The H Word - podcast cover

The H Word

The H Word thehwordpod.com
Toronto-based actor/writer/comedian/sadsacks, Becky Johnson and Dan Beirne, chat with thoughtful and interesting guests to unpack the notion of HOPE for a new, bleak decade. thehwordpod.com and @thehwordpod on social media.
Last refreshed:
Follow this podcast in the Metacast mobile app to refresh it and see new episodes.
Download Metacast podcast app
Podcasts are better in Metacast mobile app
Don't just listen to podcasts. Learn from them with transcripts, summaries, and chapters for every episode. Skim, search, and bookmark insights. Learn more

Episodes

The Humble Brush Stroke (with Margaux Williamson)

Becky and Dan Brace for the Holidays and Becky talks with painter Margaux Williamson about shame, humility, seeing and painting. Covered: Morning Radio, advertising, Christmas, History Channel's Alone, hands on a hard body, anxieties, people who are frozen in stone, The Plop, The 20th Century, Oscilloscope Labs, The Wizard of Oz, winds and rain, taking clothes apart, paintings, what we see, time, bananas, clocks, problems, tolerance, Queer Eye, shame, humility, Lars von Trier, having a message, ...

Nov 16, 20201 hr 7 minEp. 52

Lost in Special (with Mirage Thrams)

Dan & Becky feel relief and Becky speaks with Los Angeles-based comedian/activist, Mirage Thrams, about activism, trauma and forward motion. Covered: the American presidency, hot November, the world, Providence, street names, GPS, joylessness, Stacey Abrams, Georgia, John G Cole, astrology, Leos, racism, police murders, accents, how not to give a fuck, Mr. Rogers, being special, miracles, activism, comedy, the American legal system, cancer, divorce, being best, justice, Second City, speaking...

Nov 09, 20201 hr 1 minEp. 51

Tiny Acts of Resilience (with Alia Rasul)

Becky and Dan do a segments parade and Becky talks with comedian extraordinaire, Alia Rasul, about art, collectives and accountability. Covered: The Amazing Gayl Pile, Metamorphosis: A Viral Trilogy, André Alexis, Volcano Theatre, rain, tarpaulins, drive-in movies, Unhinged, Nostalgique, Aba Amuquandoh, Ben Sosa Wright, reopening, The Brass Rail, second waves, back to school, teachers, therapy, radiators, Belarus, mass protest, naps, dreams, parties, homebodies, plants, self-compassion, fiddle l...

Aug 24, 20201 hr 9 minEp. 40

Spacial Forces (with Ajahnis Charley)

Becky and Dan sit in their respective shames and Becky chats with geomancer (her word) and comedian, Ajahnis Charley, about activism, art, Gen Z exuberance and more! Covered: meteor showers, the Perseids, intuition, test results, Nostalgique, Aba Amuquandoh, Ben Sosa Wright, WAP, sex positivity, shame, therapy, (un)well, gratitude, geomatics, spacial problems, COVID-19 and police saturation, activism, copout.app, protest, mussels in the Netherlands, a big scoop, the National Film Board of Canada...

Aug 17, 20201 hr 2 minEp. 39

Double Edged S Words (with Dan Beirne)

Becky surprises Dan with a birthday gift to him of just us talking for the whole episode! Covered: lying down, sitting in the shower, slumber parties, surprises!, Dan's birthday!, the weather report, double edge swords, rain, leaks, beverages, hypochondria, diabetes, B12 deficiencies, podcasts we haven't listened to, Riverdale Rude Dudes, Chris Middleton, Bridget Cann, Candace Meeks, everything happening all at once, the continued death of coolness, Instagram live, Jhanelle Dennis, Tamara Shevon...

Aug 10, 202053 minEp. 38

Great Barrier Relief (with Desirée Walsh)

Becky and Dan talk death and premieres and Becky has a conversation with comic Desiree Walsh about god, accessibility, the cowardice of edgelords in the digital age and more. Covered: standing, Slumber Party, prank calls, death, addiction, other people's stories, John Lewis, posthumous publication, Bill Clinton, Stokely Carmichael, reopening, the plug portion, The Toronto Outdoor Picture Show, Tips are Appreciated, Trevor Anderson, Leigh Cameron, Chris Sandiford, The Templeton Philharmonic, Wome...

