Alternative Stories and Fake Realities

Performed by Carole Pluckrose and Ria Knowles https://www.spotlight.com/1418-7861-2841 Produced in association with The Boathouse Barking CIC. https://www.boathousebarkingstudios.com/ Instagram Facebook ©Carole Pluckrose 2023 Dedicated to Edgar, Anne and Sheelagh Script editors :Claire Steele, Jill Glenn, Constellations Consultancy With thanks for their enduring support and critical friendship to: Tony Humphreys, Nick Crean, Carl Blackburn. Mark and Dan Horn, Martin Heaney, Julie Wedge, Dorinda Hulton, Pen to Print and Grace and Phoebe Pluckrose-Oliver I started writing Notes From Dad's Room in 2017, a few months following my dad, Edgar's death in November 2016. As a writer and theatre maker it was the natural place to go. In 2015 Edgar had been given 3/4 weeks to live following a heart condition which he had managed for over 30 years. With an imminent terminal diagnosis when no more could be done to improve his health he came back from hospital to die at home. Despite all the predictions however he lived for a further 15 months. In large part this was to do with an attitude of mind and a full engagement still in the world, family and thought despite being bedridden and confined to his bedroom. Somehow he managed to live this period largely with grace and positivity by looking outside himself into the world, and stubbornly refusing to reduce his rich imagination and sheer love of life. He travelled through this time and space in much the way he had told me stories when I was a child. During this time I began a Facebook group, firstly for updates about Edgar's progress, but soon it turned into an open, tender and insightful conversation about death and dying. It was full of rich reflections and the resounding message was that it was a much welcome space to open up the often taboo discussion about mortality, our own and those we love. It was also a space to share stories of parent/child relationships, about the things we lay down in our children's lives that have a lifetime of significance. The play is a result of these conversations and it has been through many iterations in the intervening years, with a rehearsed reading at UEL with Ria Butler, a Zoom reading during the pandemic. It's been scrutinised by critical friends, supported by writers and writing mentors Claire Steele, Tony Humphreys, Nick Crean, Carl Blackburn. Through making this piece we want to share the story of a journey of love and caring and the liminal space inhabited in the time of impending loss. We know that so many of us live lives of caring behind closed doors and the toll emotionally and economically can be enormous. We want to share this story as an act of commonality and solidarity with those travelling this path right now. I am also a celebrant and have learnt so much from my work with families in grief when supporting them in writing and officiating funeral ceremonies. https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolepluckrose/ Carole Pluckrose instagram Tickets and further details of our writing workshop day on 1st July https://tinyurl.com/354ut7s3 Support The Dex Legacy Season 2 fundraiser https://tinyurl.com/9ryhppyz Support the show

Spell sounds is an audiofiction soundscape series in which we combine poetry and prose with sound effects to evoke places, spaces and landscapes In this edition you heard the voices of Tiffany Clare, Sally Walker Taylor, Cee Cee and Chris Gregory You heard writing by Lyndsey Croal Ange Wilson Anna Chorlton Josh Holton Joana Varanda Cee Cee And Chris Gregory Soundscapes, music, mix and editing were by Alternative Stories Sound effects were by Alternative Stories and from Freesound.org Please listen out for more from our Spell Sound series soon. Thank you to everyone who has contributed pieces for the series. Next week on Alternative Stories we'll bring you Audio drama : Notes from Dad's Room by Carole Pluckrose Subscribe by searching alternative stories in your favourite podcast app to have all editions delivered to you the moment they are released. Support the show

