Backlisted

This is the third in our re-released episodes – and only the second one we ever recorded. Has Jean Rhys’s reputation and influence grown since then? …

Welcome to our second Backlisted special of 2023. Today we’re joined by the best-selling writer Una McCormack, returning for a record-breaking ninth appearance, having most recently participated in the Christmas episode …

In memory of Raymond Briggs we are replaying the episode where John and Andy were joined by author-illustrator Nadia Shireen and writer Andrew Male for a smellybration of Fungus the Bogeyman (1977) by the great Raymond …

Welcome to our first Backlisted special of 2023. Today we’re joined by the award-winning novelist and screenwriter Frank Cottrell-Boyce, an official friend of Backlisted, who returns for the first time since his …

In memory of the great Carmen Callil, we are replaying the first of her two appearances on Backlisted. Joining Andy and John in this episode is Carmen Callil, the legendary publisher and writer, who is best know for …

Merry Christmas Everyone! This year’s Backlisted Christmas special celebrates Ballet Shoes by Noel Streatfeild, a classic of children’s literature and the childhood favourite of our producer, Nicky Birch. We are joined …

The Awakening is an American classic, first published in 1899. The novel’s focus is the inner life of Edna Pontellier, a 29 year-old a married woman …

The Ice Palace or Is-slottet by Tarjei Vesaas is a 20th century classic by one of Norway’s greatest modern writers. First published by Gyldendal in 1963, it went on to win the Nordic Council Literary Prize in 1964. In …

There can be few writers more deserving of Backlisted’s attention than the Irish writer, Maeve Brennan. An adopted New Yorker, Brennan died there in 1993 and was by that time so thoroughly forgotten in her native land, …

This Hallowe’en episode of Backlisted focusses on the collection of ‘uncanny’ stories by Henry James, first gathered together under the title The …

Full Tilt: Ireland to India with a Bicycle by the Irish travel writer Dervla Murphy was first published in 1965 and is the first of Dervla Murphy’s …

Roadside Picnic, first published in 1972, is the best-known work of Russia’s most famous modern science fiction writers, Arkady & Boris Strugatsky, together the authors of 26 novels and scores of short stories. To …

North and South is Elizabeth Gaskell’s fourth novel and considered by many to be her best. It tells the story of Margaret Hale, a principled young middle-class woman from the rural South whose family are obliged to …

Authors Jay Griffiths and Geoff Dyer are our guests for a discussion of Pilgrim at Tinker Creek. Annie Dillard was only twenty-nine when her first …

The second novel by by literary wunderkind, Helen DeWitt, Lightning Rods is probably the most challenging book we’ve yet featured on Backlisted. Usually described as a satire on American capitalism, it is the …

It's sixty-five years since John Wyndham published The Midwich Cuckoos, the fourth in his hugely successful series of science fiction novels that …

Forty years ago the writer Paul Theroux hoisted his knapsack on his back and set off on a journey on foot around the coast of the United Kingdom; the …

Novelist Joanne Harris (Chocolat, A Narrow Door) is our guest for a celebration of Titus Groan (1946), Gormenghast (1950) and Titus Alone (1959) by …

Tessa Hadley (Free Love, Late in the Day) joins us for a discussion of The Death of the Heart (1938), the sixth novel by Anglo-Irish novelist Elizabeth Bowen; as you'll hear, Tessa has been reading and rereading Bowen's …

Our guest is Stephen Fry, writer, actor and polymath, who last week joined John and Andy in person to discuss Oscar Wilde's De Profundis, the essay …

Publisher Marigold Atkey and journalist Emily Rhodes join us for a discussion of Lessico famigliare, Natalia Ginzburg's novelistic memoir or …

Our guests are both new to Backlisted: the legendary publisher, editor, writer Margaret Busby and the award-winning poet, Raymond Antrobus. They join us to discuss the work of the Caribbean writer, Andrew Salkey, in …

Our guests are both Backlisted old hands: Professor Sarah Churchwell, Professor in American Literature and Chair of Public Understanding of the …

We are joined by author-illustrator Nadia Shireen and writer Andrew Male for a smellybration of Fungus the Bogeyman (1977) by the great Raymond Briggs, the much-loved and bestselling picture book Andrew describes as …