Aug 03, 20201 hr 6 minEp. 37

Time is a Country (with Anand Rajaram)

Becky and Dan deal with some technical interference and Becky talks with performer and creator, Anand Rajaram, about action and philosophy. Covered: home recording set-ups, missed connections, flat walls, chips, new segments, Mark Andrada, We Like Theme Parks, Riverdale Rude Dudes, Chris Middleton, art & entertainment, books, windows, Windows 95, secret police, Portland, the military, the Anti-Defamation League, augmented reality, Pokemon Go, theatre training, Baruch Spinoza, the joy index, ...

Jul 28, 20201 hr 10 minEp. 36

A History of Silence (with Sayda Trujillo)

Becky and Dan talk masks and monuments and Becky has a conversation with theatre-maker and educator, Sayda Trujillo, from Roswell, New Mexico, about decolonizing theatrical practice and training and more. Covered: standing up, mask wars, police shootings, the Nazi monument in Oakville, Bit Playas, Kris Siddiqi, Nigel Downer, colonial statues, #Blessed, hipster evangelicals, Roswell, immigrant identity, Guatemala, Persons of Colour, decolonizing theatre pedagogy and training, Dell'Arte Internatio...

Jul 20, 20201 hr 8 minEp. 35

Invincible Bummer (with Helen Donnelly)

Becky and Dan discuss the myths of cancel culture and hope in online media and Becky chats with clown extraordinaire, Helen Donnelly, about performance, illness and more. Covered: Sponsorship, Mark Andrada, We Like Theme Parks!, stink candles, The Letter, Sandy Hudson, Bad Dog Theatre, Coko Galore, UHF, cable access, Kirsten Rasmussen, Ayaka Kinugawa, Ajahnis Charley, Daphney Joseph, the Cop Out App, clown, bird watching, skepticism, atheism, Red Nose Remedy, therapeutic clowning, virtual therap...

Jul 13, 20201 hr 24 minEp. 34

Midwest Case Scenario (with Marz Timms)

Becky and Dan unpack some local news and call-outs and Becky talks with comedian extraordinaire, Marz Timms, from Chicago about comedy, profiling, politics and more. Covered: Heatwaves, The Atlantic Travel Bubble, Secret COVID bars, patios, cheery server voices, media bias, viral scientists on twitter, Marya Errin Jones, Sayda Trujillo, Thailand, fast love, Pimprov, live comedy, Poochie, Chicago, helping others, Black Lives Matter, fitting the description, racism, defund the police, social media...

Jul 06, 20201 hr 10 minEp. 33

Food for Thought (with Paul Taylor)

Becky and Dan get uncomfortable with comedy, applaud Gen Z and Becky talks with non-profit leader and anti-poverty activist, Paul Taylor, about food security, racism in Canada and much much more. Covered: appropriate comedy, Sacha Baron Cohen, 30 Rock, speaking up, microagressions, K-Pop stans, culturejamming, bikes, anti-poverty activism, policy making, white spaces in politics, decolonisation, anti-racism, introspection, anti-Black racism, CERB, guaranteed basic income, reparations, defunding ...

Jun 29, 20201 hr 4 minEp. 32

To Sleep, Perchance to Scream (with Jhanelle Dennis)

Becky and Dan check in about police violence and activism and Becky chats with stand-up comedian extraordinaire, Jhanelle Dennis, all the way from Florida. Covered: algorithms, activism, Eyes on the Prize, freedom rides, jokes on social media, Progress Toronto, defundthepolice.org, Florida, Brooklyn, panic attacks, Taco Bell, reaching out, chatbots, Sir Mix A Lot, beckies, karens, kyles, landlines, big butts, nicknames, forced relaxation, sleep disorders, ASMR, Karuna Satori, Latte, Peace and Sa...

Jun 22, 20201 hr 17 minEp. 31

Minnesota Burning (with John Gebretatose)

The RCMP continue to murder indigenous people with impunity, Becky and Dan talk about clarity of activist language and Becky talks at length with improviser and creative leader, John Gebretatose, from Minneapolis about literal and figurative fires past and present. Covered: Brandon Ash-Mohammed, tired and wired, trolls, clarity of language, funny protest, placards, Rodney Levi, Chantel Moore, the RCMP SIU, Jackie Pirico, Regis Korchinski-Paquet, Robert Fuller, Minneapolis, shitty Targets, police...

Jun 15, 20201 hr 35 minEp. 30

Call Out Shelter (with Brandon Ash-Mohammed)

Becky and Dan get into white fragility and Becky chats with Brandon Ash-Mohammed about racism in Canadian media, skin care and more! Covered: D'Andre Campbell, Justin Ling, The New York Times, Sandy Hudson, Desmond Cole, Matt Horgan, the military, the library, Dewayne Perkins, Second City, Bootleg History, Africville, Canadian media, Anne of Green Gables, Brandon Hackett, Aisha Brown, The Ethnic Rainbow, discomfort, Weeds, Mary Lousie Parker, RuPaul's Drag Race, Lindsay Lohan, Mean Girls, Jan Ca...

