Beautiful Strangers: A British Podcast about People who Lived, Loved and Lost

Here is how you know that Jack Suddaby, the creator, writer and producer of the Beautiful Strangers podcast truly loves the art of podcasting.

Jack works as a podcast producer for the BBC, producing a weekly news podcast called The Next Episode. Then after a long day of producing a podcast, Jack goes home and – produces another podcast.

Beautiful Strangers podcast writer / producer Jack Suddaby

“I've always listened to a lot of podcasts, and about eight months ago I started listening to Love + Radio, and just really enjoyed how they told stories,” Jack explains. “I was inspired, I guess. Whenever I listen to or watch something really good I always just want to make my version of it, or do something similar.”

Why create a podcast about the lives of three people?

“As much as I enjoy making news pods,” Jack begins. “I've had a real urge to create something totally non-news related, basically, I just wanted to add loads of sound effects and wanted to pitch voices down and ultimately have fun with it, so this podcast series really let me do that.”

Strangers in the night

For its first season, Beautiful Strangers focuses its narrow lens on the lives of three people who don’t know each other and don’t have much in common other than the challenges they’ve faced in their lives.

In episode two, for example, Jack interviews a woman who develops and allergy to water, a decidedly rare condition. The woman first develops an allergy to water and finds alternative methods for bathing until her allergy then strikes her ability to even drink water.

“It was after being inspired by so many podcasts I was listening to at the time, and wanting to make something that told a story of someone’s life,” Jack says. “There are so many amazing stories out there, and podcasts are such an accessible way of presenting them.”

In episode one, a man deals with the consequences of a brain tumor in a unique way and in episode three a man who made a fortune in furniture finds that bad habits are hard to kick.

His name is Jack

The creator, writer and producer of Beautiful Strangers is a 25-year-old self-described music devotee and recording equipment nerd, who lives in the Oval in South London

Beautiful Strangers writer / producer Jack Suddaby in London.

“I grew up in the countryside in a tiny village called Moreton Pinkney,” Jack recalls. “Not much happened there. We had a pub, I think it was the pub with the most Princess Diana memorabilia in the UK. Bit weird to be honest. Hundreds of tiny Diana faces crassly painted on china bowls, all strategically placed around you, as you ate fish fingers. Not my idea of a night out. The pub closed down shortly after we moved there. “

Jack’s musical tastes lean toward, as he says, “a big 90s hip hop head.” Jack even produces his music, as well as shoots some music videos when he finds the time.

“I own a green screen for the music videos,” Jack says, “which sounds like fun, until you realize everything you make looks a bit like a knock-off weather show.”

Wearing a lot of hats

Like so many podcasters, Jack’s role in his podcast includes idea conception, scriptwriting, sound engineer, interviewer, editor, producer, marketing genius and project manager.

“I edit the main podcasts interviews on Hindenburg, which is fab for quickly cutting down audio,” Jack explains. “I really recommend it. I export the edits and put the audio into Ableton, which is where I add all the sfx and mix the music.”

“My housemate made the graphic,” Jack says. “He actually made a picture for each episode and a season trailer, all animated. He's incredible. His name is Jack Gunn and I have to plug him. He’s a talented guy. The cool, understated colors reflect perfectly the tone of the stories.”

Jack recorded all three subjects in a studio so it was intimate like a one-on-one chat. To heighten that warm glow of self-revelation, Jack EQ'd the audio, compressed it and added “a bit of reverb.”

“Actually, just before releasing the podcast I bought Valhalla Vintage Verb,” Jack says as he nerds out over audio equipment. “It's kinda nerdy but the reverb sound is 10000% better than the Ableton default, so I replaced all the episodes with my new special, shiny, warm reverb. I'd recommend for any podcasters.”

Future podcasts

Like so many podcasters, Jack began and completed Beautiful Strangers as a labor of love.

So monetization didn’t make his lengthy to-do list when he developed and completed the podcast.

“I started a GoFundMe page,” Jack says with some hesitation. “It's under the same title as the podcast, so people can donate that way if they want to. I haven't really pushed that though it feels weird. As I continue podcasting, I will put more energy in the monetization part, though.”

Jack does have plans for more episodes of Beautiful Strangers podcast.

What has been the audience reaction to Beautiful Strangers?

It's been amazing,” Jack admits.”Great British Podcasts featured it as their 'weekly pick' alongside David Attenborough and Love Island, so that surprising and exciting. And popular podcasters have also recommended it to their audiences, so that helps.”

Finally, Jack welcomes feedback from those close to him as do many podcasters.

“A lot of mates have rung me up and congratulated me, which is cute cause we don't ever really ring each other up, unless someone's been broken up with,” Jack announces.

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Beautiful Strangers has three episodes with an average run time of about 20 minutes. The three people featured on the episodes do not wallow in reality-TV, overcranked melodrama. Instead, the stories act as simple one-act plays about the human condition and the daily challenges we all face and how we handle them.

For a self-financed, beginning podcast, the production values are incredible and the arc of storytelling never wavers from the purity of the tales so carefully breathed into our ears by its creator Jack Suddaby.

In probably no other form of media today could someone without any financial backing, experience in writing, developing and packaging a podcast soar so high in his first solo flight of his podcast.

The good news for the podcast audience is that there so many other Jack Suddaby’s out there waiting for a chance to whisper into your earbuds for a few minutes.

Check out Beautiful Strangers on your podcast feed. Your ears will thank you.