A first-season moment worth pausing for
For a show still finding its feet, an award gives everyone behind the microphones a reason to stop and take in what the first season has become. Talking Shrimpers won the Silver Award for Best Non-League Club Podcast at the 2026 Non-League Bible Awards, news the team shared during World Cup Pod 4.
The result arrived during the show’s debut season, when it was still building its rhythm and finding an audience one episode at a time. Silver puts that first campaign alongside established non-league football podcasts and gives the team a milestone of its own.
Built week by week
Phil’s season review described an inaugural campaign of 35 regular episodes and 14 bonus podcasts. That run covered the men’s first team, Southend United Ladies and the Academy, while opening the door to club figures, former players and supporters with stories worth hearing.
Justin Rees and Martin Trenaman joined conversations during the season. Adam Barrett, Darryl Flahavan, Ricky Otto, Duncan Jupp and Steve Tilson were among the former Shrimpers welcomed to the show. Those names tell only part of it. Match reactions, supporter memories and voices from around the club gave the first year its shape.
The Silver recognition does not supply a league table for fan media, and it does not need to. Its value is simpler: people beyond the usual circle noticed a Southend podcast that had been built one conversation at a time.
Shared with the people who made it possible
World Cup Pod 4 remains the place to hear the team celebrate the news in their own voices. It sits on the official YouTube channel and in the podcast feed, alongside the episodes that led up to it.
This moment belongs to the hosts, guests and listeners who gave a new show their time during its debut season. Silver is worth enjoying. The next job is to keep making conversations that Southend supporters want to come back to.