Jun 12, 20201 hr 13 minEp. 29

Preach for the Stars (with Marito Antonio Lopez)

Becky and Dan have very quickly learned some things that people of colour have been telling us for a long, long time and Becky talks rehab, revelation and a bit of hip hop with comedian and writer, Marito Antonio Lopez. Covered: Protests, George Floyd, Black Lives Matter, home phones, defunding the police, Dad's Garage Theater, Jon Carr, Carl Tart, discomfort, Andrew Johnston, Brandon Ash-Mohammed, El Salvador, Louis MacNeice, James Joyce, William Butler Yeates, colonization, , Dangerous Minds, ...

Jun 08, 202057 minEp. 28

The Hours of the Wolf (with Tim Baltz)

Dan and Becky don't know what to do and Becky chats with actor/creator Tim Baltz, about American discomfort. Covered: helplessness, revolution, night thinking, dreams, The Sopranos, the president's tweets, shamelessness, brand culture, pitching for television, echo chambers, humility, cultural differences, white supremacy, discomfort, Marshall McLuhan, Neil Postman, Amusing Ourselves to Death, rage, reckonings, recycling, levelling with dad, showing up, ALS, the medical industrial complex, Marty...

Jun 01, 202055 minEp. 27

The Lichen on Lincoln (with Graham Clark)

Dan and Becky wrestle with fiction and Becky talks with Vancouver comedian, Graham Clark, about the disintegration of live comedy and more. Covered: UFOs, Sum 41, false flags, Errol Morris, cryptozoology, The Sopranos, deadface acting, alpha males, Cassavetes, Michael Jordan, legacies, the Lincoln Memorial, walking through mud, Yoko Ono's beam of light, non-essential services, the hustle, comedy after WWII, golden age cinema, King Lear, Rocky, Stephen Spielberg, Vancouver, Bonnie Henry, wearing ...

May 25, 20201 hr 12 minEp. 26

Tempus Fuck It (with Sook-Yin Lee)

We have almost completely let go of time as Becky chats with multi-dimensional artist, Sook-Yin Lee, about creation, space, loss and so much more. Covered: weather, May 2-4, Queen Victoria, call-outs, umbrage, the Canadian National Exhibition, grocery etiquette, passive aggression, sharing the road, Gosford Park, Venice Beach, golf, provincial leadership, spelunking, sleeping over, cleaning up, Adam Litovitz, creative expression, existential consideration, worlds of the imagination, quantum real...

May 18, 20201 hr 8 minEp. 25

Consumer Cum Laude (with Jordan Foisy)

Dan has done something like a personality test and Becky talks to writer/comic, Jordan Foisy, about the death cult of consumer ideology and other stuff. Covered: mixtape weather, rats, krazy glue, standing up, approval seeking, Pete Davidson, unknown regrets, pessimism, dressing up, Rihanna at the Met Gala, butthole contents, Drag Race, going to the hospital, vanishing airplanes, conspiracy theories, meat processing, truth in advertising, nihilism, death conservatism, consumer ideology, pleasure...

May 11, 20201 hr 18 minEp. 24

There's No Crying in Baseball (or The Longest Dark) (with Mary Hynes)

Becky and Dan explore rules and enjoyment and Becky chats athletics and feelings with host of CBC Radio's Tapestry, Mary Hynes! Covered: aversions to fun, rules, high school, Crystal Methyd, Silken Laumann, crying, baseball on the radio, psychic witches in foreign affairs, toughness, embarrassment, Yacht Rock, free range hearts, earnestness, Jon Miller, The Long Dark, Chris Farley, The Maple Leafs, transcendent sport, Bernie Williams, Suzyn Waldman, Catch23 Backwards, Brendan Halloran, The Olymp...

May 04, 20201 hr 26 minEp. 23

Cosmic Releef (with Michael Rahhal)

Dan and Becky delve into Star Stuff and Becky speaks with spectacle performer, Michael Rahhal, from the wilds of open-for-business Las Vegas, Nevada. Covered: injuries, cognitive dissonance, serenity, road commandeering, meditation, The Cosmic Reef, giving blood, Blue Man Group, Las Vegas, judgement, 12 step programs, AlAnon, addiction, compassion, Thomas Jefferson, Key & Peele, God, kooky mayors, forgiveness and more!