In this edition we speak to science fiction writer Frasier Armitage about his novel New Yesterday which was published earlier this year. Frasier is the author of our award winning audio drama Postcards from Another World and several pieces of short fiction. Chris Gregory met Frasier over zoom to discuss the writing process and his influences. The excerpts from New Yesterday were read by Chris Gregory and the excerpts from Postcards from Another World featured the voices of Sarah Golding, Marie-Claire Wood and Emily Inkpen Music and sound design were by Alternative Stories and the interviewer was Chris Gregory You can buy a copy of New Yesterday and Frasier’s other publications by visiting his author page on Amazon here https://www.amazon.co.uk/Frasier-Armitage You can find out more about Frasier by visiting https://frasierarmitage.com/ And follow him on twitter here https://twitter.com/FrasierArmitage And you can hear Postcards from Another World here https://www.buzzsprout.com/411730/11897671 If you enjoy science fiction you may like our sci fi serial drama The Dex Legacy which is written by Emily Inkpen. You can listen and subscribe by searching The Dex Legacy in your favourite podcast app or click the link below https://www.buzzsprout.com/1868546 If you would like to support us to make season 2 of The Dex Legacy and gain some unique rewards along the way you can make a pledge to our kickstarter campaign here https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/emilyinkpen/the-dex-legacy-science-fiction-audio-drama-season-2 and to listen to more science fiction and climate fiction from Alternative Stories check out this podchaser playlist https://www.podchaser.com/lists/sci-fi-and-climate-fiction-on-alternative-stories-107aDoFzmM If you haven’t already subscribed to Alternative Stories and Fake Realities you can do so by searching Alternative Stories in your favourite podcast app. If you would like to work with us or enquire about our courses and workshops please contact us via email at office@alternativestories.com You can also follow us on twitter where we posts as https://twitter.com/StoriesAlt And Instagram where we are https://www.instagram.com/stories.alt/ Our next workshop will be on 1st July and it will cover writing for audio drama, taking audio from page to production, monologues in audio drama and writing for audio fiction. You can find out more and book via Alex Davis Events here https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/writing-for-audio-with-chris-gregory-and-emily-inkpen-tickets-634717375757 Support the show

Storying our Futures is a new podcast series looking at the climate crisis in east Africa and the ways in which storytelling can help to spread information to the local population. Through the eyes of two Kenyan storytellers, Mara and John, we travel with them through South Sudan and northern Kenya to see how the crisis is affecting local communities. "Storying our Futures: climate resilience through indigenous knowledge" is a UK/East Africa collaborative project bringing traditional oral storytellers together with East African pastoralist communities, scientific meteorologists, journalists, and indigenous traditional climate forecasters known as Rainmakers, to amplify and explore the many ways that storytelling can support system change. Chris Gregory from Alternative Stories undertook the sound design and editing work for this podcast series. The podcast series is a joint venture between Adverse Camber, a UK based arts production company, ICPAC, a specialised organisation fostering climate services and knowledge to enhance community resilience in Africa, The British Council, Cath Heinemeyer of York St John University and storyteller / activist Hannah McDowall. To learn more and listen you can go to to the Adverse Camber website www.adversecamber.org or listen via Spotify here https://open.spotify.com/show/4Jof3zj7OY68TLjIfdndXw?si=2aa371d9d24f433a or YouTube here https://youtu.be/ZIOdlh80Rx4 You can follow Adverse Camber and find out more about their work by following them on social media Twitter. https://twitter.com/adversecamber20 Instagram https://www.instagram.com/adversecamberontour/ If you would like to find out more about the Dex Legacy season two kickstarter campaign you can do so here https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/emilyinkpen/the-dex-legacy-science-fiction-audio-drama-season-2 Here you’ll find information about why we need funding, what your pledges will pay for and the rewards you can get by backing the project. You’ll also be able to find out about our cast and listen to a new and exclusive piece of music by our soundtrack composer Allen Stroud. You can follow The Dex Legacy on twitter here https://twitter.com/thedexlegacy And on Instagram here https://www.instagram.com/thedexlegacy1/ Thank you as always for listening to this edition of Alternative Stories and Fake Realities You can follow Alternative Stories on twitter here https://twitter.com/StoriesAlt And on Instagram here https://www.instagram.com/stories.alt/ You can contact us by email via office@alternativestories.com Support the show

