Daniel Radcliffe, Mariska Hargitay and the Happiest List on Earth

About this episode

<p>With war, political wrangling and price hikes jockeying for headlines, it’s a rare thing to sit for an hour with a large group of strangers and focus on the small pleasures in life. But that’s what the show “Every Brilliant Thing” is all about.</p> <p>Since 2013, Duncan Macmillan’s audience-participation-heavy play has been performed in dozens of languages in hundreds of locations across the globe. It revolves around a central character who writes a list of all the good things in life for a depressed parent. And while it tackles dark subject matter — including frequent mentions of a loved one’s suicide — it may be one of the funniest shows about depression, ever.</p> <p>In this episode of “The Sunday Daily,” Michael Barbaro talks with Daniel Radcliffe, who currently stars in a Broadway production of the show, and Mariska Hargitay, who will step into the role in a few weeks. We’ll also hear from the playwright and several other actors who have performed the play on stages, in living rooms, on basketball courts and aircraft carriers all over the world.</p> <p> </p> <p><strong>On today's episode:</strong></p> <p>Daniel Radcliffe<br> Mariska Hargitay<br> Duncan Macmillan<br> Candunn Jennette<br> Greg Dragas<br> Mugambi Nthiga<br> Erika de la Vega<br> Jung Sae-Byul<br> Mohsina Akhter<br> Tommy Schoffler<br> Nanda Mohammad</p> <p> </p> <p><strong>Background reading:</strong></p> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/12/theater/daniel-radcliffe-every-brilliant-thing.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">‘Every Brilliant Thing,’ Now Starring Daniel Radcliffe and You</a></p> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/12/theater/every-brilliant-thing-review-daniel-radcliffe.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Daniel Radcliffe Makes ‘Every Brilliant Thing’ Shine</a></p> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/17/theater/daniel-radcliffe-every-brilliant-thing.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Daniel Radcliffe Wanted a Break From Broadway. Then He Read This Play.</a></p> <p> </p> <p><strong>Photo credit:</strong> Sara Krulwich/The New York Times</p> <p><p>Subscribe today at <a href="http://nytimes.com/podcasts">nytimes.com/podcasts</a> or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher">https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher</a>. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.</p></p><br/> <p>Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See <a href="https://pcm.adswizz.com">pcm.adswizz.com</a> for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.</p>