How We Made Your Mother

By Audacy & Josh Radnor and Craig Thomas

HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER, a groundbreaking sitcom that ran for 208 episodes on CBS from 2005-2014, unfolds entirely as a flashback, using a time-bending narrative structure that spotlights the lives of f... more

4.8

762762 ratings

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FAQs about How We Made Your Mother:

How many episodes does How We Made Your Mother have?

The podcast currently has 70 episodes available.

How We Made Your Mother episodes:

February 02, 2026 How We Sensory Deprivated [with Rob Greenberg] | S2E14 "Monday Night Football"
This episode of How We Made Your Mother is a fun, heartfelt hang centered on Monday Night Football (Season 2, Episode 14) of How I Met Your Mother, with director Rob Greenberg joining the guys to reminisce. It kicks off with a surprise listener marriage proposal, then rolls into stories from the early days of the show, Rob being the steady hand during the pilot, and what it was like directing one of the most inventive, fast-moving episodes of the series. They talk Super Bowl timing, visual gags, Barney’s gambling origin story, and why the episode works so well even though no one remembers who won the game—because it was never about that. The conversation stays light, funny, and reflective, wrapping up with a lovely fan letter and an original song inspired by the show, all reinforcing the same idea: it’s the time spent together that really matters.
Read “The 20 Best ‘How I Met Your Mother’ Episodes, Ranked From Great to Legendary” by Andrew McGowen in Variety.

CONNECT WITH THE SHOW:
Official Website (Send us your audio and written messages)
Instagram

READ JOSH’S MUSELETTERS ON SUBSTACK:
Subscribe HERE.

CRAIG’S BOOK IS AVAILABLE!
Head over to CRAIG’S WEBSITE to order your copy of THAT’S NOT HOW IT HAPPENED.

SUPPORT PEDIATRIC CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE RESEARCH:
Click HERE to learn more and donate today.

FOLLOW THE OFFICE LADIES:
Check out "Office Ladies" at https://officeladies.com/ or wherever you get your podcasts!
Follow on Instagram at OfficeLadiesPod.
Follow on TikTok.

AND MORE:
Josh’s Official Website
Josh on Spotify
Craig’s Official Website (with links to his published writing)
Alek’s “Dead Fathers Society” on Substack

To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
...more
59min
January 26, 2026 How We Raised Our Columns | S2E13 "Columns"
In this episode of How We Made Your Mother, Josh, Craig, and Alek dive into Season 2’s “Columns,” which explores the unexpected loneliness of becoming the boss. The conversation centers on Ted Mosby’s role reversal with Hammond Druthers (played memorably by Bryan Cranston), drawing directly from Craig and Carter Bays’ real experiences suddenly becoming showrunners with no training and realizing that success can be isolating. The hosts reflect on gossip, power, firing people, and the strange emotional distance that comes with authority, while also celebrating writer Matt Kuhn’s first-ever TV script and his journey from writers’ assistant to successful showrunner—an example of raising your hand, doing the unglamorous work, and being noticed. Along the way, they unpack the episode’s old-school A/B story structure, the nude Marshall painting subplot, classic jokes (new d’art, Margarita Fridays), and behind-the-scenes memories, before closing with heartfelt listener letters that underscore how How I Met Your Mother continues to soundtrack people’s real lives in nonlinear, meaningful ways.

CONNECT WITH THE SHOW:
Official Website (Send us your audio and written messages)
Instagram

READ JOSH’S MUSELETTERS ON SUBSTACK:
Subscribe HERE.

CRAIG’S BOOK IS AVAILABLE!
Head over to CRAIG’S WEBSITE to order your copy of THAT’S NOT HOW IT HAPPENED.

SUPPORT PEDIATRIC CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE RESEARCH:
Click HERE to learn more and donate today.

FOLLOW THE OFFICE LADIES:
Check out "Office Ladies" at https://officeladies.com/ or wherever you get your podcasts!
Follow on Instagram: OfficeLadiesPod
Follow on TikTok

AND MORE:
Josh’s Official Website
Josh on Spotify
Craig’s Official Website (with links to his published writing)
Alek’s “Dead Fathers Society” on Substack

To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
...more
57min
January 19, 2026 How We Entered The Lobby | S2E12 "First Time in New York"
This week’s episode is a big, warm, lore-heavy love letter to one of How I Met Your Mother’s most meaningful episodes. Josh and Craig talk about why “First Time in New York” works so well: filling in backstories, sneaking past network standards with euphemisms, and still making real present-day moves like Robin finally saying “I love you.” They dig into the Dirty Dancing sequence (yes, it cost a lot), Lucy Hale’s early guest spot, Barney’s secretly heartbreaking virginity story, Marshall and Lily’s lobby-vs-top-of-the-building debate, and Ted’s eternal romance with the Empire State Building. Along the way, they get reflective about how we edit our own memories, why stories matter, and how HIMYM has become a comfort show for people all over the world—ending with emotional listener letters, New York recommendations, and a reminder that people will, in fact, dance.

