Marc Hughes, the larger-than-life presenter of the supernatural investigation TV show Paranormal Takedown, is in Shropshire visiting his friend Jack who claims that the Devil is active in the county.  Alongside co-host Emilie Daniels, Marc has decided to make a special edition about the weird goings-on but upon arrival in the county he starts to realise that the stories he is hearing are stranger and darker than he imagined.  Catch up with part one of the drama here...

Thank you for listening to this edition of The Alternative Stories and Fake Realities Podcast featuring the new novel "Spring Fever" by Thomas Legendre  Readings from Spring Fever were by Tiffany Clare with Thomas Legendre playing Craig Merleau in the interview excerpt The interviewer was Chris Gregory Editing sound design and original music were by Alternative Stories    Spring Fever is available now from publisher Valley Press and more widely from 1st June  Order a copy directly from Valley...

When Marc Hughes, the larger-than-life presenter of the TV show Paranormal Takedown, receives a series of increasingly desperate voice mail messages from his childhood friend Jack claiming that a great evil is loose in Shropshire, he is sceptical.  Realising that investigating the story might make for great television he sets off to debunk Jack's claims and finds himself at the heart of some dark and dangerous folk beliefs that seem to have spilled over from stories to reality.   Content...

Thank you for listening to the Alternative Stories and Fake Realities Podcast.  Our guest in this edition is Alex Davis of the UK Ghost Story Festival   You can find out more about the festival, book tickets and read more about the participants by visiting the festival website here  https://www.ukghoststoryfestival.co.uk/ Follow the festival on twitter here https://twitter.com/GhostStoryFest And Instagram here https://www.instagram.com/ghoststoryfestival/ And follow Alex Davis on twitter here...

In this podcast we look at working class writers, their work and experience with guest editor Amber Hall.  We look at the difficulties that working class writers overcome and the limitations and expectation placed upon them by the wider world of literature. We speak to guests 1990s Chris and Lisa McKenzie both of whom ae part of the Working Class Collective, A community of working class creatives formed during the pandemic.  This podcast was guest edited by Amber Hall.  Amber also...

Thank you for listening to this edition of the Alternative Stories and Fake Realities Podcast.   In this edition we speak to Cailean Steed, the author of a new novel “Home” which is published by Raven Bloomsbury on 19th January.  The novel deals with Zoe, a young woman who has grown up as part of a repressive religious cult who returns to rescue her sister.  Excerpts from the audiobook of “Home” in this episode were read by Paula Masterton.  The audiobook is published on the same day as the...

Making a life on a new world following a family tragedy, Lyra and Neeva reflect on their past lines as farmers on Epsilon while coming to terms with the realities of existence on their new home, Lunasetti.  Postcards From Another World by Frasier Armitage is the winner of the 2022 Pen to Print audio play competition.  In Postcards from Another World by Frasier Armitage you heard   Sarah Golding as Lyra Marie-Claire Wood as Neeva Warren Graham as Zabo Emily Inkpen as the computer Rhiannon...

When Sasha and Gemma’s mother dies they are contacted by the mysterious solicitor Clark, with news that the rambling and isolated family home, Harrington Hall has been left to the sisters as part of the will.  There’s a catch however: in order to gain their inheritance Sasha and Gemma must spend a night together in the abandoned house…  Content warning : This drama contains strong language and depictions of peril and horror.  In The Gathering by Lewis Carter you can hear Miztli Rose as...

The Sylvia Plath literary festival celebrates the life and work of one of the twentieth century’s most influential poets.  Taking place over the weekend of the 21st to 23rd of October in Hebden Bridge and Heptonstall in West Yorkshire, the festival will feature events led by and featuring contemporary poets.  In this podcast we hear from some of the poets appearing at the festival with their thoughts on Plath and readings of their poems.   Thank you for listening to this edition of the...

For National Poetry Day 2022 we are sharing an anthology of poems recorded for the Seren Poetry Podcast which is launched on 6th October.  All of the poems in this selection broadly related to this year’s  National Poetry Day theme of the environment. The following poems are included - all are read by their authors.  Polly Atkin - Queen of the Woods.   Carolyn Jess Cooke - Confrontation Christopher Meredith - Steampunk Jungle Rhian Edwards – Blodeuwedd Ben Wilkinson  - Mam Tor Ilse Pedler –...

In this edition we speak to poets and poetry editors for Seren Books Rhian Edwards and Zoe Brigley and to poet and director of The Sylvia Plath Literary Festival, Sarah Corbett You can listen to preview editions and subscribe to the Seren Poetry Podcast by searching “The Seren Poetry Podcast” in your favourite podcast app or by clicking the link below and selecting the platform on which you’d like to listen https://www.buzzsprout.com/2035359  The podcast formally launches on Thursday 6th...

In this edition we talk to audio drama creators about their shows, their production processes and tips for other creators.  We speak to Christina Castaneda, creator of Venice Magic Shop, David Johnson and Jodie Jasmine Hicks of Death in Podville, Emily Inkpen of The Dex Legacy, Jackie Jorgenson of Tales from the Aether and Lucy Gibb-Smith of Darkstead.  Thank you to the creators who joined us for this special edition.  We are hugely grateful to all of them for taking the time to chat with us...

In this midsummer edition we continue the theme of nature writing .  We feature  Walking on Skylark Ridge by artist and writer David Suff.  The book charts David’s daily walk along the same route for a year beginning at the start of the UK’s first national lockdown in which we were restricted to an hour of outdoor exercise per day.  It discovers the changes in the nature along the route as the seasons change and explores the meaning of community as David shared his weekly updates in paintings...

