Barack Obama has officially become a podcast mainstay, which is a step up from the usual post-presidential pastime of questionable lobbying. His latest Audible show - via his and Michelle's company, Higher Ground - is a six-parter about the books that have inspired him, from James Baldwin to John le Carré. The first guest is Tom Hanks, who joins him for a frank chat on parenting and family, prompted by Marilynne Robinson's Pulitzer-winning novel Gilead. Because nothing says 'inspirational' like two famous dads discussing a book about a dying preacher. Hannah J Davies reports. Available on Audible now.

Milo Edwards hosts a lively new series (with Sophie Garrad and Ed Campbell) that explores public scandals. The range of subject matter is illustrated by the first two episodes: the Profumo affair and the boyband Blue. Why do some scandals ruin lives while others are forgotten almost instantly? It's a question that keeps PR teams up at night, and now it's a podcast. Phil Harrison says episodes drop weekly, widely available.

Did Richard Gere really arrive at a hospital asking for the removal of a gerbil he'd somehow fired up his own bum? This attempt to apply rigorous journalism to the infamous rumour meets Gere superfans, tries to track down ex-doctors, and meets a gay rights activist who explains how very similar rumours have a track record of being used as homophobic slurs. Alexi Duggins finds it's a wild ride. Episodes weekly, widely available.

This Futuro podcast was called 'the best new show I've heard in years' by This American Life's Ira Glass. High praise, but understandable: Sayre Quevedo's very personal story of his search for his absent dad is poetic, profound, and witty, spiked with pandemic loneliness, sibling love, and queer yearning. HJD gives it a thumbs up. Episodes weekly, widely available.

This gripping show opens with unanswered voicemail messages that get increasingly frantic - until someone picks up the phone and confirms that its owners are dead. Slow Burn host Leon Neyfakh and his journalist wife Alice Gregory tell the tale of Petra and Michael Mathers, a celebrated kids' book creator and photographer whose double suicide in their 70s shocked the world. AD says it's a must-listen. Episodes weekly, widely available.