Our guests are Tanya Kirk, Lead Curator of Printed Heritage Collections 1601-1900 at The British Library, and Backlisted's old friend Una McCormack, …

This episode of Backlisted features Andy, John and Nicky chatting about short stories and the perennial appeal of the form to both writers and readers. This is a sequel to the first Winter Reading show we posted in …

Authors Harriet Evans (The Beloved Girls) and Francesca Wade (Square Haunting) join us to celebrate Dorothy L. Sayers's 'novel not without detection' Gaudy Night (1935), perhaps the high point in the classic series of …

Stephen Sondheim's biographer David Benedict and writer and musician Jason Hazeley join us for a special episode devoted to Finishing the Hat and …

Happy New Year! We begin 2022 with a stack of books to see us through the winter: poetry, history, fiction and science. Andy, John and Nicky discuss and read from The Kids by Hannah Lowe (Bloodaxe); The Dawn of …

Merry Xmas everybody! Our friends Katherine Rundell and Frank Cottrell-Boyce, two wonderful guest authors, join us to celebrate the life and work of …

Authors Shawn Levy (A Year in the Life of Death, Rat Pack Confidential) and Erica Wagner (Chief Engineer, Gravity) join us to discuss US writer Pete Dexter's second novel Deadwood (1986), described by the Washington …

Our guest is author Paula Morris, who joins us from Auckland to discuss the novel The Godwits Fly (1938) and the life of its author Iris Wilkinson …

Welcome to the 150th episode of Backlisted! To mark the occasion we are joined by authors Alex Christofi (Dostoevsky in Love) and Arifa Akbar (Consumed: A Sister's Story) for a discussion of one of Russia's greatest …

This is a Backlisted special, recorded at the Bodleian Library in Oxford to celebrate the publication of Treacle Walker the new novel by Alan Garner (Fourth Estate). The panel discussion features Erica Wagner, writer …

For this year's Hallowe'en special we're joined by Backlisted's old fiends Andrew Male and Laura Varnam, following previous guest appearances on …

Our guests are publisher Alexandra Pringle and Simon Thomas, editor and co-host of the Tea or Books? podcast. They are here to discuss Cassandra at the Wedding, the fourth and final novel by Dorothy Baker, first …

Joining us on Backlisted this week is novelist and memoirist Susie Boyt (My Judy Garland Life, Loved and Missed). The book Susie has chosen for us to discuss is The Dream Songs (1969) by John Berryman, the publication …

We are joined by novelist Mary Costello for a special episode recorded live at Galway International Arts Festival in Ireland on September 10th 2021. The book we're debating is Elizabeth Costello (2003) by South-African …

It’s time for our annual look at what we’ve been reading over the summer break. John, Andy and Nicky discuss David Keenan’s fourth novel Monument Maker; Open Water, a promising debut novella from Caleb Azumah Nelson; …

Perhaps the greatest boxing novel ever written, Leonard Gardner's Fat City was first published in 1969; it was shortlisted for the National Book Award; Joan Didion and Denis Johnson are amongst those who have sung its …

Joining us on Backlisted this week is writer John Higgs, whose fascinating new book William Blake Vs The World is out now. We were thrilled John chose Steve Aylett's guide to originality, creativity and individuality, …

Returning to Backlisted this week are literary agents Becky Brown and Norah Perkins, joint custodians of the Curtis Brown Heritage list of literary estates and previously our guests on episode #109, Excellent Women by …

Joining John and Andy this week is novelist and host of the books podcast Sentimental Garbage, Caroline O'Donoghue (Promising Young Women, Scenes of …

Joining John and Andy this week are novelist Patrick McCabe (The Butcher Boy, Breakfast on Pluto, Winterwood) and Unbound's editor-at-large Rachael Kerr. We got together to discuss Dermot Healy's remarkable second novel …

Joining John and Andy this week are novelist Marie Phillips (Gods Behaving Badly, Oh, I Do Like To Be...) and novelist, screenwriter and poet Joe Dunthorne (Submarine, O Positive). The book we are discussing is Gerard …

Joining John and Andy this week are Natasha McEnroe, the Keeper of Medicine at the Science Museum in London, and novelist Lissa Evans, Backlisted's …