CONNECT WITH THE SHOW:
Official Website (Send us your audio and written messages)
Instagram

READ JOSH’S MUSELETTERS ON SUBSTACK:
Subscribe HERE.

CRAIG’S BOOK IS AVAILABLE!
Head over to CRAIG’S WEBSITE to order your copy of THAT’S NOT HOW IT HAPPENED.

SUPPORT PEDIATRIC CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE RESEARCH:
Click HERE to learn more and donate today.

FOLLOW THE OFFICE LADIES:
Check out "Office Ladies" at https://officeladies.com/ or wherever you get your podcasts!
Follow on Instagram: OfficeLadiesPod
Follow on TikTok

AND MORE:
Josh’s Official Website
Josh on Spotify
Craig’s Official Website (with links to his published writing)
Alek’s “Dead Fathers Society” on Substack

To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
...more
1h 3min
January 12, 2026 How We Met That Grinch | S2E11 "How Lily Stole Christmas"
Josh Radnor and Craig Thomas revisit Season 2, Episode 11, “How Lily Stole Christmas,” the show’s first real Christmas episode—and one of its most emotionally honest. They talk about the fallout from Marshall and Lily’s breakup, especially Ted’s complicated position as best friend to both of them, and how the episode hinges on a single censored insult (the infamous “Grinch”) caught on an answering machine—an extremely 2006 plot device. The conversation digs into what a best friend actually owes you after a breakup, why Ted’s anger at Lily is about more than just defending Marshall, and how that confrontation ends up being about friendship, hurt feelings, and chosen family. Along the way they shout out Barney’s sickness subplot, Christmas movie influences like A Christmas Story and Love Actually, and reflect on why this episode still hits hard for fans who return to it every holiday season as a comfort watch.

CONNECT WITH THE SHOW:
Official Website (Send us your audio and written messages)
Instagram

READ JOSH’S MUSELETTERS ON SUBSTACK:
Subscribe HERE.

CRAIG’S BOOK IS AVAILABLE!
Head over to CRAIG’S WEBSITE to order your copy of THAT’S NOT HOW IT HAPPENED.

SUPPORT PEDIATRIC CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE RESEARCH:
Click HERE to learn more and donate today.

FOLLOW THE OFFICE LADIES:
Check out "Office Ladies" at ⁠https://officeladies.com/ ⁠or wherever you get your podcasts!
Follow on Instagram: OfficeLadiesPod⁠
Follow on ⁠TikTok⁠

AND MORE:
Josh’s Official Website
Josh on Spotify
Craig’s Official Website (with links to his published writing)
Alek’s “Dead Fathers Society” on Substack

To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
...more
56min
January 05, 2026 How We Met James [with Wayne Brady] | S2E10 "Single Stamina"
In this episode of How We Made Your Mother, Josh and Craig welcome the brilliant Wayne Brady to revisit “Single Stamina,” the Season 2 episode that introduced Barney’s gay, Black brother James. Together they unpack how Wayne came to the show, what it felt like to embody this new character, and how the episode balanced outrageous comedy with genuine heart. They discuss James as both brother and father figure to Barney, the themes of aging, vulnerability, and growth that define the show, and how the episode’s subtle pro–gay-marriage message felt quietly radical in 2006. Wayne shares memories of working with Neil Patrick Harris, his nerves walking onto set, and how he approaches comedy and fear as a performer. Josh and Craig reflect on the episode’s legacy, its GLAAD Media Award nomination, and how it captured HIMYM’s mix of humor, heart, and social progressiveness.

CONNECT WITH THE SHOW:
Official Website (Send us your audio and written messages)
Instagram

READ JOSH’S MUSELETTERS ON SUBSTACK:
Subscribe HERE.

CRAIG’S BOOK IS AVAILABLE!
Head over to CRAIG’S WEBSITE to order your copy of THAT’S NOT HOW IT HAPPENED.

SUPPORT PEDIATRIC CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE RESEARCH:
Click HERE to learn more and donate today.