In today’s podcast we speak to two writers for whom nature, landscape and horses are important in their work.  Catherine Munro is the author of “The Ponies At The Edge of The World” about her life in Shetland and Madeleine F White whose poetry collection “The Horse And The Girl” explores riding, the environment and the landscape of Kent.    Thank you to Catherine Munro and Madeleine F White for taking the time to speak to us for today’s podcast.  We’d like to thank Rider, an imprint of...

In this edition we look at The Half Life of Snails, the debut novel by writer and academic Philippa Holloway.   The novel deals with issues surrounding nuclear energy and the communities it affects and we talk about Philippa's trip to the Chernobyl exclusion zone as part of our interview.  We have excerpts from the book read by Phoebe Holmes In the Half-Life of Snails you heard the voices of Philippa Holloway and interviewer Chris Gregory.  The interview took place at Hack Green Secret...

Ghostlore is an anthology of writing inspired by the folklore of ghosts and the supernatural. Edited by writer and audio dramatists Lyndsey Croal our second episode Hauntings, features the work of 11 writers and explores folklore from around the world.  The readers are Sally Walker Taylor, Marie-Claire Wood, Lindz McLeod, Lyndsey Croal, Hadiya Morris, Chris Gregory, Amy Boucher and Christina Castaneda Our pieces and writes are The Witch by Amy Boucher Amy Boucher is a passionate advocate of...

Ghostlore is an anthology of writing inspired by the folklore of ghosts, spirits and the supernatural. Edited by writer and audio dramatists Lyndsey Croal this first edition, Wilderness, features the work of 11 writers and explores folklore from around the world.   Ghostlore Part One, Wilderness is presented and edited by Lyndsey Croal.  The readers are Sally Walker Taylor, Marie-Claire Wood, Maria S Picone, Lyndsey Croal and Chris Gregory.  The featured pieces and writers are  The Goatherd...

In this first edition of season 6 we look at the other podcasts Alternative Stories have been working on.  We chat with novelist Madeleine White about the pdcast for writers, Write On! Audio and novelist and audio dramatist Emily Inkpen about our new science fiction audio drama The Dex Legacy.  We also preview some of the content you’ll be able to hear in season 6.   In this edition you can hear an interview with the editor of the Write On! suite of publications, Madeleine White.  You can...

Midwinter Monologues is a collection of seasonal short fiction by 13 different writers.  We feature stories written and performed by Alternative Stories regulars such as Lewie Watson and Marie-Claire Wood and introduce some new writers and voices.  This anthology will put you in in a festive mood and help you to consider some alternative versions of Christmas.  We all have our own midwinter stories – what’s yours?   “The Hidden People” by Bean Swayer performed by Sally Walker Taylor “To All A...

In this special edition guest-edited by Signe Maene we look at the folklore and folk stories associated with animals, beasts and familiars.  Our guests are Terri Windling, Zoe Gilbert, Willow Winsham, Icy Sedgewick and Natalja Saint-Germain Thank you to Signe Maene, Terri Windling, Zoe Gilbert, Willow Winsham, Icy Sedgwick and Natalja Saint German for being out guests on the podcast today.  We’ve posted links so you can find out more about our guests and follow their blogs, podcasts,...

In this edition we resume the theme of storytelling, this time looking at the art and techniques of telling stories from real life. Our guest, Lily Dunn is a novelist, memoirist and teacher whose debut memoir, Sins of My Father will be out in March 2022.   Excerpts from Sins of My Father in this podcast are read by Lily Dunn The interviewer is Chris Gregory Production, sound design, music and editing are by Chris Gregory  Lily Dunn is a writer, teacher and lecturer in creative writing and...

Mastrocherry is a tech company making poppets - highly realistic replicas of real humans.  Senior engineer Catherine Antonio and Junior Reclaim Engineer Fox Cameron have a problem.  A poppet has been returned by a VIP customer and they must diagnose the reasons for some alarming behavioural traits it has been displaying.  Can it really be possible that the poppet has become self-aware and started to display violent tendencies? Real Boy is written by Cailean Steed and was the winner of the...

In this podcast we look at the art and techniques of storytelling.  We speak to novelist Zoe Gilbert about the ways in which she uses folklore and folk tales as inspiration and backdrop for her storytelling and actress Tiffany Clare about telling stories through characters and narration. Our first guest in this edition is Zoe Gilbert.  Zoe won the Costa Short Story prize in 2014.  He debut novel Folk was published to considerable acclaim and featured on BBC Radio.  Zoe's second novel...

Bonds is the debut short story collection by poet, dramatist and friend of the podcast Sarra Culleno.  Dealing with the bonds between mothers and children as its main theme it skips genres between science fiction, fantasy and folklore.  We have an interview with Sarra and excerpts from the stories. You can order a copy of Bonds directly from the CAAB Publishing website here https://www.caabpublishing.co.uk/store/Fiction-c45916043 It’s also available from Waterstones and Amazon Follow Sarra...

In this edition of the podcast we look at “Somebody Loves You”, the debut novel by acclaimed poet Mona Arshi.  We’ll bring you extracts from the novel read by actress Rakhee Sharma, an interview and some of Mona’s poetry.  The presenter in this edition is Sally Walker Taylor, the readers are Rakhee Sharma and Tiffany Clare. and the interviewer is Chris Gregory.  Sound design, production and music are by Chris Gregory  We would like to thank Mona Arshi for her time and support in the making...