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 https://www.buzzsprout.com/411730/12499890 Content warning : this podcast contains swearing, suggestions of peril and references to violence , death and injury. In the Best of Men by Amy Boucher you can hear, in order of appearance Tiffany Clare as Emilie Alex White as Marc Carl Wharton as Jack Amy Boucher as the woman in the pub Chris Gregory as 'Owd Scratch Emily Inkpen as Laura Other parts are played by members of the cast Music, sound design, production and editing are by Chris Gregory for Alternative Stories Casting and actor direction is by Chris Gregory and Amy Boucher Sound effects are by Alternative Stories and from Freesound.org The script for The Best of Men is by Amy Boucher and may not be reproduced in whole or in part other than with the permission of the author. You can find out more about our writer Amy Boucher by visiting her blog here https://nearlyknowledgeablehistory.blogspot.com/ And follow her on twitter here https://twitter.com/g0blinegg You can follow Alternative Stories on social media here Twitter https://twitter.com/StoriesAlt Instagram https://www.instagram.com/stories.alt/ And contact us by email here office@alternativestories.com Find out more about our lead actors, and hire them to voice your podcast or drama Tiffany Clare https://twitter.com/TiffanyEclair Alex White https://twitter.com/alexwhiteactor Carl Wharton https://twitter.com/carlwharton Emily Inkpen is the writer of our science fiction serial drama The Dex Legacy. Find out more and listen here https://www.thedexlegacy.com/ If you've enjoyed The Best of Men please check out our other folklore and folk horror productions via this Podchaser playlist https://www.podchaser.com/lists/folklore-folk-horror-and-fairytale-on-alternative-stories-107a9Gdi9h We'd also like to recommend another podcast we think you'll enjoy - The Spectre of the Sea is by Owen Staton and Bethan Briggs Miller and features folklore, legend and history from the Welsh coastline. Listen and find out more here. podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/spe… https://twitter.com/spectre_sea We always appreciate ratings and reviews so if you have enjoyed this edition please rate or review the podcast on apple podcasts, Spotify, Podchaser or any podcast app that accepts ratings. Support the show Support the show

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 Press here https://www.valleypressuk.com/shop/p/spring-fever Find out more about Thomas Legendre by visiting his website here https://www.thomaslegendre.com/ And follow him on twitter here https://twitter.com/legendreality Readings in this podcast were by Tiffany Clare. You can find out more about Tiffany and hire her for your voice stage or film project by visiting her website here https://www.voicebytiffany.com/ Get updates on forthcoming Alternative Stories podcasts and find out about our writers and actors by following us on social media where we post as https://twitter.com/StoriesAlt And https://www.instagram.com/stories.alt/ Hire us to produce your drama or podcast. Get in touch via office@alternativestories.com Listen out for part 2 of The Best of Men by Amy Boucher coming soon. Support the show

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 warning : this podcast contains swearing, suggestions of peril and references to violence , death and injury. In the Best of Men by Amy Boucher you can hear, in order of appearance Tiffany Clare as Emilie Alex White as Marc Carl Wharton as Jack Music, sound design, production and editing are by Chris Gregory for Alternative Stories Casting and actor direction is by Chris Gregory and Amy Boucher Sound effects are by Alternative Stories and from Freesound.org The script for The Best of Men is by Amy Boucher and may not be reproduced in whole or in part other than with the permission of the author. You can find out more about our writer Amy Boucher by visiting her blog here https://nearlyknowledgeablehistory.blogspot.com/ And follow her on twitter here https://twitter.com/g0blinegg You can follow Alternative Stories on social media here Twitter https://twitter.com/StoriesAlt Instagram https://www.instagram.com/stories.alt/ And contact us by email here office@alternativestories.com Find out more about our actors, and hire them to voice your podcast or drama Tiffany Clare https://twitter.com/TiffanyEclair Alex White https://twitter.com/alexwhiteactor Carl Wharton https://twitter.com/carlwharton The second part of The Best of Men will be out in April on this podcast. Please subscribe to have it delivered to you the moment it is released. If you've enjoyed The Best of Men please check out our other folklore and folk horror productions via this Podchaser playlist https://www.podchaser.com/lists/folklore-folk-horror-and-fairytale-on-alternative-stories-107a9Gdi9h We always appreciate ratings and reviews so if you have enjoyed this edition please rate or review the podcast on apple podcasts, Spotify, Podchaser or any podcast app that accepts ratings. Support the show

