Coach Beard’s Book Club - A Ted Lasso Podcast

Dear Friends, This episode is a special tribute episode to our dear friend and co-host Andrea, who we lost on April 27th, 2026. Andrea was the best of us, a true light in the Ted Lasso podcast community and in the world.  In this episode we share some of our favorite moments and memories with Andrea and include a number of clips from older episodes where she shares her wise words.  In the episode we mention two charities that Andrea supported. If you are interested in giving a donation in her memory, they are Forever Fortunate Felines and Chicago Books to Women in Prison through Women & Children First, Chicago. If you are unable to make a monetary donation at this time, you can always check out Andrea's Storygraph account and read one of the many books on her TBR list.  And if you're not ready to listen to this episode yet, we completely understand. Just know her voice is always still here whenever you are ready to hear it.  Thank you and love to you all, Bex, Marita, and Michaela

Welcome back Greyhounds! This month we are covering Life of Pi, by Yann Martel. This was one of the many titles on Nate's bookshelf in season 3, episode 10, "International Break." Thanks to the eagle eyes of our listeners and fellow Ted Lasso fans, we learned that this was one of titles. Join us as Marita delves into the characters and the animals they connect with and how that ties into identity perception. Then Bex discusses the power of the whistle - both for Pi and Nate. Michaela explores the use of fantastical tales to teach life lessons in both the novel and the show. And finally, Andrea will discuss father/son relationships before asking each of us which animals we think would represent the different Ted Lasso characters. Additionally, we are doing a "Buddy Read" over on Storygraph for our next book. We will be reading Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret, by Judy Blume. Here's the link if you'd like to join us on that platform!  

Welcome back Greyhounds! This month we are joined by Professor Scott Henderson from Furman University to discuss the book that Colin received from Ted in season one, The Alchemist. How do we know that's what book he received? Well, Billy Harris himself told us! In this episode, Marita tells us that story. But just as importantly, we discuss Colin's journey and his need to take that journey. We talk about the importance of community and connection, mentoring, signs (Believe!) and omens, and the importance of finding oneself. We also touch on Nate's journey a bit and how The Alchemist really doesn't give us much (okay anything) about the interior lives of the female characters. Thankfully we have Ted Lasso to give us multiple complex female characters who have their own lives, agendas, and dreams. Let us know what you think! @beardsbookclub on Twitter

While the title of this book, by Michael Pollan, was first mentioned in season 3, episode 6, "Sunflowers," we don't see a copy of it until the series finale, "So Long, Farewell" when it appears among a pile of things that Ted has on his seat. In a later scene we see Ted asleep on the plane with his finger in the middle of the book maybe about halfway through reading it. Join us for this episode where Marita dives into who has privilege when it comes to drug usage and why. This is followed by Andrea who discusses Jane and Beard's approach to drug use and freedom of thought. Both Bex and Michaela look at set and setting but through two different lenses. Bex focuses specifically on Ted's "trip" to (and in?) the Yankee Doodle Burger Barn, while Michaela analyzes Ted's journey throughout the three seasons.  

Happy New Year, Greyhounds! We thought we'd have some new year's fun and games and so we have brought you a variety of things to start off 2024! First, Marita gets us started with a recasting of our Ted Lasso characters in roles from A Christmas Carol. Then Michaela explores our very own CBBC Lore (#cbbcLore) with questions from our episodes. Bex links the show and our episodes together with a little "Name that character" game and Andrea wraps things up with some Ted Lasso trivia and some fun questions for the rest of your cohosts! We hope you enjoy and we wish you the best as you start off your own 2024 adventures!

Welcome back, Greyhounds! It's been a busy fall, but we're back with another episode. This time we are joined by Jane Austen aficionado and host of the Boston Austen Book Club, Bridget Eileen Madden.  Bridget shares her perspectives on the book that Jack defaced and gifted to Keeley in season 3, episode 7, "The Strings That Bind Us" and your hosts chime in as well on topics ranging from Austen and Sudeikis as creators to Ted and Elinor parallels, from Jack as a sort of Willoughby-esque character to how the panda/lion debate in the show can be applied to Austen's characters from this novel, and much more! Settle in, it's a long one, but we hope you love it as much as we do! While we are still on Twitter @beardsbookclub, you can also now find us on Bluesky @cbbc.bsky.social!  

Welcome Back Greyhounds! We missed you this summer, but we're back with another book to discuss! Join us we debate whether the book is called Football Against the Enemy or Soccer Against the Enemy. (Bex is uploading it though and she says, 3 Americans against 1 Scot means it's Soccer!). In our more depth sections of the episode, Marita talks about the author, Simon Kuper, superstitions in sports, and the player directed nature of Dutch football (soccer!). Then Andrea delves into politics and racism in sports. Michaela builds off of this idea focusing in particular on aspects of British politics and considers the episode where Sam's restaurant is vandalized. Finally, Bex wraps it up with a discussion about how just as there are many ways to enjoy a book or a sport, there are just as many ways to engage in fandom. We hope you enjoy! Follow the podcast on Twitter @beardsbookclub

Welcome Back Greyhounds! This episode we look at Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami. We really wanted to read this title because it is the ONLY book that we ever see a woman actively reading in the entire series (we're looking at you writers!). It was a fascinating read and we took away so many things from our reading and conversation. In this episode we cover a range of topics from family secrets, to dealing with trauma, and different characters including Ted, Beard, and Nate. Let us know what you think! https://linktr.ee/cbbc  

Hello Greyhounds! We're super excited to bring you a bonus episode this week! We were recently lucky enough to sit down (via zoom) and chat with one of everyone's top three pub lads, Basil "Baz" Primrose, Mr. Adam Colborne. We asked him about books he has read, is reading, and would like to read. Then we asked him about books for Baz. And of course we asked him some questions about Ted Lasso and other projects he's been involved with. We hope you enjoy! You can follow Adam on Twitter and Instagram and he's also available on Cameo too!   https://linktr.ee/cbbc

Welcome back to another movie night with Coach Beard's Book Club. Someday, when we're all in the same time zone, we might choose pillow fight, but in the meantime, join us for our discussion of the many allusions (and direct call outs) to The Wizard of Oz. In this episode, Andrea discusses the team and the overlapping connections between characters with a specific focus on parallels between the Believe sign and the Wizard. Then Bex discusses character parallels between the coaches and Dorothy's companions, with special consideration for the hot air balloon scene in the film. Next, Marita covers a variety of topics, from connections with other books we've read for bok club, the question of if everything was a dream or not, and feminism in the film and show. Finally, Michaela wraps things up with a discussion of her personal favorite, Return to Oz and potential Ted Lasso spinoffs. https://linktr.ee/cbbc