The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman AKA Tristram Shandy by Laurence Sterne is the subject of this years-in-the-making episode of …

Clarice Lispector's Água Viva is the subject of this episode of Backlisted. Like several of Lispector's remarkable novels, this slim book caused a sensation when first published in her native Brazil in 1973. Exquisitely …

The Fish Can Sing by Halldór Laxness is the subject of this episode. The book was first published in Iceland as Brekkukotsannáll in 1957, two years after Laxness was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature. Joining John …

Penelope Mortimer's fourth novel Daddy's Gone A-Hunting (1958) is the subject of this episode of Backlisted. Joining John and Andy to discuss Mortimer's fearless and pioneering autobiographical fiction, including this …

Josephine Tey's classic mystery Miss Pym Disposes (1946) is the subject of this special episode of Backlisted, recorded as part of Aberdeen's Granite Noir festival on February 19th 2021. Joining John and Andy to explore …

Joseph Roth's Job: The Story of a Simple Man (1930) is the subject of this episode of Backlisted. Joining John and Andy to explore this austere and …

This Locklisted episode is the sequel to our earlier Children's Books Special. It was recorded in August 2020 and was previously available exclusively to supporters of our Patreon at patreon.com/backlisted. This time we …

Karoo (1998), a posthumously-published cult novel by screenwriter and playwright Steve Tesich is the subject of this episode of Backlisted. Joining …

Rosemary Tonks is the subject of this episode of Backlisted. Our starting point is her fascinating third novel The Bloater (1968) - which is long out of print, unfortunately - but we also discuss her remarkable poetry, …

This Locklisted special on children's books was recorded in August 2020 and was previously available exclusively to supporters of our Patreon at patreon.com/backlisted. Join us on a journey through time and space as …

Susan Cooper's magical novel The Dark Is Rising (1973) is the subject of a bumper Christmas special episode of Backlisted. Joining John and Andy to …

The Victorian Chaise-longue (1953) is a terrifying short novel by the writer, broadcaster and lexicographer Marghanita Laski. Joining Andy and John is the novelist Eley Williams, author of the awarding winning Attrib. …

The Compleet Molesworth (1958) by Geoffrey Willans and Ronald Searle is the beloved book we're celebrating in this special fifth birthday episode of …

Doctor Who and the Brain of Morbius (1977) by Terrance Dicks is the much-loved book featured in this episode of Backlisted. Joining John and Andy to …

It's our Hallowe'en special ! For this year’s Hallowe’en episode our subject is the Old English poem, Beowulf, composed somewhere in England more …

Silence (1966) is Shūsaku Endō’s masterpiece, a novel set in 17th Japan, following two Portuguese Jesuits posted there to search for their former …

George Gissing's The Odd Women (1893) is the groundbreaking book featured in this episode of Backlisted. Joining John and Andy to discuss this fascinating, proto-feminist novel - and the incident-packed life of its …

Thérèse Raquin (1868), the third novel by French writer Émile Zola, is the book featured in this episode of Backlisted. Joining John and Andy to …

I, Lalla: The Poems of Lal Dĕd, translated by Ranjit Hoskote, is the subject of this episode of Backlisted. Joining John and Andy to discuss this modern rendering of the poetry (or 'vakhs') of the 14th-century Kashmiri …

It's a summer reading episode of Backlisted. We are showcasing books John, Andy and the show's producer Nicky have been reading during lockdown. These include A Helping Hand by Celia Dale; A Small Place by Jamaica …

William James's The Varieties of Religious Experience (1902) is the groundbreaking book featured in this episode of Backlisted. Joining John and Andy …

How to Cook a Wolf (1942) by the inimitable M.F.K. Fisher is the book featured in this episode of Backlisted. Joining John and Andy to heed this call …

The Diary of a Nobody (1892) by George and Weedon Grossmith is the book featured in this episode of Backlisted. Joining John and Andy to celebrate this touching and funny classic of suburban manners, first published in …

William Golding's second novel The Inheritors (1955) is the book featured in this episode of Backlisted. Joining John and Andy to explore this …

Margaret Kennedy's bestselling novel The Constant Nymph (1924) is the book featured in this episode of Backlisted. Joining John and Andy to discuss this tale of romance, passion and bohemianism - and the chequered …