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 https://twitter.com/AlexDavis1981 Our podcast was recorded at the Museum of Making in Derby. https://www.derbymuseums.org/museum-of-making/ Follow the museum on twitter here https://twitter.com/MuseumofMaking And Instagram here https://www.instagram.com/derbymuseums/ We share excerpts from the following audio books in this podcast The Ghost Woods by C.J. Cooke (Harper Collins) Read by Paula Masterton https://carolynjesscooke.com/ Follow C J on twitter here https://twitter.com/CJessCooke The Whispering Muse by Laura Purcell. (Raven) Read by Sheila Atim https://www.laurapurcell.com/ Follow Laura on twitter here https://twitter.com/spookypurcell The Witch in the Well by Camilla Bruce (Penguin) The audiobook of The Witch in the Well is narrated by Christina Cole, Emily Barber and Charlotte Davey https://camillabruce.com/ Follow Camilla Bruce on twitter here https://twitter.com/millacream The House of Footsteps by Mathew West (Harper North) read by Joshua Manning https://harpercollins.co.uk/products/the-house-of-footsteps-mathew-west Follow Mathew West on twitter here https://twitter.com/mathewoneT Thank you to Alex Davis for being our guest in this edition and The Museum of Making in Derby for hosting our interview. We’d also like to thank the authors and publishers whose work is featured in this podcast. If you’ve enjoyed this podcast and would like to hear more ghostly fiction please check out our 2 part Ghostlore anthology Part one https://www.buzzsprout.com/411730/10264614-ghostlore-an-audio-fiction-anthology-part-one-wilderness Part two https://www.buzzsprout.com/411730/10353265-ghostlore-an-audio-fiction-anthology-part-two-hauntings Please also check out our ghostly audio drama The Gathering by Lewis Carter here https://www.buzzsprout.com/411730/11594709-the-gathering-an-audio-drama If this is your first time listening to our podcast please subscribe to have all future editions delivered to your podcast feed the moment they are released. You can find us by searching “alternative stories” in your favourite podcast app Support the show

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 interviewed 1990s Chris and Lisa McKenzie for this podcast. You can find out more about Amber by following her on social media You can follow her on twitter here https://twitter.com/amber_marie_123 And Instagram here https://www.instagram.com/amber.marie.123/ Amber is a member of the editorial team for Write On! and you can read an interview with her here https://pentoprint.org/write-on-interviews-writer-amber-hall/ Lisa McKenzie is a writer and academic from Nottingham. You can find out more about her and her work by visiting her website https://lisamckenzie1968.wixsite.com/website You can follow Lisa on Twitter here https://twitter.com/redrumlisa 1990s Chris is a queer writer, poet, performer and film maker originally from Hereford and now living in Bristol You can find lots of Chris’s work via his Linktree here https://linktr.ee/1990schris And follow Chris on Twitter here https://twitter.com/1990sChris Lisa and Chris are both members of the Working Class Collective. Find out more about the collective and buy the book “Lockdown Diaries of the Working Class” via their website here https://www.workingclasscollective.co.uk/ Follow the collective on Twitter here https://twitter.com/WorkingClassCol You can hear 1990s Chris performing his piece “Sink” as part of this podcast Join us next week for a podcast about the UK Ghost Story Festival https://www.ukghoststoryfestival.co.uk/ Support the show

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 hardback and e-book versions of the novel. The interviewer was Chris Gregory Sound design, editing and music were also by Chris Gregory To find out more about Cailean Steed you can visit their website here https://www.caileansteed.com/ And follow them on social media here https://twitter.com/CaileanSteed https://www.instagram.com/caileansteedauthor/ To order a copy of Home via the Raven Bloomsbury website follow this link https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/fiction/crime-thriller-mystery/ And follow Raven Bloomsbury on twitter here : https://twitter.com/bloomsburyraven If you have enjoyed this podcast please subscribe in your favourite podcast app if you haven’t already. Just search for alternative stories wherever you listen to podcasts. Coming up soon we have a podcast about working class writers with Amber Hall, a new audio drama “The Best of Men” by Amy Boucher and a feature on the UK Ghost Story Festival. You may also enjoy the other podcasts made by Alternative Stories The Seren Poetry Podcast https://www.buzzsprout.com/2035359 Write On! Audio, a podcast aimed at writers which we make for Pen to Print : https://anchor.fm/pentoprint And our science fiction serial drama The Dex Legacy https://www.thedexlegacy.com/ If you would like to contact us you can do so via office@alternativestories.com And follow us on twitter https://www.thedexlegacy.com/ And Instagram https://www.instagram.com/stories.alt/ Support the show