FOLLOW THE OFFICE LADIES:
Check out "Office Ladies" at https://officeladies.com/ or wherever you get your podcasts!
Follow on Instagram: OfficeLadiesPod
Follow on TikTok

AND MORE:
Josh’s Official Website
Josh on Spotify
Craig’s Official Website (with links to his published writing)
Alek’s “Dead Fathers Society” on Substack

To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
...more
1h 2min
December 29, 2025 Flashback: How That Wasn't Moby | S1E11 "The Limo"
To celebrate New Years, we are flashing back to our Season 1 rewatch of “The Limo.” Josh and Craig recall the episode’s ambition to be a “simple shoot” that turned out to be one of the most technically challenging due to the cramped limo set, and share behind-the-scenes stories like Jason Segel’s triumphant foggy entrance, the difficulty of getting camera shots in the limo, and the running joke of “the circuits are jammed.” They marvel at the Emmy-winning cinematography, the comic perfection of Bon Jovi’s “You Give Love a Bad Name,” and how the episode balances magical realism with emotional honesty. Josh highlights the cinematic final shot and the episode’s theme—that life’s unexpected detours are all part of the journey. They praise guest stars like Kathleen Perkins (Mary Beth) and JP Manoux (Not Moby), reflect on their own formative pop culture experiences, and read fan letters, including one from a Canadian listener whose wedding was filled with HIMYM references. Jordana, Josh’s wife and a clinical psychologist, closes with an insightful commentary on the spiritual lesson embedded in Ted’s narration: not everything has a happy ending, but it’s all important.

CONNECT WITH THE SHOW:
Official Website (Send us your audio and written messages)
Instagram

READ JOSH’S MUSELETTERS ON SUBSTACK:
Subscribe HERE.

CRAIG’S BOOK IS AVAILABLE!
Head over to CRAIG’S WEBSITE to order your copy of THAT’S NOT HOW IT HAPPENED.

SUPPORT PEDIATRIC CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE RESEARCH:
Click HERE to learn more and donate today.

FOLLOW THE OFFICE LADIES:
Check out "Office Ladies" at https://officeladies.com/ or wherever you get your podcasts!
Follow on Instagram: OfficeLadiesPod
Follow on TikTok

AND MORE:
Josh’s Official Website
Josh on Spotify
Craig’s Official Website (with links to his published writing)
Alek’s “Dead Fathers Society” on Substack

To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
...more
1h 13min
December 22, 2025 How We Met Robin Sparkles [with Cobie Smulders] | S2E9 "Slap Bet"
In this episode of How We Made Your Mother, Josh Radnor and Craig Thomas revisit one of the most iconic episodes of How I Met Your Mother: Season 2, Episode 9, “Slap Bet,” with special guest Cobie Smulders.
The conversation dives deep into the origin and impact of Robin Sparkles, from the wild writers’ room pitch to the massive, risky production of the full “Let’s Go to the Mall” music video—shot on an extra day, with choreography, wigs, dancers, and a full pop song that went on to live far beyond the episode itself. Cobie shares candid memories of recording the song (green apples, whiskey, nerves, and all), learning the choreography, and how revealing this secret pop-star past fundamentally unlocked a lighter, sillier, more intimate side of Robin Scherbatsky. Josh and Craig reflect on how the episode introduced not just Robin Sparkles, but also the slap bet, the slap bet commissioner, and a storytelling confidence that helped define the series’ future. The episode also features deeply moving listener letters, including one read by Cobie, underscoring how HIMYM has become a source of comfort, philosophy, nostalgia, and emotional connection for fans—proving that even the funniest episodes are ultimately about vulnerability, love, and letting yourself be truly known.
Watch the full VIDEO of “Let’s Go to the Mall”

CONNECT WITH THE SHOW:
Official Website (Send us your audio and written messages)
Instagram

READ JOSH’S MUSELETTERS ON SUBSTACK:
Subscribe HERE.

CRAIG’S BOOK IS AVAILABLE!
Head over to CRAIG’S WEBSITE to order your copy of THAT’S NOT HOW IT HAPPENED.

SUPPORT PEDIATRIC CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE RESEARCH:
Click HERE to learn more and donate today.

