10 podcasts to keep you chilled this summer

Whatever you're doing, Christmas is the perfect time to catch up on some podcasts.

Regardless of if your tastes lay in true crime, a good mystery, a great chat, or you would like to learn some facts or have a laugh, we've put together some suggestions based on what got our team talking and munched up the country miles this year.

You don't have to be a Dolly fan to enjoy this one, although we would probably bet that you will be a Dolly fan by the end of it.

This podcast looks at how Dolly Parton has managed to amass a diverse group of fans, ranging from the gay and lesbian community through to die hard red necks, that defies modern America. A fascinating journey through America during Dolly's lifetime.

This one definitely comes with a warning. The podcast follows the police and journalists on a mission to expose those who produce and distribute child abuse material on the dark web.

It is a confronting but facilitating story (that has some amazing links to Australia) about what lurks in the darkest corners of the internet. Not one to listen to with kids in the car.

From the team that bought us The Teacher's Pet comes a disturbing look at Aussie swindler Hamish Watson who cheated a handful of victims out of millions of dollars over several decades. The team from The Australian interview many of his victims and their stories leave you wondering about what would drive a surfie dude from Sydney to take such a destructive life path.

This true crime podcast comes from Aussie shores and covers cases from all over the world, but more often than not they are from our very own backyard. The podcast is told in a narrative style by its mysterious Australian host and take you into the backstories and ins and outs of the crimes. It sets the mood and really brings you along for the story.

This British podcast comes from the offices of QI, and the writers of that BBC show, Dan Schreiber, James Harkin, Andrew Hunter Murray and Anna Ptaszynski gather around the microphone every week to tell you the favourite things (facts) they've learnt that week and have a good laugh along the way. It's a great podcast for learning something new (for example did you know caterpillars turn into liquid before coming a butterfly!?) and having a laugh.

It might be a few years old now but if you haven't caught this gem of a podcast you really should. It's from Serial and This American Life and tells the story of a man named John who despises his Alabama town and decides to do something about it. While the podcast starts out as murder mystery it turns into something entirely different - a hunt for hidden treasure and unearthing the mysteries of one man's life.

The Land's Lucy Kinbacher went in search of some of the true warriors of the bush this year and put together these six amazing stories of men and women who've overcome amazing odds with a spirit you have to hear to believe. Their stories are heartbreaking, but their courage is truly inspiring.

While each season of this ABC true crime podcast has been great, the latest series, Snowball, takes the listener away from murder mysteries and into the life of the family of the host and journalist, Ollie Wards. It tells the story of how his family's encounter with a charismatic Californian con woman cost them everything.

From the L.A. Times Studios, that's the team that bought you "Dirty John" this podcast takes you on a search for a man's identify, a man known only as "Sixty-Six Garage" who's laid in a hospital bed unidentified and unconscious for more than 15 years. It also takes a look into if he's been conscious of his surroundings the whole time or not.

The true story of Belgian backpacker, Theo Hayez, who vanished into thin air one night in Byron Bay earlier this year. The podcast details the many twits and turns of the police investigation and how members of the northern NSW community have pledged to keep looking for the 18 year old.