Jon Ronson and the ex-debutante who turned neo-Nazi – and then informant

Much has been written on the subject of our relationships with podcasters, the people who feel more like old friends than strangers from the internet. Personally, I just like the sound of laughter in my headphones, be it from a rambling voice note from a friend, or a group of podcast hosts struggling to hold back the giggles. No podcast is better for this light parasocial interaction than Normal Gossip, a show I have extensively endorsed and was thrilled to see return last week.

Not every episode lands, but when it does, it’s among both the funniest and most relatable podcasts around, focusing as it does on the abnormal nature of much of “normal” human behaviour. It’s been said that everyone has a book in them but, more accurately, I think everyone probably has a Normal Gossip submission – something shocking, maybe heartbreaking, but which is also liable to make you laugh your head off in public thinking about all the times you’ve been in a similarly chaotic situation.

Read on for more pods both lighthearted and serious, as well as five of the best podcasts for fans of real-life mysteries (with an honorary mention from me for another, Mystery Show, which I think about most weeks).

As always, do let us know what you think of our pod picks or what you would like to see in future emails by replying to this newsletter, or emailing newsletters@theguardian.com.

Hannah J Davies
Deputy editor, newsletters

Picks of the week

The Debutante
Audible, all episodes out now
Jon Ronson hosts another addictive series, this time investigating Carol Howe – the glamorous former debutante who joined the neo-Nazi movement responsible for the Oklahoma bombings and became a government informant. A fascinated Ronson speaks to those whose lives collided with Howe’s, and asks: “Is it really the case that, had she been listened to, the bombing might never have happened?” Hollie Richardson

Murder in Mayfair
BBC Sounds, all episodes out on Wed
When Norwegian student Martine Vik Magnussen was killed in a London flat, her classmate – and the only suspect – Farouk Abdulhak fled to Yemen. Following her recent BBC Two documentary, this is reporter Nawal al-Maghafi’s effort to speak to the billionaire’s son and find out why he ran. She also interviews Magnussen’s father. Hannah Verdier

Cotton Capital
Widely available, episodes weekly
For the last year, reporter Maya Wolfe-Robinson has been working on the Guardian’s recently published project about its founder John Edward Taylor’s links to transatlantic slavery. Here, she shares the findings, telling the history from Manchester to the Caribbean, and how it still resonates today. HR

Mother, Neighbour, Russian Spy
Audible, all episodes out on Thu
Rosamund Pike narrates this series about “Cindy Murphy”, the Russian sleeper agent who posed as an all-American wife. “What does it take to permanently become someone else?” asks Pike, as the people who knew Murphy describe a calm woman who was good with kids and a world away from the image of a James Bond character. HV

Witnessed: Devil in the Ditch
Widely available, all episodes out now
This cold-case podcast is personal for journalist Larrison Campbell, who returns to her home town in Mississippi to investigate the murder of her own grandmother, Presh. Campbell pulls no punches talking about how Presh was “bludgeoned”, but as it’s close family the story feels far from exploitative. HV

There’s a podcast for that

This week, Charlie Lindlar chooses five of the best podcasts on real-life mysteries, from an investigation into a socialite scam artist to the original viral sensation Serial

Disappearances
This Spotify original from true crime supremos Parcast delves into missing persons cases, but in humane fashion. Rather than that all-too-familiar tendency for true crime to gawp at human tragedy, this podcast stands out not only by profiling those who have disappeared, but by examining the flaws in our social systems that allow people to disappear. Host Sarah Turney is a thoughtful, empathic and invested storyteller; her other podcast, Voices for Justice, began with the story of her sister Alissa’s 2001 disappearance.

Fake Heiress
Before the big budget Netflix miniseries, before the stage play and before the forthcoming post-prison reality show, there was Fake Heiress: the tale of a young Russian-German socialite whose life of New York luxury had much more to it than met the eye. Over six well-crafted episodes, BBC journalist Vicky Baker and screenwriter Chloe Moss chart rise and fall of the mysterious Anna Delvey (above), who infiltrated the Big Apple’s elite art and culture circles, and the real mystery at hand: her true identity.

Empty Frames
It’s thought to be the biggest museum robbery of all time – but do you know the story of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum heist? In 1990, two men dressed as police officers were allowed into the Boston gallery and, less than an hour later, made off with 13 artworks by the likes of Rembrandt, Vermeer and Degas valued at around $600m. But who did it, and how? In season one, Tim Pilleri and Lance Reenstierna dig into the case 40 years on, before moving on to other dastardly acts of art thievery in seasons two and three.

Unexplained
“Sometimes eerie, sometimes strange, sometimes terrifying”, Unexplained seeks to understand enigmatic events that are as yet (you guessed it) without explanation. From the demise of five students in the Ural mountains to a mysterious explosion that killed a Nasa genius, every episode is a thrill ride with unexpected turns – just so long as you can make peace with the fact that most episodes will – by their very nature – lack a neat, satisfying conclusion. Host Richard MacLean Smith lists the cult Australian children’s mystery show Round the Twist among his influences.

Serial
No list of this kind would be complete without possibly the most influential and impactful podcast to date. Serial’s debut season, released in 2014, examined the murder of high school student Hae Min Lee and the uncertain case against her ex-boyfriend Adnan Syed, who was convicted of her murder. The show’s second and third series never quite hit the same heights – but if you never made the time to tune in when Serial was a bona fide cultural juggernaut, Syed’s release last year (he has since had his murder conviction reinstated) gives you every excuse to go back and listen to that first run.

Why not try …

• From Trump’s indictment to prison abolition, there are smart debates on tough topics in Hear Me Out from US news site Slate.

• Atlanta Monster podcaster Payne Lindsey “leaves the tinfoil hat at the door” in High Strange, perfect for fans of UFO podcasts.