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Narrator
We all inherit stories. Some of them are big cultural narratives, like the ones that shape what ends up in history books. And then there are the personal ones, the stories passed across the dinner table, retold at holiday gatherings, refined over time into something that feels authoritative. But look a little closer and you start to see those stories aren't fixed. They shift. They evolve. And we begin to ask better questions of them. Not to dismantle everything, but to understand what we've inherited and how it continues to shape us. That's what the new podcast Family Lore, is doing. It revisits the stories families tell about themselves and examines them with fresh curiosity, not to provoke, but to clarify, to surface what's been assumed, what's been constructed, and what might be more complicated than it first appears. Because understanding the stories we're told helps us understand our personal history. Here's a preview of Family Lore. You can find full episodes wherever you get your podcasts.
Interviewer
So here is what I want to understand.
Guest
Yes.
Interviewer
What made you so interested in all these ancestral lines and ancestral influences?
Guest
So I've been interested in it for so long that I can't remember when it started.
Interviewer
But all I can tell you, like, in childhood.
Guest
Childhood.
Interviewer
Did you do the DNA test?
Guest
I've not done that. I wasn't all that interested in the statistical breakdown of my DNA. I'm more interested in the stories.
Interviewer
The stories of your ancestors?
Guest
Of my ancestors and the circumstances that. That moved them around the planet.
Lloyd Lockridge
Every family has its stories. Your grandparents met on a blind date, or your great grandmother passed through Ellis Island. But every once in a while, you'll hear something a little more unusual.
Family Member 1
I have a really vague memory of somebody saying, did you know your great uncle killed somebody?
Family Member 2
I've heard my whole life that she invented the margarita.
Family Member 3
He gets a patent one month before the Wright brothers. Oh, my God.
Lloyd Lockridge
Some of these stories are hard to believe. Others are hard to imagine. And as these tall tales get passed down through the generations, they become something more than a family story. They become family lore. My name is Lloyd Lockridge, and in this podcast, I'm going to have people on to tell stories about their families. And then we're going to investigate those stories and find out how much of it is true.
Archivist/Researcher
To go into the archive and find what you think is, like, not just the secret of your family's life, but the explanatory secret of your family's life.
Family Member 1
Wow. You know, maybe this old family story that I overheard in my grandmother's kitchen is true.
Lloyd Lockridge
This is Family Lore, a new series from Odyssey podcasts.
Archivist/Researcher
You're always wondering why your dad is a certain way. Well, here's one answer I love when
Family Member 3
I hear somebody says I have a boring family history. They didn't do anything. I said it's because you don't know anything about your history.
Lloyd Lockridge
Please follow and listen to family lore on any of your podcast apps.
Podcast Summary: The Preamble — "Introducing Family Lore"
Date: May 20, 2026
Host: Sharon McMahon
Featured: Preview of new podcast "Family Lore" with Lloyd Lockridge and guests
In this episode of The Preamble, Sharon McMahon introduces listeners to an exciting new podcast: Family Lore. This new series, hosted by Lloyd Lockridge, delves into the tangled web of stories families pass down—the legends, oddities, and sometimes mysterious narratives that shape our understanding of who we are. The preview explores why family stories matter, how they evolve, and what we can discover by questioning their origins.
"Because understanding the stories we're told helps us understand our personal history."
— Narrator ([00:50])
On family story evolution:
"But look a little closer and you start to see those stories aren't fixed. They shift. They evolve. And we begin to ask better questions of them."
— Narrator ([00:25])
On seeking origins:
"What made you so interested in all these ancestral lines and influences?"
— Interviewer ([01:03])
On facts vs. lore:
"And then we're going to investigate those stories and find out how much of it is true."
— Lloyd Lockridge ([02:27])
The preview maintains an inviting, inquisitive, and slightly whimsical tone, encouraging listeners to reconsider family stories not just as entertainment, but as meaningful clues to their personal and collective histories. Lloyd and his guests blend curiosity with respect for the past, demonstrating that every family has mysteries and marvels waiting to be uncovered.
Family Lore promises to be a journey of discovery—part family therapy, part detective work—with an honesty and warmth that matches The Preamble’s commitment to clarity.