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 Armitage as the Lunasetti spaceport announcer Chris Gregory as Privik. Production, sound design and editing were by Chris Gregory for Alternative Stories The original score was composed and performed by Chris Gregory Sound effects were from Freesound.org Casting advice, actor coaching and beta listening were by Frasier Armitage. You can find out more about Frasier Armitage and his work by visiting his website here https://frasierarmitage.com/ You can follow Frasier on twitter here https://twitter.com/FrasierArmitage And Instagram here https://www.instagram.com/frasierarmitage/ You can contact and hire our lead actors by visiting them online Sarah Golding https://sarahgoldingvoiceactorandmore.weebly.com/ Marie-Claire Wood https://linktr.ee/MarieClaireWood Warren Graham https://twitter.com/wg973 Emily Inkpen https://www.emilyinkpen.com/ The script for Postcards from Another World by Frasier Armitage was the winner of the 2022 Pen to Print audio play competition. We would like to thank Pen to print for their support in the making of this drama and for sponsoring this annual competition. The 2023 competition is open for entries now. We are looking for scripts of around half an hour (4- 5000 words) and the competition is open to UK residents only. You have until 31st March to submit your entires and you can find out more and enter the competition here https://pentoprint.org/get-involved/competitions-2023/ We hope you’ve enjoyed listening to Postcards From Another World. Please join us in 2023 for more audio drama, poetry and fiction podcasts You can subscribe by searching for alternative stories in your favourite podcast app. If you’ve enjoyed this audio drama please check out our other science fiction , fantasy and cli fi productions. Here’s a link to a podchaser playlist https://www.podchaser.com/lists/sci-fi-and-climate-fiction-on-alternative-stories-107aDoFzmM You’ll also enjoy our science fiction serial drama The Dex Legacy by Emily Inkpen – search The Dex Legacy in your favourite podcast app to listen and subscribe. https://www.thedexlegacy.com/ We’d like to end this podcast with a recommendation for an audio drama we think you’ll enjoy.. Set in the wilds of British Columbia, Darkstead is a fantasy crime drama by writer / director Lucy Gib Smith. You can listen and subscribe to Darkstead here https://www.darkstead.com/ Support the show

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 Sasha Phoebe Batteson Brown as Gemma Alex White as Tom Chris Gregory as Clark Sarah Golding as Mrs Harrington Marie-Claire Wood as Rosie And Emily Inkpen as the nurse Other voices were played by members of the cast. Production, sound design, music and editing were by Chris Gregory Recordings of Sasha and Gemma were by Phoebe Batteson Brown Casting was by Chris Gregory and Lewis Carter Sound effects were from Freesound.org and created by the team The presenter in this podcast is Tiffany Clare The script for The Gathering is copyright Lewis Carter and may not be reproduced in whole or part without the consent of the author. Lewis Carter is an award winning writer and filmmaker living and working in South Wales. You can follow Lewis on twitter here https://twitter.com/fictionist4hire And Instagram here https://www.instagram.com/fictionist4hire/ Miztli Rose and Phoebe Batteson-Brown are actors and comedians based in London. You can find out more about Phoebe here https://www.spotlight.com/6773-7863-8669 And follow her on twitter here https://twitter.com/phoebebbrown And Instagram here https://www.instagram.com/phoebe_batteson/ Read more about Miztli here http://www.miztliroseneville.com/ Follow Miztli on twitter here https://twitter.com/RoseNeville1 And Instagram here https://www.instagram.com/miztli_rose/ Phoebe and Miztli work together as the comedy duo “Ladylikes” and you can find out more about them here https://ladylikescomedy.wixsite.com/ladylikes and listen to an Alternative Stories Podcast featuring Ladylikes here https://www.buzzsprout.com/411730/3479755-ladylikes-in-lockdown Emily Inkpen, Alex White, Chris Gregory and Tiffany Clare have all appeared in the science fiction drama The Dex Legacy which is also produced by Alternative Stories. Find out more about The Dex Legacy, listen and subscribe via our website here https://www.thedexlegacy.com/ If you’ve enjoyed The Gathering please check out more Alternative Stories drama via this Podchaser link https://www.podchaser.com/profile/lists/16596/edit Listen out for more drama from Alternative Stories in the coming weeks. Support the show