FOLLOW THE OFFICE LADIES:
Check out "Office Ladies" at https://officeladies.com/ or wherever you get your podcasts!
Follow on Instagram: OfficeLadiesPod
Follow on TikTok

AND MORE:
Josh’s Official WebsiteJosh on Spotify
Craig’s Official Website (with links to his published writing)
Alek’s “Dead Fathers Society” on Substack

To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
...more
1h 2min
December 15, 2025 How To Play Xing Hai Shi Bu Xing | S2E8 “Atlantic City”
In this episode, Josh and Craig revisit Season 2, Episode 8: “Atlantic City,” written by Maria Ferrari, who started as a writer’s assistant before becoming a staff writer. They discuss the unusual challenge of writing a road-trip episode that takes the whole gang out of their usual sets and how that led to one of the longest rewrite nights of the early seasons. The conversation covers how the story’s emotional center—Lily trying to escape judgment by eloping with Marshall only to realize she can’t run from family—finally clicked during late-night rewrites, and how the episode became a metaphor about facing what you’re avoiding. Josh recalls on-set memories, like Ted’s Twizzler moment and Robin’s bikini-shirt gag, while Craig explains the origins of Barney’s fake Chinese gambling game (“Deal or No Deal,” a jab at the rival show). They also talk about guest star Kate Micucci, who sends in a warm voice memo about her brief role, and close with reflections on Cheers, improv, extras’ pay, the pressure of 22-episode seasons, and the meaning of the final song “Sink to the Bottom with You” by Fountains of Wayne—an anthem for commitment, even when it means sinking together.

CONNECT WITH THE SHOW:
Official Website (Send us your audio and written messages)
Instagram

READ JOSH’S MUSELETTERS ON SUBSTACK:
Subscribe HERE.

CRAIG’S BOOK IS AVAILABLE!
Head over to CRAIG’S WEBSITE to order your copy of THAT’S NOT HOW IT HAPPENED.

SUPPORT PEDIATRIC CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE RESEARCH:
Click HERE to learn more and donate today.

FOLLOW THE OFFICE LADIES:
Check out "Office Ladies" at https://officeladies.com/ or wherever you get your podcasts!
Follow on Instagram: OfficeLadiesPod
Follow on TikTok

AND MORE:
Josh’s Official WebsiteJosh on Spotify
Craig’s Official Website (with links to his published writing)
Alek’s “Dead Fathers Society” on Substack

To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
...more
1h 5min
December 11, 2025 Preview: Dinner’s On Me with Guest Josh Radnor
Josh recently sat down with his friend Jesse Tyler Ferguson for an episode of Jesse's podcast "Dinner's On Me." Both Josh and Jesse were on hit sitcoms during a very particular moment in TV's metamorphosis, and they've both had on-going, evolving relationships with the characters they played on those shows.
Here's a preview of their conversation...

To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
...more
6min
December 08, 2025 How We Met Ol' Swarley | S2E7 "Swarley"
Josh and Craig are joined by writer Greg Malins, who co-ran Friends before joining How I Met Your Mother for Season 2. They revisit the episode “Swarley” (aired December 8 2006), talking about how Greg helped shape the show’s tone, the accidental (or maybe subconscious) Friends dig in the coffee-shop cold open, and how the “Swarley” name was coined by Rob Greenberg. Greg reveals a never-before-revealed admission about a joke he… borrowed from Friends for this episode. The group discusses Marshall and Lily’s reunion scene, Robin Sparkles’ early origins, the importance of showing Barney lose for once, and how the cast’s joy made the “Swarley” storyline unforgettable. They end by answering a listener question from @SwarleyMemes about why the show’s humor still resonates today—deciding it’s because HIMYM’s jokes, like “Swarley” itself, come from love and timeless wordplay.
Watch the original Friends clip HERE (around 2 minutes and 45 seconds in).
CONNECT WITH THE SHOW:
Official Website (Send us your audio and written messages)
Instagram
READ JOSH’S MUSELETTERS ON SUBSTACK:
Subscribe HERE.
CRAIG’S BOOK IS AVAILABLE!
Head over to CRAIG’S WEBSITE to order your copy of THAT’S NOT HOW IT HAPPENED.
SUPPORT PEDIATRIC CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE RESEARCH:
Click HERE to learn more and donate today.
FOLLOW THE OFFICE LADIES:
Check out "Office Ladies" at https://officeladies.com/ or wherever you get your podcasts!
Follow on Instagram OfficeLadiesPod
Follow on TikTok
AND MORE:
Josh’s Official Website
Josh on Spotify
Craig’s Official Website (with links to his published writing)
Alek’s “Dead Fathers Society” on Substack

To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
...more
1h 6min

FAQs about How We Made Your Mother:

How many episodes does How We Made Your Mother have?

The podcast currently has 70 episodes available.

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