Back in the 1980s, state-of-the-nation fictions were all set in Manhattan. Now, they're all in Trump country. Early in 'S-Town,' we're introduced to an actual maze, every branch of which leads to a further junction. This may also be a metaphor.

It is the melancholy fate of all young legends to becoming better known for the things they did to exploit fame than the things that made them famous in the first place.

When Shanthi Ranganathan was the featured turn on 'Hip Hop Saved My Life With Romesh Ranganathan,' we learned she didn't allow him to have a girlfriend until he'd finished university, and she learned - to her unfeigned horror - that he used to sneak girls into the house when she was out.

Bobby Bones is a young country DJ who does a widely syndicated morning show. He's at his best with his BobbyCast, in which he talks to Nashville up-and-comers such as Kelsea Ballerini and Lauren Alaina. Guests are encouraged to relax on Bones's couch and talk about anything they like.

A gap in tone is opening up between podcasts and broadcast radio. The people who produce the former know their listeners have given them permission to go deep into their subject. The people who do the latter live in fear they've already gone too far.

Mongolia is a country of only three million souls. One million of them live in Ulaanbaatar, where, despite the skyscrapers, half the population sleep in tents. One of the few Mongolians to become famous outside his home country is Ariunbaatar Ganbaatar, who won the BBC Cardiff Singer of the World prize.

'Unjustly Maligned' is a neat idea for a podcast. Antony Johnston invites a believer to make the case for a cultural artefact that consensus tends to deride.

The age of the rock star ended with the passing of physical product, the rise of automated percussion, the domination of the committee approach to hit-making, the widespread adoption of choreography, and, above all, the advent of the mystique-destroying Internet.

'Podcasting House' is pivotal to the BBC's plan to scatter the seed of its various non-broadcast audio products beyond the narrow silos of the people who happen to listen to the programmes from which they arise.

An interesting way into the celebrity interview podcast is via their dogs. Celebs may not be keen to let us into their homes, because they don't like us to see how wealthy they are. However, tell them you want to go for a walk on Hampstead Heath with them and their mutt, and they're only too happy.

The age of the rock star was coterminous with rock n' roll, which, in spite of all the promises made in some memorable songs, proved to be as finite as the era of ragtime or big bands. The rock era is over. We now live in a hip-hop world.

'Spectator Books' is presented by the genial Sam Leith. Leith has a little catch in his delivery that quickly becomes addictive. It's things like this that give podcasts their charm.

All political careers end in failure, but few did it so quickly as David Cameron's. He came to power promising not to 'bang on about Europe' and ended up having the continent's name chiselled into the lid of his political coffin.

'The Canon' is a film podcast that also has much in common with books podcast 'Backlisted.' Both suggest you can get a lot of pleasure out of things that aren't new.

Christmas is a time for slipping into familiar patterns.

The podcast most likely to encourage you to fully appreciate your food is the episode of BBC World Service's 'The Food Chain' in which Antonio Carluccio talks to Emily Thomas about his life in five dishes.

Karina Longworth, the genius behind 'You Must Remember This', has quite correctly spun off her series about the Sharon Tate murders as a separate podcast called 'You Must Remember Manson' to mark the passing of the man who unleashed hell because he couldn't get a recording contract.

Podcasting is a personal medium, and I savour those moments where details of the podcasters' lives glint through.

'How I Built This With Guy Raz' asks entrepreneurs to tell the story of how they made their name and, in some cases, their fortune. Whether they're in the business of selling burritos or dating apps, there's inevitably something you can learn from their stories.

Songwriters often seek the company of fellow songwriters to help finish what they've started, and these days, many do it at songwriting camps.

According to the producers of gripping podcast 'Death, Sex & Money', these are the three things we think about a lot but need to talk about more.

Anyone born in the year 1950 who grew to fancy themselves as a soulful 18-year-old bought 'Songs of Leonard Cohen' upon its original release in 1968. For many of them, it was the beginning of a lifelong friendship.

As more podcasts become available, it's becoming a challenge to keep everything in order.

The people who talk on the edgier 'Song Exploder' have often made their entire record on their desktop. It's never been easier to compete, but it's never been harder to win, either.

'The Anthill' is the podcast wing of The Conversation, the site that presents news and views derived from the academic and research community.

Radio 4 Extra is the network which offers the broadcasting version of eternal life.

I wouldn't wish a night of 1971 television on my worst enemy. But the records of 1971, again, still live for us now. And they had the benefit at the time of having the kind of uninterrupted, unimpeded concentration of a huge generation of people. Because the only thing I wanted to spend money on when I was 21 was records.

Famine is a consequence of poverty.

I don't think most rock stars are particularly calculating. I don't think they sit there and think, 'I will do this; therefore, on Monday, I will sell another 200,000 records'.

'Bombshell' is a remarkable podcast. In the course of it, three people who know what they are talking about cover 'military strategy, White House mayhem, and the best cocktails'.

Upload Radio is a new venture offering content creators and bedroom DJs the chance to get their own programmes on the air by buying time.

The podcast 'A History of Jazz' began telling its story in February - 100 years after the recording of 'Livery Stable Blues' by the Original Dixieland Jazz Band, the start of jazz as a legitimate branch of music.

History is written by the victors. The victors in daily life tend to be those who live longest.

I make no apology for the fact I like to hear people talk about work. It's the acceptable way of talking about life and people.

The ads that podcasts manage to sell tell you a lot about who they think is listening. They include services that promise to make your investment portfolio ethical, deliver exotic, ready meals to your home, or guarantee better sleep thanks to luxury bed linen.

British podcasts tend to shamefacedly shuffle the ads towards the end. Americans put them up front and promote them enthusiastically. I think the Americans have it right.

John Lydon must be more famous for his efforts on behalf of dairy products than his music.

Formed in 1967 and still performing regularly half a century later, Fairport Convention are Britain's equivalent of the Band. Unlike the latter they have maintained cordial relations.