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 Alternative Stories and Fake Realities Podcast You can find out about each of the poets featured in this podcast via the following links Polly Atkin. https://pollyatkin.com/ Jessica Mookherjee https://thejessicapoet.com/ Daniel Fraser https://danieljamesfraser.wordpress.com/ Michael Crowley http://michaelcrowley.co.uk/ Maureen Boyle https://twitter.com/BoyleMo Find out more about the Sylvia Plath Literary Festival, order the After Sylvia anthology and book tickets for in-person and online events visit the festival’s website here https://plathfest.co.uk/ Follow the festival on social media https://twitter.com/PlathFest https://www.instagram.com/plathfest/ You can hear more from Polly Atkin by listening to her interview on the new Alternative Stories produced Seren Poetry Podcast. https://www.buzzsprout.com/2035359 And hear from Plathfest director Sarah Corbett in an extended interview in this podcast https://www.buzzsprout.com/411730/11406109 This podcast has been presented by Chris Gregory and Tiffany Clare. Each of the contributors recorded their own poems for this programme. Production, sound design and editing were by Chris Gregory Follow Alternative Stories on social media https://twitter.com/StoriesAlt https://www.instagram.com/stories.alt/ and contact us by email at office@alternativestories.com Support the show

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 – The Young Man and the Fox Rosalind Hudis – The Plant Hunter Eric Ngalle Charles - Homelands Kim Moore – All the Men I Never Married Number 35 All of these poems are published by Seren and you can find out more about the poets and their collections and purchase them by visiting the Seren website https://www.serenbooks.com/ You can listen to the Seren Poetry Podcast by searching for us in your favourite podcast app or following this link and selecting your favourite podcast player https://www.buzzsprout.com/2035359 Support the show

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 October, the UK’s National Poetry Day, with an edition featuring poet Polly Atkin and her collection “Much With Body” You can find out more about Seren Books and buy books and poetry collections here https://www.serenbooks.com/ You can follow Seren Books on twitter here https://mobile.twitter.com/SerenBooks And on Instagram here https://www.instagram.com/serenbooks The Sylvia Plath Literary Festival takes place over the weekend of 21st, 22nd and 23rd October and is based in Hebden Bridge and Heptonstall in West Yorkshire. Our interview is with poet and festival director Sarah Corbett. The interview commences at 42.30 You can find out more about the festival and book tickets for events here https://plathfest.co.uk/ Follow the festival on twitter here https://twitter.com/PlathFest And on Instagram here https://www.instagram.com/plathfest Contact Alternative Stories by email at office@alternativestories.com The presenters in this edition are Chris Gregory and Tiffany Clare The interviewer is Chris Gregory Production, sound design and editing are by Chris Gregory Support the show

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 special edition. We have links to their shows, websites and social media below so please follow, subscribe, link and download to support their work Please note, this episode contains some swearing in the episode clips and trailers. Christina Castaneda's podcast is called "The Savvy Creative" and you can listen to Venice Magic Shop and her other dramas here https://thesavvycreative.libsyn.com/ Follow Christina and her work on twitter https://twitter.com/savvycreativecc And instagram https://www.instagram.com/savvycreativepodcast David Johnson and Jodie Jasmine Hicks of the Fenland Films Initiative's website is here https://www.fenlandfilmsinitiative.com/ You can follow them on twitter https://twitter.com/fenlandfilms And instagram https://www.instagram.com/thefenlandfilmsinitiative You can listen to Emily Inkpen's drama The Dex Legacy (which is produced by Alternative Stories) here https://www.buzzsprout.com/1868546 And follow Emily in twitter here https://twitter.com/emilyinkpen And Instagram here https://www.instagram.com/emilyinkpen In addition you can read Emily's scripts and find out more about The Dex Legacy at the show's website here https://www.thedexlegacy.com/ You can listen to Jackie Jorgenson's podcast Tales from the Aether here https://anchor.fm/talesfromtheaether And follow Jackie on Twitter here https://twitter.com/jackiejorgenson And instagram here https://www.instagram.com/jackie.jorgenson Lucy Gibb-Smith's drama Darkstead can be found here https://www.darkstead.com/ And you can follow the show on twitter here https://twitter.com/DarksteadPod And instagram here https://www.instagram.com/darksteadpodcast Support the show

