Mark Steadman

Mark Steadman (he/him) is from Birmingham, in the middle of the United Kingdom. He’s been making podcasts and on-demand audio since 2004, but was perhaps better known for founding the media hosting company Podiant. He also helmed the cult favourite Beware of the Leopard, a podcast about the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy that received special recognition by the BBC in 2020.

Congrats on making your 30th podcast! I got that right…30?!
That’s about right. Honestly there’s probably one or two I’m forgetting about. Some, like my Hitchhiker’s show, spanned 6 years, others only made it to episode one.

How have you changed as a podcaster since the first one in 2008?
I’m not as embarrassed by the things I say anymore. I’ve plenty of compassion for 2008-Mark, but he was trying way too hard to be like the people he admired on radio and in the burgeoning podcast scene at the time.

The danger there is you end up aping a style, but it comes off empty because it’s filled with hot air. I’ve spent the subsequent years growing into someone I enjoy hearing on-mic, rather than cringe away from. There’s a distinct flavour there that might not be for everyone, but at least it’s a flavour I like. Some people find it quickly – for me it’s taken nearly two decades.

What was the first one? What inspired you to get started?
I’d made on-demand radio shows at university in 2004, but my first podcast-ass podcast was in 2008. It was called the New Media Junkie, and it was essentially a half-hour radio show with music, some segments of banter with my friends from work, and some bits and games.

I used to record the banter on MiniDisc at work, and I’d come home and replay the audio into my PC to edit it… which was the way I was taught at university.

I listened back to it a couple of years ago, and it’s really bad. The production is naive as you’d expect, but like I said, while I have compassion for who that guy was in 2008, he kinda stank.

Is there a theme that runs through all the podcasts you’ve done?
Is it too trite to say “curiosity”? There are a couple of outliers – shows that are very different in format – but there’s always been a thread of discovery, exploration and, as much as possible, a sense of humour.

I’ve historically centred myself more in my content than I think is right for this stage in my life. The key is finding the balance between following your own curiosity and making it about you.

As I set out to write the new show, I’m trying to use the words “I” or “me” as rarely as I can, so the spotlight stays where it belongs: with the listener.

When you start them do you ever think you’ll keep them going? Or do you just think they all have their own limited time in this world?
One of my favourites was an adaptation of a kids’ book I wrote. I did the sound design, sourced the music, and essentially did everything bar read the words. That one I knew had a limited shelf-life as there was a single story to tell.

Some shows I never gave that much thought; I just figured they’d be fun to do at the time. Some served a purpose in that they chronicled a time in my life or a project I was working on. Others were just about play, and experimenting with form.

I almost never start out with an end in sight. If I’d asked myself “Am I willing to do this for the next 3-5 years?”, I think I’d have dramatically shrunk the list.

What’s the podcast in your catalogue that you think had the best shot of making it big but hasn’t (yet?)
List Envy remains a source of (a little) frustration to me. I’ve come back to it twice, and if I had a team doing the admin, editing, and promo, I’d probably do it week in, week out.

I think it’s a good format, and my guests have always enjoyed it. It’s a pure entertainment show and the people who get it really like it, but it’s never spread organically, and I’ve lacked the energy to do the necessary promo legwork.

Part of what makes the show difficult to sell is that every episode is about something entirely different, so with me being the through-line, you have to buy into my whole shtick and be the sort of person who’s a little bit curious about a lot of things.

If you had to go back and restart one just for fun, which one would you choose?
My friend Jon and I started a show in 2017 off the back of our Hitchhiker’s series, and it was always so much fun. We just made each-other laugh, and were deliberately facing slightly away from the audience so there was never any formal “Welcome to the show” spiel.

That meant that once you were in you had a great time with the bits and the lore, but we were never going to do a tonne of promo and it was never really “about” anything.

But it was the first show I knew I could turn up to cold with nothing in the tank, and come away with a really funny episode.

Tell us about the new podcast, Undo.
I’ve heard musicians say that every new album should be their favourite, or at least show the culmination of the things they’ve learned over the years.

From a pure craft perspective, Undo is my most mature work. Each episode is a TED talk length investigation into a time management hack, myth, or method throughout history. That means writing 2,000+ words, adding music and sound design, and doing my best to mix entertainment with stuff you can practically apply, or assess to figure out whether it works for you or not.

The desired end result is something with the easy flow of the Allusionist or Twenty Thousand Hertz, from someone who reads the productivity books so you don’t have to.

I’ve long been fascinated by how we can optimise our days, reduce duplication and unnecessary repetition, and maximise the time we have to do the stuff we want. I’m not interested in hustle culture or the toxic “I’ll sleep when I’m dead” mentality you see in some corners. I think we should all be doing less work for big systems, and more work on the stuff that feeds our hearts and the hearts of others. My goal as a technologist was to help creative people go up against monoliths and win. That’s still my goal as a writer and podcaster.

I think there’s a lot of BS in productivity circles from people who have teams of virtual assistants and personal staff. Those “gurus” are insulated from the messy realities of life, so the best-selling systems they design don’t stand up to much scrutiny.

I want Undo to help listeners make their own assessment about what works and what doesn’t, so they can build their own productivity method that tightly fills the corners in their particular, peculiar life.

Plus, it’s brimming with effervescent charm and cool, and if you listen to it, you will become instantly sexier and more attractive to your preferred flavour of human.

What’s a podcast you love that not enough people know about?
Pappy’s Flatshare isn’t hugely obscure but it’s probably under-listened-to. Every month they do a live show which is warm and off-the-rails funny, and every other week they hang out and try to make each-other laugh. They’ve been doing some form of this since around 2010 I think.

Since that’s three white-guy comedians, let me balance it out with a new discovery for me in 2025: Sentimental Garbage, which explores pop culture often dismissed because it’s “stuff girls like”.

What’s a podcast you love that everyone knows about?
Off Menu with James Acaster and Ed Gamble is a juggernaut, but it took me a while to get on-board.

I’m a bit cynical of Acast shows presented by celebs as they end up making lots of money from unearned attention, because they’re repped by the right talent agency.

However, Off Menu is actually an indie effort, and although its hosts were already well-known in the UK as accomplished comics, it feels like they care about making a good, funny show, rather than performing for bussed-in audiences they have no connection with.

Also they have good guests and it is funny.

What didn’t I ask you about that I should have?
My favourite colour is orange and I have never been to Las Vegas. I think that covers it. 😉

Thanks, Mark!