Happy Birthday Podcast

First of all, how good are presents?! It feels great when someone puts time into picking something out or planning a fun experience for you. In this episode, Jo and Jeremy look at the idea of karma, the insanely fascinating psychology of wrapping paper and the duo even dips their toes into the topic of Kanye West, gifting extraordinaire. Give yourself the gift of a good listen and tune in!

Environmental scientist and activist Jeremy leads the charge in Episode 12! Join Jo and Jeremy for a chat about environmental concerns related to birthdays and parties from the “one-time-use” culture of partyware to the pressures around gift giving. You’ll leave with some approachable pearls of environmental wisdom and a newfound enthusiasm for party-throwing!

In honour of Mother's Day, Jo and Jeremy finally address the elephant lingering in the corner of a studio wearing a tiny party hat: your ACTUAL BIRTH DAY. The day you were born! Some say that the day you were born determines a lot about your personality - and perhaps it does because both hosts were born on a Sunday and they're both awesome, so... science! The duo also delve into some of the more amazing facts about baby development and Jo gets into the nitty-gritty of the story of birthing her son.

How much could Jo and Jeremy possibly say about champagne? Oh, PLENTY. In this effervescent episode of Happy Birthday Podcast, your two podcasting pals toast to the bubbly bevvie that's become the official drink of celebrations, birthday-related and otherwise. Next time you take a spritely sip of sparkling wine, you'll be glad you listened to Episode 10 of the only birthday podcast on the planet!

Join Jo and Jeremy in wishing the city of Rome yet another happy birthday. This is the city that baked the first birthday cakes, celebrated the birthdays of their gods with human sacrifice and they pretty much gave us the gift of time itself. Lend Jo and Jerry your ears as they prod Rome’s past and speak a little bit of Latin.

Three decades of living is nothing to sneeze at. In this episode of Happy Birthday Podcast, Jeremy (just over 30) and Jo (just under 30) dive into the birthday that's been dubbed 'dirty'. But don’t you worry – this is an episode for everyone, no matter which side of 30 you’re sitting on.

Pet lovers, put your people-paws in the air like you truly and deeply care because this episode is going to make you very happy. In Episode 7 of Happy Birthday Podcast, Jo and Jeremy look into the phenomenon of birthday parties for pets – why owners go to the effort, how to pull it off and the fundamental differences between birthday cakes for cats and dogs. Plus, a tribute to the humble deep-sea mollusc!

Birthday cards have been around since forever(ish). Ancient Egyptians were giving each other birthday cards! In this episode of Happy Birthday Podcast, greeting card designer Jo and environmentally-minded Jerry take a close and calculating look at the bits of folded paper that have become such an important part of birthdays and a multi-billion dollar industry worldwide.

In this delectable episode of Happy Birthday Podcast, Jo and Jerry tackle the official treat of the birthday: CAKE! From the dessert's humble beginnings as glorified bread to strange cake-related crimes, this is the episode your ears have been hungry for. Also, birthday cake flavoured vodka anyone?

This episode of Happy Birthday Podcast is a little darker than most. From the statistical leap in birthday deaths to the good ol' Birthday Blues, Jo and Jeremy look at some of the more melancholy aspects of birthdays. The duo also covers ways to combat these bad birthday side effects, so hopefully you'll leave feeling positive despite the somber content.

There’s a Happy Birthday Podcast episode about parties and you’re all invited! Join Jo and Jerry for the perfect mix of poignant storytelling and incoherent ramblings as they talk about birthday parties from all kinds of angles.

Birthdays here, birthdays there, birthdays everywhere! Tag along as Jo and Jerry planet-hop with the utmost style to discover some of the most outlandish, interesting and profound ways that birthdays are celebrated around the world.

What’s this birthday business about anyway? Commemorating the day of your birth makes sense, but throughout the centuries, birthdays have gotten pretty big for their boots. The cake, the candles, the singing, the presents, the Facebook notifications… birthdays are a big deal. In the very first episode of Happy Birthday Podcast, Jo and Jerry look at the beginning of the modern-day birthday traditions that everyone knows so well.