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 and emails to his friends and followers locked down around the world Thank you for listening to Walking on Skylark Ridge from The Alternative Stories and Fake Realities Podcast. The presenter is Chris Gregory and the readers are Chris Gregory, Marie-Claire Wood and Tiffany Clare. Sound design and editing is by Chris Gregory You can buy a copy of Walking on Skylark Ridge, the book directly from David’s website and www.davidsuff.com where you’ll be able to see more pictures and read a bit more about it. Visit David’s Instagram page to see more of his art here https://www.instagram.com/suffdavid/ The music in this podcast is “The January Man” written by Dave Goulder and performed by Lau and Karine Polwart. Vocals and guitar by Karine Polwart and Kris Drever Martin Green played Accordion and Wurlitzer Aidan O’Rourke played Fiddle We are grateful to Mark Whyles and Tom Rose for their permission to use the track which you can find on the Evergreen EP by Kau Vs Karine Polwart You also heard “Searching For Lambs” by Andrew Cronshaw which featured Andrew Cronshaw playing maronvantele and zither Recorded at home, May 2022 Courtesy of Cloud Valley Music / David Suff You can find out more about the musicians you heard in this podcast by visiting their websites Lau https://www.lau-music.co.uk Karine Polwart https://www.karinepolwart.com/ Andrew Cronshaw http://cloudvalley.com/andrewcronshawhome.htm And to find out more about the work of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds visit their homepage here https://www.rspb.org.uk/ If this is your first time listening to the Alternative Stories podcast please consider subscribing in your favourite podcast app to have all our future editions delivered directly to your feed the moment they are released. You’ll also have access to our archive of over 120 past editions. Walking on Skylark Ridge is an Alternative Stories 2022 production for the Alternative Stories and Fake Realities podcast. Support the show

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 Penguin Random House and Lapwing Publications for allowing us to reproduce extracts from their books in this podcast. Readings are by the authors, Catherine Munro and Madeleine F White Interviews, editing and music were by Chris Gregory You can find out more about The Ponies At The Edge Of The World and buy a copy via Penguin Random House through this link https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/144/1446790/the-ponies-at-the-edge-of-the-world/9781846047268.html Find out more about Catherine Munro and read her blog entries here https://catherinemmunro.wordpress.com/ You can follow Catherine on twitter here https://twitter.com/CatherineMMunro Follow Rider Books on twitter here https://twitter.com/Rider_Books And Penguin here https://twitter.com/penguinukbooks Follow Madeleine F White on twitter for news of the release of The Horse and The Girl and how you can buy a copy when it is released later in June 2022 https://twitter.com/madeleinefwhite The collection will be published by Lapwing Publications and you can visit their website here https://sites.google.com/a/lapwingpublications.com/lapwing-store/home Order/ pre-order by emailing them on lapwing.poetry@ntlworld.com Find out about and purchase Madeleine’s novel Mother of Floods via Good Reads here https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/50646333-mother-of-floods During her interview Madeleine mentioned poetry and other writing that had influenced her work. These were as follows · Seamus Heaney – Digging and the Wishing Tree, · Exiled writers Jennifer Langer and Elena Croitoru, · Iraqi poetry, so closely bound up to land and suffering - Rain Song Poem by Badr Shakir al-Sayyab. · Equestrian writing : Klaus Ferdinand Hempfling -natural horsemanship, which is so much about the bond and connection between horse and rider and the language/ non verb If you would like to listen to Alternative Stories’ other podcasts you can find them here Our science fiction drama serial The Dex Legacy https://www.buzzsprout.com/1868546 Our podcast for writers, Write On! Audio https://anchor.fm/pentoprint Support the show

