EXCLUSIVE: Miquita Oliver, Jamie Laing, Alice and other major British names have joined the SXSW London podcasting track through a new pact with Crossed Wires, the UK’s biggest podcast festival.
Crossed Wires will co-curate the podcasting track, with the fest’s co-founder Levine hosting. Unveiled today are a pair of new additions to the program: ‘Beyond Podcasting: Building Show People Belong To’ and ‘Crossed Wires: The Live Podcasting Boom’.
The first panel, ‘Beyond Podcasting’ will feature UK presenter Oliver, who co-hosts the BBC podcast Miss Me? with Lily Allen, JamPot Productions founder and TV and podcast star Laing and JamPot CEO Craig Strachan, and Crossed Wires co-founder Dino Sofos, the well-known UK audio producer who is CEO of Persephonica.
The live podcasting panel will comprise Danny Robins, the host of podcast Uncanny; Crossed Wires co-chief Levine, who was co-host of the ultra popular My Dad Wrote a Porno; and Sofos; Jonny Kanagasoorium, the Managing Editor, Podcast Strategy & Video at BBC Sounds.
The panels will join a line-up that already includes features the likes of Callum ‘Calfreezy’ Airey, GK Barry, Elis James and John Robins, Joe Marler, Keisha Buchanon and Fin Taylor.
The SXSW London Podcasting Track will run on Wednesday, June 3, at Christ Church Spitalfields, aka The Nave.
The news comes as Crossed Wires this morning unveiled Ian Bushell as Managing Director to oversee the festival’s daily operation and strategic direction.
Bushell has more than 25 years’ experience in live entertainment, experiential marketing and creative-commercial strategy. He has delivered landmark events such as Ministry of Sound’s 55,000 capacity Millennium Dome New Year’s Eve, co-created Nokia’s global New Year’s Eve platform reaching over one million people and launched Formula 1’s global music platform F1 Rocks.
Bushell founded experiential consultancies Posto Six and later Anthem, working across the likes of the FIFA World Cup, the Rio Olympic Games and Expo 2020 Dubai.
The news comes a month before the third Crossed Wires festival, which is held in Sheffield and has attracted over 45,000 attendees to date. Crossed Wires will this year showcast podcasts such as Dig It with Jo Whiley & Zoe Ball, Elis and John, Uncanny Cold Cases with Danny Robins, How to Fail with Elizabeth Day, British Scandal and Bold Politics with Zack Polanski.
“We started Crossed Wires because we felt podcasting deserved to get out of people’s headphones and into venues and cities full of fans,” said Sofos. “Podcast fandoms now feel every bit as passionate as music or sport – people want to see their favourite shows in the flesh and share that experience with other fans.
“To now be partnering with SXSW London on its podcast track is hugely exciting. SXSW has always been where big conversations about media, entertainment and culture happen, so it’s brilliant to see podcasting becoming such a big part of that world too.”
“Podcasts dominate our lives, and introducing a track dedicated to the business of podcasting and the people behind the microphone was a complete no brainer in our second year,” added Katarina Sherling, Head of Conference, SXSW London. “We are welcoming the heights of the industry from a business perspective and some of the most recognizable voices and creators, who hit our timelines and feeds every day. This isn’t a ‘how to record a podcast’ stage, its stage showcasing a one of the furthest reaching industries that touches us all.”