Happy Best Friend Day! It's a day to show appreciation for the friends that make life extra-awesome. Hug them, squeeze them, feed them -- and be sure to get them to listen to this episode, featuring a long chat between Jo and her best bud, Jen.

Happy Mother's Day! Join Jo and Jennifer Hopper as they chat about how wonderful -and how completely crap- parenting can be.

Happy Hairdresser Appreciation Day! In this episode, Jo chats to hairdresser Jodie Rowles who offers a glimpse into the hairdressing industry. The stereotypes, the struggles, the bliss, the unique intimacy between hairdresser and client.

Happy Only Child Day. Also called “I was so perfect my parents only needed one child” Day, this is a day for only children to appreciate all the things they love about being an only child. Join Jo and only child guest, Inga Vennell, for a look into the childhood and adult life of a person that doesn't have to share their parents.

Happy Let's Laugh Day! Research shows that 80% of laughter isn't the result of something funny. But Let's Laugh Day is all about the other 20%! Join Jo and her guest Maddie for a chat about one of the world's most wonderful and weird physiological phenomenons.

Happy National Cereal Day! Join Jo and guest Sian Kilgour to find out how this wildly popular morning meal went from a rock-hard digestive aid for soldiers to a cultural phenomenon.

Happy World Compliment Day! Today, tell people how amazing they are, tell yourself how amazing you are and, of course, listen to this episode of HBDP. Join Jo and Anita Suster for a chat about the social role of compliments and a fair few stories about strange compliment encounters.

Happy National Love Your Pet Day! In today's episode, Jo and dog owner Erica Boucher, talk about the history of animal domestication, touch on pet psychology and generally gush about how wonderful the pet-person relationship can be!

Happy Send a Card to a Friend Day! Join Jo and fellow greeting card designer Issy Kerr for an aural celebration of Send a Card to a Friend Day, the day that encourages people to make their mates feel special.

Happy Birthday Podcast has gone rogue! And I think you're gonna like it.

We've been recording for a year! In this episode of Happy Birthday, Jo and Jeremy look back on their favourite bits of the podcast and meander down memory lane for some stories about our own past birthdays. Plus, there's an announcement!

Halloween and birthdays have quite a bit in common! Or, at the very least, Jo and Jerry make it seem like they do so that they can get away with recording an episode about Halloween. Tune in for a chat about evil spirits, religious traditions and, of course, treats!

Time to tackle one of the only birthday staples we haven't covered on Happy Birthday Podcast: CANDLES! There's more to 'em than you think.

Years, months, weeks, days - humans have been measuring time in this way since about 300BC. And their organisation of time wasn’t random; it was based on the cyclical nature of… nature. Your birthday marks another year passed, so this week on the podcast, we’re going to get to know a year really well.

An episode of Happy Birthday Podcast like no other. This time, Jo and Jerry dip a toe into the world of true crime with two real-life stories about birthday crime.

It's finally time to talk about everyone's favourite poppable party essential - BALLOONS! Float away on a journey through balloon history, federal helium reserves and Jo's persistent case of pharyngitis.

Birthdays at work. Every workplace does them differently - some do monthly group birthdays, others encourage employees to bring in three cheesecakes on their birthdays and other companies give employees a day off on their birthday. Join robustly healthy Jerry and pharyngitis-ridden Jo for a fun chat about celebrating your birthday on the clock.

From grand gestures to society’s birthday sexism issues and right through to the five love languages, Episode 17 of Happy Birthday Podcast is all about the good, the bad and the Kanye of how people celebrate birthdays with their partner.

This episode was meant to be about the birthday industry but Jo fell into a clown-hole and Jeremy went on a cake rampage, so it's a true variety show, complete with all kinds of nonsense. But as always, it's very fun to listen to and you'll learn some things!

A special release of Happy Birthday Podcast to commemorate the birthday of Jo's homeland! Join J and J for a star-spangled episode that touches on American history, 4th of July traditions and, of course, birthday parties in graveyards.