Radio Stars Unite for Weekly Show About Life’s Minor Dramas
BBC Radio 1 Breakfast Show host Greg James and acclaimed broadcaster Alice Levine have announced their new collaborative podcast, Bad Chat, set to launch Thursday, May 7th. The weekly show will be produced by Persephonica, the award-winning production company behind hit podcasts including Lily Allen and Miquita Oliver’s Miss Me?, Dua Lipa’s Service95, and Jo Whiley and Zoe Ball’s Dig It.
A Community for Overthinkers
The podcast positions itself as a club for James, Levine, and their listeners to dissect the “best-worst” parts of their weeks. The show promises to be “forensic about the trivial and dramatic about the inconsequential,” focusing on shame spirals, existential crises, petty grievances, and mild injustices that plague everyday life.
“It seems absurd that Alice and I haven’t done a show together until now and I’m hoping it wasn’t for good reason,” James commented about the launch.
Levine added with characteristic humor: “It felt like Greg really needed a win, so I said I’d do a show with him. He couldn’t believe it, you should have seen his little face.”
Interactive Format with Multiple Contact Options
The show will feature heavy audience participation, with listeners able to contribute their obsessions, confessions, and digressions through multiple channels. Fans can reach out via email at hello@badchatclub.com, WhatsApp at 07775 199 566, or through a traditional answerphone at 0333 011 2814. The producers have even installed a working fax machine for those preferring vintage communication methods.
Episodes will be available across all major podcast platforms and YouTube, with full HD video versions complementing the audio format.
Building on a 13-Year Friendship
James and Levine’s professional relationship began on radio, but their friendship has flourished off-air for over a decade. The duo previously collaborated on developing Crossed Wires, described as “the world’s biggest podcast festival,” making Bad Chat their first direct co-hosting venture.
The announcement includes promotional assets and a trailer, with both hosts planning to share teaser content across their social media platforms, as shown in the accompanying promotional materials.
Persephonica’s Growing Portfolio
Persephonica CEO Dino Sofos offered a tongue-in-cheek response to the partnership: “We pride ourselves on working with the world’s biggest talent so it’s nice to take a risk once in a while.”
The production company continues to expand its roster of successful podcasts, with Bad Chat joining their collection of chart-topping and critically acclaimed shows that have helped define the modern podcast landscape.
Bad Chat will release new episodes every Thursday starting May 7th, with the format continuing “until the inevitable fallout from spending too much time together,” according to the official announcement.
Source: Podwires Newsletter
