Five family members, murdered. A sixth in prison for life. It’s one of Britain’s most infamous crimes. But did the justice system get it wrong? “Blood Relatives,” a six-part series from In the Dark, is coming on October 28th. New Yorker subscribers get early, ad-free access to “Blood Relatives.” In Apple Podcasts, tap the link at the top of the feed to subscribe or link an existing subscription. Or visit newyorker.com/dark to subscribe and listen in the New Yorker app. In the Dark has merch! Buy specially designed hats, T-shirts, and totes for yourself or a loved one at store.newyorker.com.

Repeat: Tracee Ellis Ross’ earliest memories involved traveling the world with her mother, Diana Ross, but it was at the age of 22 that she discovered what solo travel could give her. This episode, Lale sits down with Tracee  to discuss how solo travel can be an act of radical self care, her Roku show Solo Traveling With Tracee Ellis Ross, and her flamboyant and joy-filled packing lists.

Author and wild swimmer Freya Bromley returns to tell Lale why the restorative power of nature still holds true for her, the joy and community she has found at a women’s swimming retreat in Cornwall, and her favorite—and little known—island for escaping to each summer. Plus, she extolls the virtues of puffin sightings.

Earlier this year, Lale reported a feature for Condé Nast Traveler on the Iditarod, the annual sled dog race that crosses 1,000 miles of Alaskan wilderness. She catches up with podcast regular, writer, and adventurer Blair Braverman to swap stories of traveling through Alaska. Plus, Blair shares her experiences from another dramatic landscape she had long dreamed of visiting: Antarctica.

Lale talks to frequent guest and train expert Monisha Rajesh about her recent night train journeys.

Rebroadcast:There are few places in the world where you won't encounter a cat. So a few years ago, Hannah Shaw, who has dedicated much of her life and work to caring for them, set out tomeet and document has many as she could across the globe—spotlighting the extraordinary places they live and the people who care for them along the way. Lale chats with the animal welfare advocate, bestselling author, and educator about her many travels, from Turkey to Chile to Oman, and finds out what she learned along the way.

Lale sits down in the studio with Condè Nast Traveler editors (and regular WWT guests) Megan Spurrell and Arati Menon to find out their top destinations for the summer, as well as where they have bookmarked for the rest of the year—from Peru to Newfoundland to the Scottish Highlands.

(A rebroadcast). Each year, Erin French receives 60,000 postcards from people asking if they can dine at her Maine restaurant The Lost Kitchen. “It really becomes a luck of the draw lottery. We have big post office bins that arrive and we literally reach in, we grab a postcard, we call that person immediately and say, ‘Okay, when do you want to come?’” This episode, Erin shares with Lale what it’s like to experience her beloved restaurant, now in its 11th season, and spills on her new cooking and travel show on Max, Getting Lost With Erin French, which sees the chef road trip across the US in search of new ingredients and inspiration, and sharing meals with Texas farmers, New Orleans chefs, and more.

In 1954, a young David Attenborough made his début as the star of a new nature show called “Zoo Quest.” The docuseries, which ran for nearly a decade on the BBC, was a sensation that set Attenborough down the path of his life’s work: exposing viewers to our planet’s most miraculous creatures and landscapes from the comfort of their living rooms. On this episode of Critics at Large, Vinson Cunningham, Naomi Fry, and Alexandra Schwartz trace Attenborough’s filmography from “Zoo Quest” to his program, “Mammals,” a six-part series on BBC America narrated by the now- ninety-eight-year-old presenter. In the seventy years since “Zoo Quest” first aired, the genre it helped create has had to reckon with the effects of the climate crisis—and to figure out how to address such hot-button issues onscreen. By highlighting conservation efforts that have been successful, the best of these programs affirm our continued agency in the planet’s future. “One thing I got from ‘Mammals’ was not pure doom,” Schwartz says. “There are some options here. We have choices to make.” Read, watch, and listen with the critics: “Mammals” (2024) “Zoo Quest” (1954-63) “Are We Changing Planet Earth?” (2006) “The Snow Leopard,” by Peter Matthiessen “My Octopus Teacher” (2020) “Life on Our Planet” (2023) “I Like to Get High at Night and Think About Whales,” by Samantha Irby New episodes drop every Thursday. Follow Critics at Large wherever you get your podcasts. This episode originally aired on July 11, 2024. 

What is it like growing up in one of the most storied and iconic hotels in Italy? Ask Valentina de Santis, who was raised in the kitchens and ballrooms of Lake Como's Grand Hotel Tremezzo and now runs the charismatic Passalacqua along with her parents nearby. Lale chats with the hotelier to hear stories of life on Lake Como, get tips on traveling in both summer and the off-season, and what it really means to live La Dolce Vita.

In 2023, Eva Longoria headed to Mexico with CNN in search of a deeper understanding of the country’s rich culinary heritage and her own family history. Last month, she returned to our screens with a brand new season, Searching for Spain, which takes her all over the country to explore the vast regional scope of its cuisine and learn about her Spanish ancestors. Lale sits down with the actor and television host to find out how she chose the destinations for each episode, her most memorable meals in places like San Sebastián and Andalusia, and how food can be an entry point to connecting more deeply with history—and each other. 

In Hawa Hassan's second cookbook, the chef and author explores the recipes and stories born out of displacement, and the sense of community and resilience that can be found through food. Lale chats with her about the travels and research behind the book, which took her to The Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia, and Lebanon, among others, as well as how her own path from Somalia to the US informed her personal food journey.