Antonia White's debut novel Frost in May(1933) is the book under discussion in this episode of Backlisted. Joining John and Andy to discuss this …

John Irving's fourth novel The World According to Garp (1978) is the subject of this episode of Backlisted. Joining John and Andy to explore this unlikely bestseller and discuss its contemporary relevance are author …

W.N.P Barbellion's The Journal of a Disappointed Man, first published in 1919, is the subject of this episode of Backlisted. Joining John and Andy to …

We're back! Barbara Pym's second novel Excellent Women, first published in 1952, is the subject of this episode of Backlisted. Joining John and Andy to discuss it are Pym aficionados and literary agents Becky Brown and …

Marcel Proust's A La Recherche du Temps Perdu AKA In Search of Lost Time is the subject of this bumper Christmas special episode, which was recorded live at the London Library on December 11th 2019. Joining John and …

Arnold Bennett's 1923 novel Riceyman Steps is the subject of this episode. Joining John and Andy to discuss it are journalist Charlotte Higgins and …

Patricia Highsmith's novel Edith's Diary (1977) is the book under discussion. John and Andy are joined by writers Karen McLeod and John Grindrod. Plus Andy has been reading Alfred Hitchcock and the Three Investigators …

W.G. Sebald's book The Rings of Saturn, first published in Germany in 1995, is the subject of this episode. Joining John and Andy to walk around this enigmatic masterpiece are the writer and swimmer Philip Hoare and the …

It's Halloween! Daphne du Maurier's The Breaking Point AKA The Blue Lenses is a collection of psychological horror stories that was first published …

Absalom, Absalom! is the subject of this episode and William Faukner's ninth novel first published in 1936. Returning to Backlisted as our guest is Professor Sarah Churchwell. Also under discussion are Sweet Home, a …

Novelist Elizabeth Taylor is the subject of this episode of Backlisted. Joining Andy and John to discuss The Soul of Kindness (1964) - and much more …

Filmmaker Werner Herzog's journal Of Walking in Ice is the subject of this episode, recorded at the End of the Road festival at Larmer Tree Gardens in Dorset on September 1st 2019. Joining John and Andy is writer and …

Philip Pullman is our guest on the 100th episode of Backlisted. John, Andy and Nicky travelled to Oxford for this special episode devoted to Robert …

Books about the Beatles are the subject of this special episode recorded at Cornwall's Port Eliot festival on July 27th 2019. Joining John and Andy …

Russell Hoban's extraordinary novel Riddley Walker (1980) is the subject of this episode recorded live at the Port Eliot Festival in Cornwall on …

Ray Bradbury's uncanny tales are the subject of this episode of Backlisted. John and Andy are joined by author and literary editor of The Spectator Sam Leith and writer and radio presenter Jennifer Lucy Allan. Also …

Miss Buncle's Book by D.E. Stevenson, a bestseller when first published in the 1930s, is the novel under discussion. Joining John and Andy is novelist and teacher of creative writing Shelley Harris. Also featured in …

Italo Calvino's third novel The Baron in the Trees (Il barone rampante) is the subject of this episode. Joining John and Andy to discuss the book is …

Alan Isler's debut novel The Prince of West End Avenue (1994) is the subject of this episode of Backlisted. Joining Andy and John to discuss it are novelist William Sutcliffe and playwright and bibliomemoirist Samantha …

Award-winning novelist Preti Taneja (We That Are Young) joins John and Andy to discuss Beloved by Toni Morrison, one of the greatest American novels of the last half century. Other books featured on this episode are …

John and Andy are joined by writer and actor Will Smith for a special episode recorded live at the Guernsey Literary Festival on Sunday May 5th 2019. The novel under discussion is G.B. Edwards's unique The Book of …

Daniel Defoe's A Journal of the Plague Year (1722) is the subject of this episode of Backlisted, recorded in the week of the 300th anniversary of the publication of Robinson Crusoe. Joining John and Andy to discuss the …

Charles Dickens's late masterpiece Great Expectations is the subject of this episode of Backlisted. Joining John and Andy to discuss the book (and its celebrated author) are journalist and editor William Atkins and …

