It's Ben a Week

Throwback Thursday.

With Season 2 officially underway and new listeners joining, I wanted to resurface one of my favorite conversations from Season 1.

This episode with comedian Urzila Carlson is funny, honest, and exactly the kind of conversation that defines It’s Ben A Week. If you’re new here, this is a great place to start.

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This week on It’s Ben A Week, Ben sits down with Urzila Carlson —...

This week on It’s Ben A Week, Ben is joined by one of the longest friendships of his life — his childhood neighbor and lifelong friend, Maria Hynan. From growing up together on a lake in Wisconsin to navigating rebellion, mistakes, growth, and parenthood, this episode is a full-circle conversation about where we come from and who we become.

Ben and Maria reminisce about meeting at five years old, fighting like siblings, rearranging ...

This week on It’s Ben A Week, Ben sits down with his longtime friend Greg for one of the most personal and grounded conversations yet. Greg opens up about welcoming a new baby, surviving the devastating Palisades fires, and what it’s really like when your home is suddenly at risk — or gone — overnight. From evacuating through smoke-filled streets to navigating insurance chaos, grief, and gratitude at the same time, this episode ble...

Season 2 of It’s Ben A Week is here.

Hosted by actor and photographer Ben McDonnell, It’s Ben A Week is a weekly comedy and culture podcast featuring candid conversations, unfiltered storytelling, and honest takes on relationships, identity, career chaos, and whatever the hell just happened this week.

Season 2 launches with a refreshed look, elevated production, and a sharper creative focus — blending solo episodes with guest convers...

Season Two is officially here.

On the first episode of Season 2 of It’s Ben A Week, Ben returns after a three-week break feeling recharged, reset, and fully ready to level things up. With a brand-new studio, upgraded set, new artwork, and a fresh intro, Ben reflects on the wild first year of podcasting and what’s next for the show.

Ben opens the episode talking about:

• Taking a much-needed break and realizing how strange it felt no...

This week on a special Bonus Episode of It’s Ben A Week, Ben couldn’t bring himself to leave a single Tuesday empty — so he returns with friend, spiritual guide, and fan favorite Eleven for a short but powerful New Year energy reading and manifestation session.

Together, Ben and Eleven reflect on the end of 2025, the emotional weight of the year, and why most New Year’s resolutions set people up to fail. Instead, they offer a softer...

This week on It’s Ben A Week, we’re celebrating 50 episodes, one full year, and the end of Season One with a special highlight reel. Whether you’ve listened since the beginning or joined somewhere along the way, this episode captures the wild, emotional, hilarious, chaotic, meaningful, and unforgettable moments that defined 2025.

From crying with mothers who have lost children…
 to screaming about Starbucks foam…
 to talking...

This week on It’s Ben A Week, Ben wraps up his very first year of podcasting with a deeply personal and celebratory Season One Finale. After 50 straight weeks — zero missed Tuesdays — Ben sits down with the one person who started this journey with him: AJ. With thousands of listeners tuning in from across the world, Ben reflects on how the podcast began, how much it’s grown, and how much work went into creating something from scrat...

This week on It’s Ben A Week, Ben opens the episode by recapping the unbelievable viral rise of Jeff the Possum, whose video has now hit nearly 3 million views across TikTok and Instagram. Ben shares the wild influx of new followers, the hate comments from people wanting “more Jeff, less podcast,” and the unexpected chaos of going viral over a porch possum instead of the content he actually produces.

But quickly, the episode shifts ...

⚠️ Warning: this episode is X rated and NSFW

This week on It’s Ben A Week, Ben is joined by his friend — Joy — for the dirtiest, wildest, and most X-rated episode in the history of the show. And before they even get to the sex talk, Ben has a Thanksgiving meltdown to unload.

The episode opens with Ben’s Thanksgiving Eve nightmare:
 A scammer stole $1,000 from him — and did it so convincingly that even Joy admitted she would’ve fa...

This week on It’s Ben A Week, Ben is joined by one of his favorite people on earth — Jennifer Geisser, Executive Vice President of Communications for Bravo and Peacock Unscripted, and the woman running the entire Bravo universe while Ben runs around in sparkly shoes.

Before Jen even joins the chat, Ben unleashes a full rant on:

• Getting blocked from the Granbury Breaking News Facebook page (shocker)
• Being surrounded by trash famili...

This week on It’s Ben A Week, Ben sits down with Weston Brown, a Texas native whose shocking and emotional story has captured national attention.

Weston grew up in a hyper-religious, politically extreme household just outside Dallas — homeschooled, isolated, and forbidden from music, movies, doctors, or anything that didn’t fit a narrow version of “God’s plan.” When he came out as gay, he was fired from his church job, cut off from ...

This week on It’s Ben A Week, Ben is joined by one of his best friends — actress and producer Laura Munoz-Bottini, who just happens to be the granddaughter of The Duke himself, John Wayne.

The episode opens with martinis, cinnamon sticks, and chaos as Ben and Laura reminisce about their first acting class together in 2015, where Darrell the acting coach famously told Ben to “go write a letter in the closet and fight for Little Ben.”...

This week on It’s Ben A Week, the Christmas season officially begins — and Ben’s not waiting for anyone’s permission.

 AJ’s out of town, the Halloween décor is gone, and Mariah Carey has defrosted, which means it’s tree-trimming time. Between giant ornaments hanging from the ceiling and a three-day decorating marathon, Ben dives into why Christmas joy should never be delayed — and why Thanksgiving can kick rocks (dry turkey, stuffin...

This week on It’s Ben A Week, it’s Halloween — and Ben’s fired up.

After a whirlwind of travel from LA to Cabo (and back), Ben’s back home, zipping around the ranch on his Segway, reminiscing about his past Halloween costumes — from Miley Cyrus to Jesus floating on a cloud. But between the laughs and chaos, this episode takes a sharp and heartfelt turn.

A Facebook post claiming “science proves no one is born gay” sets Ben off on a pa...

This week on It’s Ben A Week, Ben is joined by his friends Bryan and John from Out Loud and Laughing for what can only be described as a pumpkin-spiced fever dream.

It starts innocent — PSLs, Starbucks baristas, and why no one uses proper grammar anymore — but spirals quickly into the Android vs. iPhone debate, porn bans in Texas, Disney adult confessions, and Greg Abbott jokes that might get everyone canceled.

From there, Ben and th...

This week on It’s Ben A Week, Ben is joined once again by his good friend Gabrielle, and things get deep fast — but not before a Starbucks rant. The blue-haired barista saga continues, complete with foam mishaps, stick-and-poke tattoos, and a debate over why grandmas dye their hair blue.

From there, the conversation shifts from funny to philosophical, as Ben and Gabrielle dive into the idea of fear — how it shapes us, limits us, and...

This week on It’s Ben A Week, Ben welcomes a very special pair of guests — his cousin-in-law Tara, and her daughter Haley, who instantly steals the show.

Tara shares her family’s powerful and emotional story of raising a child with Down syndrome — from the shock of the diagnosis to the overwhelming joy and laughter Haley brings into their lives every day. She opens up about young motherhood, the early medical scares, the misconcepti...

This week on It’s Ben A Week, Ben is back with a short and savage solo rant. Two companies landed on his official shit list: AT&T and Starbucks — and he’s not holding back.

It all started with a simple iPhone case return that turned into a full-blown customer service nightmare. Between a useless app, a store manager hiding in the back, and a call center that sounded like a rave in the background, Ben lost his mind trying to retu...