Seriously, dude- these podcasts will change your life

I am ridiculously middle class, in the left-leaning soggy liberal sense. I grew up in suburbia, the child of polytechnic lecturers, and I am devoted to the Guardian newspaper and its wonderful cryptic crossword.

As a corollary to this I am also a devotee of Radio 4, thankfully available online internationally (unlike most of BBC television). At the moment the comedy is at its best, because the News Quiz is airing as is the first post-Humph series of the sainted I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue. Great stuff.

On a more serious note, the cerebral yet approachable In Our Time is also in full brain-expanding effect. Each week, Melvyn Bragg and three academics discuss a topic of historical, cultural or scientific interest for 45 minutes, expanding on its significance and tracing its development. There are hundreds of episodes available for download from the amazing archive, which I can't recommend highly enough. Last week I finished listening to every single episode and I reckon now I'll go back and revisit some favourites.