The breakout star of Treasure Island: Fans v Faves is The Spinoff’s own head of podcasting, Jane Yee. Here’s everything you need to know about her show, The Real Pod.
What is The Real Pod?
A weekly podcast which recaps the biggest reality TV shows screening in New Zealand, The Real Pod is hosted by Jane Yee along with her colleagues Alex Casey and Duncan Greive. The trio watch every minute of the blockbuster reality TV franchises and dissect the drama as ardent fans, cracking jokes the whole way through.
Each episode features recaps of the current reality TV slate, with shows like Married at First Sight Australia, The Block and Treasure Island pulled apart and analysed from every angle. They also run through the weirdest news stories to emerge from New Zealand, going deep on sagas like Dug, the giant potato that turned out to be a gourd, and the unruly tourists trail of chaos.
What’s the backstory?
Originally founded to recap The Bachelor way back in 2015, The Real Pod has become New Zealand’s longest-running pop culture podcast. The hosts have deep connections to television – Casey worked for Warner Brothers on multiple reality shows, Greive won reviewer of the year for his analysis while Yee was recruited to actually appear on this season of Treasure Island: Fans v Faves. The podcast was Yee’s idea from the start – she’s a huge fan of reality TV, and the recap culture which has grown around it. She’s since gone on to be the first Director of Podcasts at The Spinoff.
The Real Pod has run for eight years, with hundreds of episodes and each season attracts listeners from the cast, who often come up to the studio to dish from behind-the-scenes and recount the emotional arc of their journeys. Chris Parker joined The Real Pod for his first interview after winning Celebrity Treasure Island, while Jordan Mauger’s appearance made global headlines, after he revealed that he decided the winner of his season of The Bachelor with a coin flip.
Who are the Cornies?
The show has devoted fans who watch along with the hosts, who hang in a Facebook group and a Discord called Real Pod Corner. They’ve come to be known as cornies, and are as much a part of the show’s appeal as the hosts. Multiple former reality TV contestants are in the corner, and it’s become a place which dissects the shows in realtime, while picking up details and interacting with the hosts. The Real Pod hosts occasional live events, but cornies also host multiple meetups around the country.
Where can I find it?
The Real Pod is available on all major podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts and Spotify.