Wodcast – Details, episodes & analysis

In Season One of the Wodcast, we sit down with novelist Elif Shafak, musician Hak Baker, Professor David Nutt, writer David Larbi, founder and coach Remi Olayjoyegbe, musician Nick Mulvey, filmmaker Waad Al-Kateab, lyricist Tim Rice, and writer, actor, and broadcaster Stephen Fry. Across nine conversations, we explore the words that have shaped their lives, the language that has influenced their thinking, and the stories they carry with them.

Welcome to the Wodcast where every word carries a world inside it. The Wodcast is a podcast exploring the words that shape our lives, cultures, relationships, and imagination. Hosted by Benjamin Aston and Mabel Evans, each episode unfolds into conversations, stories, ideas, and perspectives from writers, thinkers, artists, and cultural voices. From love and belonging to courage, grief, joy, identity, and everything in between, the Wodcast invites you to slow down and look more closely at the language that shapes how we see ourselves and one another.

What happens when faith and doubt learn to dance together? In this opening conversation of the Wodcast, bestselling novelist Elif Shafak joins Benjamin Aston and Mabel Evans for a wide-ranging exploration of language, love, storytelling and the search for wisdom in a noisy world. Together they discuss the ancient meanings hidden inside words, why different cultures understand love in different ways, the forgotten goddess of writing, the importance of oral storytelling, and what Elif calls "inner democracy" the practice of making space for the many voices within ourselves. Drawing on her novels, her spiritual curiosity, and her lifelong relationship with stories, Elif reflects on the tension between certainty and wonder, information and wisdom, roots and belonging, and why slowing down may be one of the most radical acts of our time. This episode is an invitation to listen more deeply: to language, to each other, and to the stories that shape who we become. ───── Topics include: • Faith and doubt • The many meanings of love • Language and identity • Storytelling and oral tradition • Inner democracy • Wisdom in the digital age • Women, memory and forgotten histories • Nature, listening, and belonging ───── Thank you to our sponsors: Summerour Architects https://summerourarchitects.com/ Trunk Clothiers https://www.trunkclothiers.com/ ───── More from the Wodcast: ➟ Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/wod.cast/ ➟ Apple Podcasts - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wodcast/id1896893830 ➟ Youtube - https://youtube.com/@wodcast_channel?si=sQbEXy6-mO6lOLvB ➟ Substack - https://wodcast.substack.com/ ➟Website https://wodcast.co.uk/ ───── See you next Wednesday for our word reflection ‘mini-episode’ where hosts Mabel & Ben deep dive into Elif’s ‘weight-baring’ words✨