Foundling

What it is about

On 6th October 1987, a newborn baby is found on the verge of a remote country lane in Suffolk. Police comb the area for clues and appeal for witnesses, but the mother is never found. The baby, Jess, is adopted. Journalist Lucy Greenwell has never forgotten the day when Jess was discovered. She was a child and lived nearby. For decades Lucy has wondered; what happened to Jess, and what could have driven a mother to leave her child in such an isolated place? When Lucy tracks Jess down, she finds a woman already deep in her own search for the truth, and a story far more tangled than either of them expected. What unfolds is a tale of long-held secrets and unintended consequences that spirals out of Jess’s control.Foundling is a six-part original series from Tortoise Investigates and The ObserverTo binge listen to all episodes today ad free, subscribe to The Observer and use the code AUDIO50 to get 50% off your annual subscription. Or subscribe to Observer+ on Apple Podcasts or Spotify to listen to all our podcasts, including this one, without any ads. Credits: Reporter - Lucy GreenwellProducer - Katie GunningOriginal theme music - Tom KinsellaSound design and additional music - Rowan BishopPodcast artwork - Blythe Walker SibthorpNarrative editor - Gary Marshall Editor - Jasper Corbett Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Publisher’s own description, taken unchanged from the podcast feed.
The Observer

Listen

Available at these services — the RSS feed works in any podcast app.

Apple Podcasts

Latest episodes

Under one roof | Foundling Ep 2

2026-07-07 · 45 min · Season 1, episode 2

Jess does a DNA test. And she and Lucy travel to visit a house where Jess’s birth mother once lived, and try and work out how nobody noticed a thing.Subscribe to Observer+ on Apple Podcasts and Spotify to binge listen…
On the verge | Foundling Ep 1

2026-07-07 · 40 min · Season 1, episode 1

Journalist Lucy Greenwell goes in search of Jess following rumours and unanswered questions about where she was born and who gave birth to her. Subscribe to Observer+ on Apple Podcasts and Spotify to binge listen to all…
Introducing… Foundling

2026-07-07 · 4 min

On 6th October 1987, a newborn baby is found on the verge of a remote country lane in Suffolk. Police comb the area for clues and appeal for witnesses, but the mother is never found. The baby, Jess, is adopted.…

Episode details from the publisher’s feed. Playback happens at the publisher.

Publisher details

Oldest episode in feed: 07/2026
Typical length: 29 min
Format: Serial Meant to be heard in order
Keywords: investigative, narrative, drama, mystery, dna, mental health, crime, abandoned

Foundling in the rankings

The best News podcasts The best English-language podcasts All rankings ›

For podcasters

Is this podcast yours? Verify it — afterwards you can correct details, get the widget for your website, and we let you know when your podcast is nominated or wins.

Without an account you can use an email address on your show’s own domain — we create the account along the way. The other methods need a login.