Terence McPherson and Shawnika Giger met at a party in Atlanta, and went on their first date a few weeks later. Things were going well, until they started to talk about money. This episode is in collaboration with our friends at This Is Uncomfortable. Say hello on Facebook and Instagram. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts. Want to listen to This is Love ad-free? Sign up for Criminal Plus – you’ll get to listen to This is Love, Criminal, and Phoebe Reads a Mystery without any ads. Pl...
May 07, 2025•45 min•Ep. 113
When The Guardian sends two strangers on a blind date, the last question they have to answer for the newspaper column is “Would you meet again?” We asked people how their dates went – and what happened next. Say hello on Facebook and Instagram. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts. Want to listen to This is Love ad-free? Sign up for Criminal Plus – you’ll get to listen to This is Love, Criminal, and Phoebe Reads a Mystery without any ads. Plus, you’ll get behind-the-scenes bonus episo...
Apr 23, 2025•39 min•Ep. 112
At The Guardian newspaper, there’s a person who has to find two complete strangers to send on a blind date every week. In our next episode, we hear about how things really went from the blind daters themselves. You can listen right now by signing up for Criminal Plus. Say hello on Facebook and Instagram. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts. Want to listen to This is Love ad-free? Sign up for Criminal Plus – you’ll get to listen to This is Love, Criminal, and Phoebe Reads a Mystery wi...
Apr 09, 2025•43 min•Ep. 111
About twenty years ago, D’yan Forest considered getting into stand-up comedy. “People told me, no, don’t go into comedy. Everybody is going to make fun of you. They’re gonna heckle you. You’re an old woman.” D’yan ignored them. Say hello on Facebook and Instagram. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts. Want to listen to This is Love ad-free? Sign up for Criminal Plus – you’ll get to listen to This is Love, Criminal, and Phoebe Reads a Mystery without any ads. Plus, you’ll get behind-th...
Mar 19, 2025•45 min•Ep. 110
When his older brother died of cancer, Patrick Bringley quit his New York office job and got a new one at the Metropolitan Museum of Art—as a security guard. He stayed for 10 years. Patrick Bringley's book is All the Beauty in the World. Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts. Want to listen to This is Love ad-free? Sign up for Criminal Plus – you’ll get to listen to This is Love, Criminal, and Phoebe Reads a Mystery without any ads. Plus, y...
Mar 05, 2025•33 min•Ep. 109
On August 28th, 2000, Danny Stewart got on the subway to meet his boyfriend Pete Mercurio for dinner in New York City. As he was exiting the station, he noticed something on the ground. It looked like a baby doll wrapped in a shirt. And then he saw the doll's legs move. Pete Mercurio's children's book is Our Subway Baby. His forthcoming memoir is called There: We Found Our Family In a New York City Subway Station. This episode was first released in 2021. Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instag...
Feb 19, 2025•43 min•Ep. 108
When Cody Bryant suddenly stopped communicating with Haley Woloshen after weeks of hanging out, she assumed she was being ghosted. It was only later that she found out he’d forgotten about her entirely. Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts. Want to listen to This is Love ad-free? Sign up for Criminal Plus – you’ll get to listen to This is Love, Criminal, and Phoebe Reads a Mystery without any ads. Plus, you’ll get behind-the-scenes bonus e...
Feb 05, 2025•34 min•Ep. 107
The day Edgardo Griffith met Heidi Ross, he asked her if she’d like to come with him to look for frogs. He was looking for a particular kind – bright yellow, with black spots: the Panamanian golden frog. But by the time Edgardo and Heidi were engaged, the frogs had started to disappear. Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts. Want to listen to This is Love ad-free? Sign up for Criminal Plus – you’ll get to listen to This is Love, Criminal, a...
Jan 22, 2025•41 min•Ep. 106
Everything you didn’t know about Goodnight Moon, the book that’s put children to bed for generations — and the woman who wrote it. "She could write very well for young children because she remembered exactly what it was like to be one of them." Leonard Marcus’ book is Margaret Wise Brown: Awakened by the Moon Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts. Want to listen to This is Love ad-free? Sign up for Criminal Plus – you’ll get to listen to Th...
Jan 08, 2025•40 min•Ep. 105
Stories we love about animals really going for it. Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts. Want to listen to This is Love ad-free? Sign up for Criminal Plus – you’ll get to listen to This is Love, Criminal, and Phoebe Reads a Mystery without any ads. Plus, you’ll get behind-the-scenes bonus episodes of Criminal and other exclusive benefits. Learn more and sign up here. We also make Criminal and Phoebe Reads a Mystery. Artwork by Julienne Ale...