May 01, 20201 hr 8 minEp. 22

The Borscht is Yet to Come (with Brandon Hackett)

Dan is struggling with some cabbage and Becky chats with writer/comedian, Brandon Hackett, about comedy, identity and Jeremy Bickers Captain of Stickers. Covered: midge season, central air conditioning, Tracy Morgan, late night TV, okonomiyaki, mayonnaise, learning languages, rest, Ontario leadership, Fanny and Alexander, visiting South Africa, queerness in comedy, code switching, Luke Skywalker, Cats and more.

Apr 27, 20201 hrEp. 21

Repent-Up Energy (with Lucky Yates)

Becky and Dan curl up under some wet blankets & Becky chats with actor Lucky Yates from newly-liberated Atlanta about America and his new religion. Covered: Starbucks, curling your legs, Debbie Downers, misanthropy, The NYT Daily, the hammer & the dance, the Tel Aviv protest, Georgia, racism across America, Underdog, Uncle Grampa's Hoo-Dilly Storytime, DIY TV, new religions, The Church of the Holy Dodo, tax law, Satanism, demons, sleep paralysis, DMT, bullies, urban nature and more!

Apr 24, 202059 minEp. 20

Dead People's Dreams (with Bruce Hunter)

Becky and Dan are digging themselves into holes and Becky chats with actor/writer/teacher, Bruce Hunter, about comedy, meaning and the breadth of the cosmos. Covered: paranoia, anxiety, forgetting, remembering, improvisation, Keith Johnstone, Second City, anger, out of body experiences, UFOs, ancient aliens, Coast to Coast, Rendlesham Forest, Sasquatch, strokes, awakenings, collective consciousness and more.

Apr 20, 202056 minEp. 19

Mon Armour (with Marya Errin Jones)

Dan and Becky tear into the weather, politics and food and Becky chats with Marya Errin Jones for some perspectives from Albuquerque, New Mexico. Covered: grocery shopping, empties, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Bernie Sanders, sourdough, armour, Iowa, ley lines, psychic scents, seismic feelings, community organizing, King Arthur, City Lights Bookstore and more!

Apr 13, 202059 minEp. 18

Declining Empire Records (with Rick Andrews)

Dan and Becky reveal their middle names and Becky gets a dispatch from improviser and teacher, Rick Andrews, in New York City. Covered: meditation, mistakes, soap on a rope, the newsletter, OK Soda, Bob, Crispin Glover, Weird Al, Work in Progress, Empire Records, nostalgia, SOMA, rationalism, cognitive psychology, God, meaning, innovation, privilege, Pickle Rick and more!

Apr 10, 20201 hr 7 minEp. 17

Eudaimonia? I Hardly Know Ya! (with Reverend Aitor)

Dan is trying some daring new things, Becky is eating weird meals, and Reverend Aitor comes back on the pod for a redo wherein we dig deep into Schizophrenia and mental illness now and forever. Also covered: goop Keanu, fevers, sewing masks, street photographers, Hamburger Helper, Edmonton, energy vortices, stoicism, the wheel of fate, ephemeral art, dream life and, as always, Cheers.

Apr 06, 202056 minEp. 16

In The Same Boat (with Monica Heisey)

Becky and Dan try on some new segments and branding. Becky chats with writer Monica Heisey for an update from England wherein they forget to talk about hope specifically but do wander into running through cemeteries, Bojack Horseman, Twin Peaks: The Return, Virginia Woolf, Moby Dick, being gentle with yourself and more. Also covered: indoor shoes, mixed messages, victory gardens. #cozysummer

Apr 03, 20201 hr 3 minEp. 15

The Jog of War (with Vivieno Caldinelli)

Becky has some health updates, Dan mildly bristles against being pigeon-holed as just a jogger-hater/considers a new look and Becky chats with director Vivieno Caldinelli about getting tested for COVID-19, the art of not knowing, Tiger King, Sam & Diane, Tootsie, American leadership and more.

Mar 30, 202059 minEp. 14

Ich Bin Ein Crocheter (with Leah Buckareff)

Becky gets a dispatch from Berlin with crafter/doom metal bassist, Leah Buckareff. Dan unpacks a newfound dislike of joggers. Also covered: rush hour, stairs, double digits, curing HIV, grief & meaning, meditative craft, refugees, e-scooters, stage fright, the physicality of music, the left wing bubble, co-presidents, political nudism and more!

Mar 27, 20201 hr 5 minEp. 13
Hosted on Transistor
For the best experience, listen in Metacast app for iOS or Android