Fiction · Pippa Johnstone
by Pippa Johnstone
Expectant is a six-part audio series that muddies fiction and non-fiction as a woman faces the prospect of becoming a parent during the climate crisis. Through conversations with climate researchers, parents, mental health experts and childfree families, she grapples with grief, hope, and the biggest decision of her life: should she bring a child into this world? Expectant has been named an Apple Podcasts Series Essential. Written and performed by Pippa Johnstone. Music by Laura Reznek. Sound design and mixing by Robyn Edgar. Dramaturgy by Karina Palmitesta. Artwork by Hannah Campbell. This series is supported by the Canada Council for the Arts and the Ontario Arts Council.
Where Expectant ranks today in each Apple Podcasts chart (US, Sep 23, 2026).
A curated, balanced selection of Apple Podcasts reviews.
This series will definitely make you uncomfortable. But it is extremely necessary to go through this discomfort if you're even slightly considering to have kids, no matter what your views are on the subject.
Gets better and better with a stunning end. Fantastic acting with so many interesting perspectives. This is a very important piece of work. Would be fantastic to be played in schools with discussions.
Wonderfully produced and very easy to listen to. I really liked the fiction/nonfiction blend aspect of the writing. I appreciate having something to spur my own thoughts on a topic such as this, which can be so tense to actually discuss with friends and loved ones. I do wish that the ending was left more vague. I can see that it was attempted to be vague but the narrators thoughts seem to lean heavily in one direction by the end of the last episode. Maybe that’s just my perspective bleeding into the words.
This series posed unique, arresting, evocative, and thought-provoking topics. I thoroughly enjoyed the first few episodes, which conscientiously and respectfully delved into various philosophical and environmental issues. However, the listener becomes made aware towards the end of the series of the speaker’s mother’s assumption that she “will” have children; the journey ends in a foregone conclusion. There are hints that this may also be due to peer/social pressures of loved ones also opting to move forward with having children. A bit of a disappointment that this combination of research, effort and thought seemingly ends after a conversation with her mother.
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