So you’ve trawled through the best crime documentaries on Netflix and now there’s a huge true crime hole in your evenings.
We feel you.
Nothing can cater to morbid fascination like true crime. The fact that average, every day people can just snap and murder, torture or kidnap is as terrifying as sociopaths who plot and plan their crimes in minute detail.
We’ve found the best true crime podcasts, like Serial, Dirty John, Sword and Scale, and Up and Vanished to satisfy your whodunnit bug.
NZ-based true crime podcasts
Guilt
This single case true crime podcast from actor and lawyer Ryan Wolf, Guilt investigates some of New Zealand’s most enduring unsolved criminal cases. In the first season Wolf investigated the murder of Jordan Voudouris, a pizza shop owner from Paeroa who was shot in the early morning of June 18th 2012. In season two, Wolf travels to Waiuku in an attempt to solve the baffling 18-year mystery of the disappearance of Jim Donnelly, who went to work at the Glenbrook Steel Mill and was never seen again. The twists and turns of the cases Wolf chooses to cover makes for a thrilling listen.
A Moment in Crime (NZME)
Anna Leask has been a crime and justice reporter for more than a decade, and for A Moment in Crime she takes listeners inside some of New Zealand’s most infamous crimes. Leask has covered all kinds of cases from the Christchurch terror attacks to the kidnapping of Baby Kahu in 2002. This is the podcast to get your ears around if you want really know what is going on in your backyard.
Black Hands
Perhaps New Zealand’s most infamous case, Black Hands tells the story of the Bain family murders and explores the case in detail. Written and narrated by journalist Martin van Beynen who also researched and wrote an accompanying book, Beynen explores all the evidence, possible motives and witnesses in an aim to answer the question: who really did it?
True Crime NZ
True Crime New Zealand covers some obscure and fascinating true crime cases throughout our country’s history. The long-format show has covered a range of cases from the Christchurch House of Horrors to The Tangiwai Disaster and even Minnie Dean the first and only woman to receive the death penalty. The storytelling style of this podcast makes for a compelling listen.
The 50 year secret
While hitchhiking on the West Coast on New Year’s Eve in 1969, school teacher Jennifer Beard disappeared, nearly three weeks later her body was found under a bridge outside the township for Haast. Now a Herald investigation has uncovered new evidence that could identify her killer, listen to how it all plays out in The 50 Year Secret.
Podcasts like Making a Murderer
Casefile True Crime
This Australian made true crime podcast has quickly become on the world’s popular audio-documentary series!
It tells some harrowing stories. But as to who hosts the crime podcast? The person remains anonymous.
Serial
Hard core true crime fans will be thrilled to hear Serial will be releasing a new episode based on Adnan Syed who murdered 18-year-old girlfriend Hae Min Lee.
Adnan – was 17-years-old at the time – was convicted in 2000 of the murder and has served more than 20 years in prison.
The disturbing case was made famous by the Serial podcast in 2014, and is considered the holy grail of investigative journalism as well as podcasts.
This podcast discusses true crime like no other podcast.
Since 2014, it talks about people who have committed crimes, people who have been wronged, or have been caught.
Investigative podcasts
Missing & Murdered: Who Killed Alberta Williams?
This eight-part series investigates the unsolved murder of 24-year-old Alberta William in 1989. The indigenous Canadian woman was found dead along the Highway of Tears in British Columbia, but police never found her killer.
A retired cop claims to know who did it, so why didn’t he ever say anything? The smooth, dulcet Canadian tones make this an easy listen you could finish in less than a week.
Up & Vanished
This investigative podcast explores what happened to Georgia beauty queen and high school teacher, Tara Grinstead when she suddenly disappeared 17 years ago.
This one is an absolute ripper that leaves you questioning everything and it will make you wary of everyone around you if you’re listening on public transport.
Podcasts that cover a little bit of everything
48 Hours
Once you get past the generic American newsreader narration, this is a goodie. It’s produced by the award-winning team at CBS and it investigates tricky criminal cases as well as human drama.
Their success is thanks in part to the high production quality, but boy do they choose gripping stories. It covers everything from domestic violence to deranged killing sprees and the effects on those left behind.
Sword and Scale
This narrator cops a lot of flack for being too opinionated in his telling of the wide ranging crimes, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing.
Because the topics covered are so varied it can be a bit hit and miss, but you can easily jump on to the next episode if you aren’t interested.
Reveal
Reveal has all the bells and whistles of Serial with each episode unpacking occasions of injustice, power abuse, and crime.
It’s an easy, informative listen and you get to scroll through the episodes to choose what tickles your fancy in whatever order you want.