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 Nuclear Bunker in Cheshire. Our excerpts were read by Phoebe Holmes and reproduced with the kind permission of Parthian Books. Sound design, production, editing and music were by Chris Gregory You can pre-order a copy of The Half Life of Snails by visiting the Parthian website at www.parthianbooks.com Find out more about Philippa Holloway by following her on social media where she posts as https://twitter.com/thejackdawspen and https://www.instagram.com/thejackdawspen/ You can follow Parhtian Books on twitter here https://twitter.com/parthianbooksAnd Instagram here https://www.instagram.com/parthian_books/ You can find out more about Hack Green Secret Nuclear Bunker by visiting their website at https://www.hackgreen.co.uk/ And follow then on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/secret_bunker/ You can read Philippa Holloway's response to the Ukraine crisis here https://www.walesartsreview.org/philippa-holloway-borders/ And find out about her academic work at the University of Staffordshire here https://www.staffs.ac.uk/course/english-literature-creative-writing-ba Philippa has also written about psychogeography including this article https://www.nawe.co.uk/DB/current-wip-edition-2/articles/7-walking-in-imaginary-shoes-by-philippa-holloway.html Finally – please check out the other podcasts mentioned in this edition Write On! Audio https://anchor.fm/pentoprint The Dex Legacy https://www.buzzsprout.com/1868546 And Chaika https://y2kpod.com/ Support the show

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 her native Shropshire’s folklore, ghostlore and local History. You can find her blog her https://nearlyknowledgeablehistory.blogspot.com/ and on twitter @g0blinegg We Cower in a Ruined Castle and Hope Not to Hear a Ghost by Elou Carroll Elou Carroll likes to tell ghost stories. You can find her work on www.eloucarroll.com Ghost Feet by Ellen Forkin Ellen Forkin is a writer and artist living in the magical Orkney Islands. Find her on Instagram @ellen_forkin and Twitter https://twitter.com/ellen_forkin Unrest by Vanessa Jae Vanessa Jae writes horrifically beautiful anarchies, reads stories for Apex Magazine and translates for Progressive International https://twitter.com/thevanessajae Huntress, Enchantress, Murderess by Lyndsey Croal Lyndsey is a writer, audio dramatist and editor from Edinburgh. Find out more about her and her work here https://lyndseycroal.co.uk/ Welcome Home by Ai Jiang Ai Jiang is a Chinese-Canadian writer, an immigrant from Fujian, and an active member of HWA. Find her on Twitter @AiJiang_ and online http://aijiang.ca Naart Stuyck by Signe Maene Signe Maene is a writer, folklorist and audio dramatist from Belgian. Her work has been featured frequently in this podcast and a new audio play is in preparation. signemaene.com/links/ Ye Tak The Ghost Road by Callum McSorley Callum McSorley is an author based in Glasgow. His short stories have been published by New Writing Scotland, Gutter Magazine, Shoreline of Infinity, and Monstrous Regiment among others. https://twitter.com/CallumMcSorley The Accordionist by Anna Orridge Anna Orridge is a writer from Croydon, whose short story 'Backdrop' was adapted for a an acclaimed Alternative Stories audio drama. You can find out more about her activism and writing on Twitter https://twitter.com/orridge_anna A Fate Worse by Marisca Pichette Marisca Pichette writes speculative fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. She is on Twitter as https://twitter.com/MariscaPichette and Instagram as @marisca_write. Her website is: www.mariscapichette.com The Island of Dolls by Sam W Pisciotta Sam W Pisciotta is a writer and visual artist who believes, with his whole heart, that the glass is half-full. Follow him on Instagram @silo34 and Twitter https://twitter.com/silo34 Music and production are by Chris Gregory More bio notes on our participants https://tinyurl.com/ncxpzm95 Sound effects are from freesound.org Support the show