Jeff Goldblum, Paul McCartney, and more chat about anything from smelly hotels to dead parents on ‘The Adam Buxton Podcast’
You may recognize Adam Buxton as one half of the award-winning television, radio, and podcasting duo of Adam & Joe (Cornish). Or you may recognize him from Hot Fuzz, in which he portrayed Sandford’s local journalist, Tim Messenger, who is just about immediately killed by a falling statue crushing his head after meeting Nicholas Angel. Or perhaps his roles in Stardust, Son Of Rainbow, a wide variety of UK television shows, or as the host of Adam Buxton’s BUG, a live music and comedy show. It’s quite a resume.
Whether or not you have followed Buxton from his early comedy days on The Adam & Joe Show on BBC, his warm and witty podcast “The Adam Buxton Podcast” (keeping it simple, we like it) is well worth a listen. Recommended to us by Podsauce’s guest Sam Walker, host of “American Vigilante” and “Sam Walker’s Desert Diaries,” “The Adam Buxton Podcast” features Buxton walking through the British countryside while he interviews interesting people.
Since 2015, Buxton has been walking his dog Rosie (who you will grow oddly affectionate towards through your headphones) through Norfolk, England. He has recorded around 175 episodes of his show, with episodes averaging out at 75 minutes long.
Buxton has been joined on these walks by a wide variety of guests. His close friend and work partner, comedian and filmmaker Joe Cornish, join him on a number of these episodes, and the two continue to delight after over 25 years of working together. Buxton and Rosie have walked and talked with the likes of Sarah Silverman, Tom Allen, Paul freaking McCartney, Joe Cornish again, Jeff Goldblum, and Greta Gerwig (post-Lady Bird, pre-Little Women) just to name a few.
And they will talk about anything: what it’s like to win a Pulitzer Prize twice, Succession, breakfast, encounters with music legends, dead parents, the whole nine yards. Buxton and guests manage to balance thoughtfulness and levity that isn’t simple to achieve, going back and forth between Buxton’s British humor and smart questions.
His obvious love for music is also apparent: the podcast is filled with delightful and very-well-produced jingles that Buxton writes and records himself. Eat your heart out Paul McCartney. Kidding, although Paul’s episode is obviously a must-listen. The two discuss music along with how Paul and John Lennon got on after The Beatles broke up, what Bob Dylan is like in real life, Paul’s favorite snacks and TV panel shows, meeting philosopher Bertrand Russell, the Vietnam War, and a lot more.
What sets Buxton apart from other podcasters is not just his musical interludes. Buxton is so funny and friendly, genuinely warm and extremely witty, that guests just seem to be down with talking about anything. Most people would be content to listen to him muse about water boiling or paint drying. “The Adam Buxton Podcast” is truly audio art, and all of his guests are able to match just how clever, chatty, and quick-witted he is, so you know you’re in for a good time. If you’re into just plain old, darn good podcasts, this is the show for you.