How We Made Your Mother

In this episode of the How We Made Your Mother podcast, Josh Radnor and Craig Thomas revisit HIMYM Season 2, Episode 19, “Bachelor Party,” unpacking the dual-story structure that follows Marshall’s disastrous bachelor party and Lily’s painfully awkward bachelorette gathering. They discuss how the episode satirizes the clichés around bachelor parties—especially the idea that marriage ends a man’s freedom—while highlighting the awkward reality behind those traditions. Much of the conversation focuses on standout comedy moments, including Robin mistakenly bringing a sex-toy gift to a family-style bridal gathering and the extended antique-sewing-machine gag, as well as the physical comedy and silent reactions from Cobie Smulders and guest actor Kay Callan. Josh and Craig also reflect on guest star Matt Boren’s deadpan performance as Stuart, the challenge of referencing pop culture that younger viewers might not know, and how the writers’ room constructed jokes through collaborative pitching. The episode ultimately emphasizes the emotional payoff of Barney secretly flying to San Francisco to convince Lily to return to Marshall—revealing that despite Barney’s chaos and cynicism, he was the reason their wedding happens at all, a twist that reframes both this episode and earlier moments in the season. Check out How to Sell Yourself as an Actor by K Callen A few folks named “Zack” getting called “Josh” on REDDIT 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

This week the guys revisit “Moving Day” and end up having one of those episodes where the rewatch turns personal fast. What starts as talk about Ted moving out spirals into a bigger conversation about how much everyone in the group depends on him, why Barney’s over-the-top sabotage is really fear of abandonment, and how relationships don’t have to move at anyone else’s timeline. Craig gets unexpectedly emotional talking about calling his son down the hall, Josh brings in some real-life perspective from Jordana about pacing in relationships, and they both admit this episode is stronger than they remembered. There’s also some great behind-the-scenes stuff about the moving van set, Neil’s Letterman impression, and how certain character dynamics were fully clicking by Season 2. Funny, reflective, and a little sneaky-heartfelt — very much one of those episodes where the podcast becomes about life as much as the show. 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

This How We Made Your Mother Instagram Live brings together Josh Radnor, Craig Thomas, and producer Alek Lev for a wide-ranging, funny, and unexpectedly heartfelt conversation about the podcast, the enduring legacy of How I Met Your Mother, and why the show continues to resonate with new generations around the world. The trio talk candidly about revisiting the series nearly 20 years later, the joys and challenges of serialized storytelling, favorite episodes, emotional arcs from the first two seasons, iconic props (yes, the Blue French Horn makes an appearance), and unforgettable music moments that helped define the show’s tone. They also reflect on writing lessons learned, trusting the intelligence of the audience, the comfort the series offers younger viewers in uncertain times, and how optimism (“people will dance”) sits at the core of the show’s worldview. Along the way, they answer fan questions live from across the globe, tease future podcast guests, plug Craig’s novel That’s Not How It Happened, celebrate Josh’s upcoming music, and invite listeners to become part of the growing HWMYM community through voice notes, letters, and shared memories. Click HERE to check out the fan-created HIMYM Spotify playlist. 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

This episode dives into “Arrivederci, Fiero” as a love letter to friendship, nostalgia, and the messy logic of long-running TV. Craig and Josh unpack fan questions about continuity errors (when did Barney learn to drive?), lean happily on the “unreliable narrator” defense, and explain how the show’s triumphant orchestral version of “I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)” came together. The heart of the episode comes through two deeply personal listener letters—one from a college student whose real-life Fiero breakdown led to lasting friendships, and another tracing a red Mustang, the Olive Theory, and a marriage back to the emotional roadmap the show provided. Together, the conversation lands on why vulnerability, chosen family, and sincerity are what helped the series—and Ted—age so well. Check out the episode in our first season where Josh and Craig give their thoughts on problematic language used in How I Met Your Mother. Listen to Sleeping at Last’s version of I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles). 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

This episode is a loose, funny, and surprisingly thoughtful conversation about “Stuff”—both the How I Met Your Mother episode and the larger idea of what we owe our partners and friends when it comes to honesty, history, and emotional baggage. Josh and Craig dig into why the episode works as a joke machine (the mermaid debate, the slap bet payoff, Marshall’s infamous pants, Barney’s doomed robot musical, and Ted getting dragged into Lily’s play), while also unpacking the deeper philosophical question at its center: how much of your past should come into a new relationship. Along the way they share vivid on-set memories (dog-licking trauma, breaking during Jason Segel’s physical comedy), talk about filmmaking techniques like visual morphs and fast-forwarded fights, celebrate the audacity of needle-dropping Iggy Pop on CBS, and reflect at length on the creative legacy and personal impact of Rob Reiner—connecting How I Met Your Mother to When Harry Met Sally, The Princess Bride, and Stand By Me. The result is a wide-ranging, affectionate, and honest look at comedy, craft, friendship, and the messiness of loving people while carrying your past with you.  Check out the book (and website) PLEASE KILL ME, the oral history of punk. And Lizzie Goodman’s MEET ME IN THE BATHROOM, covering the New York scene from 2001 to 2011. Here’s DAISY JONES AND THE SIX by Taylor Jenkins Reid 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