Dec 18, 2024•51 min•Ep. 104
One night in 2018, Ahmed Ali Akbar rented a car and drove two hours to the Detroit airport. He was picking up a package for his cousin – over a dozen boxes of a very special fruit. Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts. Want to listen to This is Love ad-free? Sign up for Criminal Plus – you’ll get to listen to This is Love, Criminal, and Phoebe Reads a Mystery without any ads. Plus, you’ll get behind-the-scenes bonus episodes of Criminal an...
Dec 04, 2024•30 min•Ep. 103
“After more than a hundred years of hard work from some of the greatest cryptological and linguistic minds on the planet, we still don’t quite know what this object is. There’s really nothing like it in the world.” Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts. Want to listen to This is Love ad-free? Sign up for Criminal Plus – you’ll get to listen to This is Love, Criminal, and Phoebe Reads a Mystery without any ads. Plus, you’ll get behind-the-sc...
Nov 20, 2024•43 min•Ep. 102
Recently, Phoebe told a personal story about her mother, who died this year. In this episode, she talks to journalist Sebastian Junger, who was rushed to the hospital one day after feeling sick – and then, he saw something strange. Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts. Want to listen to This is Love ad-free? Sign up for Criminal Plus – you’ll get to listen to This is Love, Criminal, and Phoebe Reads a Mystery without any ads. Plus, you’ll ...
Nov 06, 2024•40 min•Ep. 101
For our 100th episode, a story from Phoebe about her mother, Valentine, who died this spring. Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts. Want to listen to This is Love ad-free? Sign up for Criminal Plus – you’ll get to listen to This is Love, Criminal, and Phoebe Reads a Mystery without any ads. Plus, you’ll get behind-the-scenes bonus episodes of Criminal and other exclusive benefits. Learn more and sign up here. We also make Criminal and Phoe...
Oct 16, 2024•42 min•Ep. 100
When Drew Lanham was growing up in South Carolina, he used to lie down in a field and play dead, just so he could get a glimpse of vultures flying over him. He made binoculars out of toilet paper rolls, and wings out of cardboard. He loved birds. But when he went to college, he says, “I was trying to live up to the expectations of others who said, ‘You’re a Black kid who’s good at math and science.’” So he studied engineering, and was miserable. And then, he heard the call of a Prairie Warbler. ...
Oct 02, 2024•43 min•Ep. 99
Writer Andrew Leland talks with Phoebe about slowly losing his eyesight. He was diagnosed with the degenerative eye disease Retinitis pigmentosa when he was in high school. "It was like, 'I'm going out in the woods with my friends at night. And oddly enough, I'm bad at it.'" Andrew Leland’s memoir, The Country of the Blind, A Memoir at the End of Sight, was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. Say hello on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. Sign up for our occasional newsletter, The Accompli...
Sep 18, 2024•45 min•Ep. 98
When Miguel Esteban was 14 years old, he got an idea to make his own science fiction magazine. He wanted Octavia Butler to write a piece for it. So he picked up the phone to ask her. Special thanks to Terry Gross and Fresh Air, which is produced at NPR member station WHYY and distributed by NPR. Quotes reprinted with permission of the Octavia E. Butler Estate. Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2BmMZr5 Want to listen to...
Sep 04, 2024•37 min•Ep. 97
One Saturday night in the 90s, Patrick Makuakāne and about 15 other hula dancers showed up to a club in San Francisco they called Old Dreamland. "It didn’t feel like taking risks. Because no one was there to tell me 'what the hell are you doing?'" Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2BmMZr5 Want to listen to This is Love ad-free? Sign up for Criminal Plus – you’ll get This is Love, Criminal, and Phoebe Reads a Mystery ad...
Aug 21, 2024•35 min•Ep. 96
Nurse BokHee is in the background of every season of "Grey’s Anatomy." She’s become one of the show’s most beloved characters – but she's only had a few lines. Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2BmMZr5 Want to listen to This is Love ad-free? Sign up for Criminal Plus – you’ll get This is Love, Criminal, and Phoebe Reads a Mystery ad-free. Plus, behind-the-scenes bonus episodes of Criminal and other exclusive benefits. ...
Aug 07, 2024•30 min•Ep. 95
Gabrielle Gatto works at one of the most famous cemeteries in the country. Recently, she recorded a day in her life for the podcast Finally! A Show, for an episode called “Finally! A Show about a Crematorium Worker at Green-Wood Cemetery.” Criminal listeners might recognize one of the voices in this episode - Lynda Thompson-Lindsay - who runs the Lawrence H. Woodward Funeral Home. You can hear our conversation with her in our episode One Troy. Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Follow...