Elvis Presley is the subject of this episode of Backlisted, care of Peter Guralnick's twin biographies Last Train to Memphis (1994) and Careless Love (1999). Joining John and Andy to discuss these remarkable books are …

Penelope Fitzgerald's fourth novel Human Voices (1980) is set at the BBC during the early months of the Second World War. Joining John and Andy to discuss the book, and Penelope Fitzgerald's life and work, are publisher …

This episode is about Utz, Bruce Chatwin's final novel, shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 1988. John and Andy are joined by writer and journalist Jonathan Wilson and Unbound's editor-at-large Rachael Kerr, who worked …

On this episode John and Andy are joined by novelist and critic Amanda Craig and novelist and memoirist Alice Jolly to discuss Rebecca West's debut …

John and Andy are joined by writer, dandy and erstwhile musician Dickon Edwards to discuss Hemlock and After, Angus Wilson's debut novel, originally published in 1952. Wilson was considered one of the preeminent writers …

John and Andy are joined by author and podcaster Daisy Buchanan and poet and lecturer Dr Ian Patterson to discuss Imogen, Jilly Cooper's 1978 novel of a young librarian finding romance - and all that goes with it - …

In our first podcast of 2019 we tackle D.H. Lawrence's The Rainbow, a novel that has divided opinion since it was first published (and banned) in 1915 - and sure enough opinion was divided between John and Andy on this …

John and Andy are joined by novelist Philip Hensher and biographer Hilary Spurling for a discussion of Books Do Furnish a Room by Anthony Powell, first published in 1971, the tenth instalment of A Dance to the Music of …

John and Andy are joined by Dan Schreiber, writer, producer and co-host of the No Such Thing As A Fish podcast, to discuss Harpo Marx's autobiography Harpo Speaks! (1961). Also discussed are titles by Neil Tennant, …

Andy and John are joined by Carmen Callil, publisher, writer and critic and founder of Virago Press, to discuss The Tortoise and the Hare by Elizabeth Jenkins, a novel first published in 1954 and then republished by …

This week John and Andy are joined by award-winning children's author and screenwriter Frank Cottrell-Boyce and publisher and co-founder of Sort Of Books Natania Jansz to discuss Tove Jansson's final Moomin book, …

It's Halloween and John and Andy are joined by novelist Lissa Evans and Backlisted's resident revenant, critic Andrew Male, to discuss Ghosts, Edith Wharton's selection of her best supernatural tales, first published in …

This week John and Andy are joined by actor and director Sam West and writer and academic Sophie Ratcliffe to talk about Louis MacNeice's Autumn Journal. The poem was composed in the autumn of 1938 while Britain awaited …

This week John and Andy are joined by novelist and literary journalist Sarra Manning (author of The Rise and Fall of Becky Sharp) to discuss Elaine …

For a special episode recorded at the End of the Road festival in Dorset, John and Andy are joined by author and critic Tom Cox to talk about Adam Thorpe's 1992 debut novel Ulverton. Other books discussed include Sally …

For the final episode recorded at this year's Port Eliot festival in Cornwall, John and Andy are joined by authors Nina Stibbe and returning guest Simon Garfield to discuss Philip Larkin's second and final novel A Girl …

For the second of three episodes recorded at the Port Eliot festival in Cornwall, John and Andy are joined by songwriter and activist Billy Bragg and journalist and critic Suzi Feay to talk about George Orwell's The …

For the first of three episodes recorded at this year's Port Eliot festival in Cornwall, John and Andy are joined by author Cathy Rentzenbrink and actor and writer Ben Moor to talk about Pierre Bayard's How To Talk …

John and Andy are joined by Unbound co-founder and co-author of Crap Towns Dan Kieran and returning guest Dr Una McCormack, NYT bestselling novelist and co-director of the Anglia Ruskin University Centre for Science …

John and Andy are joined by writer and editor Nikesh Shukla to discuss Drinking Coffee Elsewhere, ZZ Packer's groundbreaking collection of stories, …

This week John and Andy are joined by super-librarian Nancy Pearl, possibly the only librarian in the world to have their own action figure, to …

For a special episode recorded at the Bath Festival, we discuss Angela Carter's astonishing collection The Bloody Chamber (1979), much of which was …

