues in the force, and The Irish Sun’s Stephen Breen to help tell these stories one by one.” (Source here).
More about this Podcast:
“Pat’s Story begins with the tragic death of Rachel Callaly by her husband Joe O’Reilly and finishes with Aaron Brady’s historic 2020 capital murder conviction for the shooting of Garda Adrian Donohoe.” (Source here).
We hear precise details of each of these cases and how they were solved. We also learn how these cases and all those for which Pat Marry was responsible:
“… shaped Pat into one of Ireland’s greatest detectives, learning the skills that went into solving each case along the way.” (Source here).
There are twelve episodes available and once you start you won’t be able to stop!
3. Shandee’s Story - Hosted By Hedley Thomas for The Australian.
He was the host of the first ever Podcast that I featured on noroadlongenough, the renowned award winning The Teacher’s Pet Podcast. Hedley followed this with a Podcast focused on the disappearance of Janine Vaughan in the The Night Driver Podcast and now Hedley and is back with his latest Podcast Shandee’s Story.
This true crime investigative Podcast looks at another cold case, the brutal and vicious murder of 23 year old Shandee Blackburn in Mackay, Australia in 2013:
“Shandee Blackburn was left to die after a frenzied knife attack as she walked home. A mystery figure running hard towards the popular young woman in the seconds before she was savagely cut down near her mother’s house was captured briefly by security cameras. Detectives went after Shandee’s former boyfriend, a champion amateur boxer with jealousy and trust issues. He denied wrongdoing and pointed an accusing finger at a man with a violent record and a shaky alibi.” (Source here).
This is a truly gripping Podcast that will have you hooked from the first episode. There are twelve episodes currently available however new episodes are still being released weekly and the story continues to evolve and surprise! I do not want to give any spoilers so just get listening now!
4. The Real Killer - By Leah Rothman for iHeartPodcasts.
This is another captivating true crime Podcast from iHeart. I have featured a number of their previous works, such as Monster DC Sniper, Forgotten: The Women of Juárez, Paper Ghosts, Astray, Camp Hell: Anneewakee, The Turning: The Sisters Who Left and Queen of the Con: The Irish Heiress.
The Real Killer Podcast tell the story of the 1982 murder of 35 year old JoAnn Tate and the brutal attack of her two daughters Melissa and Renee who, despite their horrific injuries survived:
“In 1982, JoAnn Tate and her two young daughters, Melissa and Renee, are savagely attacked in the middle of the night. JoAnn dies; the girls barely survive. One month later, Melissa identifies Rodney Lincoln, one of JoAnn’s ex-boyfriends, as the killer. Two trials later, Rodney is found guilty and sentenced to two life terms plus 15 years. In 2015, thirty-two years after Rodney is convicted, Melissa recants and says Rodney didn’t do it. So who is the real killer? Follow true crime TV writer, producer, and director Leah Rothman as she maps the story from its gruesome beginnings to new bombshell revelations that could expose a miscarriage of justice and a killer still on the loose.” (Source here).
In the first episode we hear directly from survivor Melissa as she tells the story of her attack and the aftermath. Melissa was seven at the time of the attack and was a key witness in this case. This episode comes with a explicit descriptions of a violent crime warning as it is very graphic.
“Melissa, who barely survived that night, shares the moment-by-moment, gut-wrenching account of what she and her family endured.” (Source here).
In the subsequent available episodes we learn about how the Police investigation unfolded, a lot of which centred around the evidence provided by then seven year old Melissa and her memories of the attack:
“Melissa becomes Metro P.D.’s most prized eyewitness.” (Source here).
Again, not wanting to give spoilers, I will leave it here! There are currently four episodes available.
5. Unraveled: Mystery at the Mansion - Co-hosted By Alexis Linkletter & Billy Jensen for Discovery+.
This in the fourth season of Unraveled and not the first time I have found myself engrossed in one of their Podcasts. Back in March 2021 I recommended Season 1 which was Unraveled: Long Island Serial Killer so if you liked that then be sure to check out this Podcast too.
In this season of Unraveled: Mystery at the Mansion they are tracking the:
“… murder case of Bob Ward, a Florida real estate mogul accused of killing his wife. The state may be convinced of Bob’s guilt, but his family, including his two daughters and his sister-in-law, staunchly maintain his innocence.”(Source here).
The hosts in this Podcast attempt to break down the evidence and establish what really happened to Diane Ward. I always like Podcasts where you hear from those directly involved and/or affected by the crime and you get to do lots of that in this Podcast.
There are seven episodes available so far so get ready to binge!
6. Sacred Scandal (Season 1)- Hosted By Paula Barros & Melanie Bartley for Exile Content Studio, My Cultura & iHeartPodcasts.
As you might have noticed this is another new Podcast from iHeart in conjunction with some other Podcast producers and boy is it good!
The crime at the centre of this Podcast is the murder of 39 year old Sister Michelle Lewis on March 24th 2001 which took place “on the grounds of a prestigious Byzantine Catholic School”. One of the show hosts Paula Barros attended the school, Holy Cross Academy, where this crime took place and was actually a student there when the murder occurred.
This Podcasts:
“…unravels the complete picture of this crime, as told by those who lived through it.” (Source here).
Stabbed more than ninety times, Sister Michelle’s murder was an act that changed the lives of everyone at the Holy Cross Academy. As the murder investigation advances it quickly becomes apparent that there is a lot more going on at the school under the surface:
“As investigators started asking questions around the gruesome murder, they found more than just her killer. In a search for answers that stretches into some of the most remote villages of Eastern Europe, they uncovered allegations of sexual abuse, secret letters to the Vatican and other mysteries of faith. Sacred Scandal unravels the fuller picture that came to light in the wake of this crime.” (Source here).
In this Podcast we also get to hear from the man accused and charged with Sister Michelle’s murder Mykhaylo Kofel, who is currently sentenced to a 30-year-term after confessing to the murder.
There are only three episodes available so far - I can’t wait for the fourth!
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