‘Lives Less Ordinary’ tells the wild and sometimes shocking secret stories that everyday strangers are hiding
“Lives Less Ordinary” is a podcast showing us how surprising, extraordinary, and certainly unordinary humans can be. Every unassuming stranger you pass on the street probably has the most unexpected stories to share. Hosts Emily Webb, Mobeen Azhar, and Jo Fidgen have hunted down some of the most amazing personal stories from every corner of the globe and are now sharing them on this new podcast.
This BBC World Service podcast kicked off in late April of this year, so only a handful of episodes are out so far. From sinister secrets to inspiring tales of determination, the stories in “Lives Less Ordinary” run the gamut of human experiences. Episodes average out to just about 45 minutes long.
This podcast actually used to be the BBC podcast “Outlook,” (which now can be found under the title “The Outlook Podcast Archive”) which was hosted just by Emily and Jo and shared the strange stories of strangers. The podcast was all about the unassuming people changing the world and has an archive of hundreds of episodes. Now, the show has been reworked for this new-fangled podcasting world in which we live.
The first episode of “Lives Less Ordinary” leaves us wanting nothing but more and more episodes. In it, we hear the story of Tom Justice, an ironic name for an overly ambitious man. Mobeen interviews Tom and helps narrate his wild life story.
You see, Tom was an excellent cyclist. Not just excellent, actually: an Olympic hopeful. He was also a film fanatic and easily swayed by messages the films certainly weren’t trying to send. It was Reality Bites that made him give up cycling and the heist film Heat that inspired him to become a bank robber.
They’ve also spoken with Kenyan and UK Paralympian Anne Wafula Strike, who called out the government for a lack of toilets for people with disabilities in public spaces after she had to wet herself on a train. There’s also the story of Donna McLean whose fiancé turned out to be not at all who he said he was, and she wasn’t alone in this horrifying experience.
“Lives Less Ordinary” takes a unique approach to telling the story with Mobeen, Emily, and Jo always asking all of the right questions so their interviewees can give listeners a deeper look into the inner workings of their minds. We hear about Tom’s descent into addiction that then had to be fueled by his bank robbing, Anne’s ability to forgive despite facing the unforgivable, and how Donna slowly realized that Carlo was not Carlo at all.
For anyone who has wondered about the intricacies of the strangers’ lives around them, “Lives Less Ordinary” is bringing those stories to you. Intimate (but not pour-your-heart-out intimate), well-produced, and deeply human, this podcast is filled with fascinating stories you’d never expect. Be sure to tune into the revamped “Lives Less Ordinary.”
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