Jul 24, 2024•36 min•Ep. 94
The synthesizer was invented in the 1890s. But for people to really start using it, it took half a century, a musician named Wendy Carlos, and an album called Switched-On Bach. Charlie Harding and Nate Sloan of Switched On Pop tell Phoebe why Wendy Carlos is “the most significant figure in 20th century music that the least people know about.” Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2BmMZr5 Want to listen to This is Love ad-f...
Jul 10, 2024•37 min•Ep. 93
The night sky is getting brighter almost everywhere in the world. We visit a place that is trying to stay dark. Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2BmMZr5 Want to listen to This is Love ad-free? Sign up for Criminal Plus – you’ll get This is Love, Criminal, and Phoebe Reads a Mystery ad-free. Plus, behind-the-scenes bonus episodes of Criminal and other exclusive benefits. Learn more and sign up here. We also make Crimin...
Jun 19, 2024•34 min•Ep. 92
Folk singer Peggy Seeger and her partner, Irene Pyper-Scott, live on different continents. Peggy has written dozens of poems and songs for Irene, and one for the man she spent 33 years with before that – Ewan MacColl. “He loved me the way I loved Irene.” Ewan MacColl wrote the famous love song – “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face” – about Peggy in 1957. Peggy Seeger’s book is First Time Ever: A Memoir. Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcast...
Jun 05, 2024•43 min•Ep. 91
McGillin’s Olde Ale House is the oldest bar in Philadelphia, and it also claims to be the most romantic place in the city. The Philadelphia Inquirer says: “McGillin’s has matchmaking magic.” Special thanks to Andrew Stelzer. Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2BmMZr5 Want to listen to This is Love ad-free? Sign up for Criminal Plus – you’ll get This is Love, Criminal, and Phoebe Reads a Mystery ad-free. Plus, behind-the...
May 15, 2024•29 min•Ep. 90
Curtis was one of the first nationally-syndicated comic strips with a mostly-Black cast of characters. Ray Billingsley has been drawing it for newspapers every day for the past 35 years. Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2BmMZr5 Want to listen to This is Love ad-free? Sign up for Criminal Plus – you’ll get This is Love, Criminal, and Phoebe Reads a Mystery ad-free. Plus, behind-the-scenes bonus episodes of Criminal and...
May 01, 2024•38 min•Ep. 89
When comic Maria Bamford made her OkCupid profile with the username Hogbook, she says Scott Marvel Cassidy was one of the only people who contacted her. His username was Lazer Eyes. Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2BmMZr5 Want to listen to This is Love ad-free? Sign up for Criminal Plus – you’ll get This is Love, Criminal, and Phoebe Reads a Mystery ad-free. Plus, behind-the-scenes bonus episodes of Criminal and othe...
Apr 17, 2024•42 min•Ep. 88
Kyo Maclear remembers when she took a DNA test, the kit came with a piece of paper with terms and conditions that read, “You may discover unanticipated facts about yourself or your family when using our services that you may not have the ability to change.” Kyo Maclear’s book is Unearthing: A Story of Tangled Love and Family Secrets. Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2BmMZr5 Want to listen to This is Love ad-free? Sign...
Apr 03, 2024•35 min•Ep. 87
When Charlotte Cushman arrived in England, she was heartbroken. But she began looking for work as an actor. There was one part she really wanted: Romeo. Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2BmMZr5 Want to listen to This is Love ad-free? Sign up for Criminal Plus – you’ll get This is Love, Criminal, and Phoebe Reads a Mystery ad-free. Plus, behind-the-scenes bonus episodes of Criminal and other exclusive benefits. Learn m...
Mar 20, 2024•37 min•Ep. 86
In 2016, scientist Angus Davison got an email about a rare, left-coiling snail. He began a quest to find it a mate. This episode was first released in 2018. Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2BmMZr5 Want to listen to This is Love ad-free? Sign up for Criminal Plus – you’ll get This is Love, Criminal, and Phoebe Reads a Mystery ad-free. Plus, behind-the-scenes bonus episodes of Criminal and other exclusive benefits. Lea...
Mar 06, 2024•29 min•Ep. 85
If you visit Italy, you might come across a street, or a park, or a school, or even a chain of coffee shops named after a 7-year-old American named Nicholas Green. This is the reason why. We're on tour this month! We’re telling brand new stories, live on stage. You can even get meet and greet tickets to come and say hi before the show. Tickets are on sale now at thisiscriminal.com/live. We can’t wait to see you there! Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Follow the show and review us on...
Feb 21, 2024•31 min•Ep. 84