Hermione Lee joins John and Andy to discuss the work of American novelist Willa Cather and, in its centenary year, her pioneering novel My Ántonia. John also talks about Wilding by Isabella Tree and Andy revisits one …

The poet Rishi Dastidar joins John and Andy to talk about Sebastian Faulks' least known and first non-fiction title, The Fatal Englishman: Three …

Professor Sarah Churchwell introduces Andy and John to the phenomenal Corregidora by Gayl Jones, a book steeped in the blues and the American slavery legacy. Other books they've read are Rain on the Pavements by …

John and Andy are at the dogs this week, discussing the 1963 cult novel The Lowlife by Alexander Baron. They are joined by London enthusiast Peter …

Authors Matt Thorne and Nikita Lalwani join John and Andy to discuss the ‘other’ masterpiece by Joseph Heller, Something Happened, first published in 1974. Also in this episode John talks about Brother, a new novel by …

This week John and Andy are joined by journalist and author Lucy Mangan, whose new memoir of childhood reading Bookworm has just been published by Square Peg. They discuss Norah Lofts' novel The Town House (1959), the …

This week Andy and John are joined by Jennifer Hodgson, editor of 'The Unmapped Country', a collection of British experimental writer Ann Quin's lost …

John and Andy welcome authors Chris Power and Erica Wagner to discuss the multiple interlocking stories in Jesus' Son by Denis Johnson, including the …

Critic and editor of Boundless Arifa Akbar joins John and Andy to discuss Hilary Mantel's tale of mediums and malevolence in the M25 corridor, Beyond …

Music producer, gallery owner and now novelist Tot Taylor joins John and Andy to discuss James Hilton's 1933 novel about an earthly paradise in the far Himalayas. And the various iterations of the story that came …

In a special edition of the show recorded at Shakespeare & Co. in Paris, John and Andy are joined by the bookstore's owner Sylvia Whitman and …

In a special Christmas edition (which of course can be listened to at any time of year) John & Andy welcome Jude and James Cook to discuss Ian Fleming's most festive Bond novel, On Her Majesty's Secret Service. …

Author and illustrator Alice Stevenson and her childhood friend, playwright Elinor Cook join John and Andy to talk about Diana Wynne Jones's novel of memory, childhood and friendship.Timings: (may differ due to variable …

In a special edition recorded earlier this year live at the Durham Book Festival, John and Andy are joined by writers Adele Stripe and Ben Myers to discuss Gordon Burn's debut novel Alma Cogan. The 'WHWBR?' slots are …

Writer and author Jenny Colgan joins John and Andy to discuss R.F. Delderfield's epic of life in an English boarding school between the wars. Craig …

For our annual Halloween episode John Mitchinson and Andy Miller are joined by Fiona Wilson and Andrew Male to discuss Shirley Jackson's final novel 'We Have Always Lived in the Castle'. In this show's 'What We Have …

In a special live edition of Backlisted, recorded in front of an audience at Blackwell's Bookshop in Oxford, John and Andy are joined by Mark Haddon, author of 'The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time' and …

Simon Garfield, author of The Wrestling, The Nation's Favourite and A Notable Woman, amongst others joins John and Andy to discuss William Goldman's …

In a long awaited episode John Mitchinson and Andy Miller are joined by Una McCormack and Lucy Scholes to discuss Anita Brookner's third novel 'Look …

John and Andy are joined by poet, radio presenter, playwright and genuine Tyke Ian McMillan to discuss Malcolm Lowry's unique work Under the Volcano. …

Even your favourite podcasts need to take a holiday... but hopefully this collection of off cuts, tall tales, terrible name dropping and the …

Author William Fiennes joins Andy and John for a bumper edition to talk about 'Desperate Characters', Paula Fox's New York set novel of relationships …

In this edition of the podcast that gives new life to old books novelist Joanna Walsh and critic and academic Sarah Churchwell join John & Andy …

Author and critic Alex Preston and Rachael Kerr, Unbound's Editor at large, join John and Andy around the table to discuss Charles Sprawson's ground breaking 'Haunts Of The Black Masseur', together with all things …

Sarah Perry, bestselling author of The Essex Serpent, joins John and Andy to discuss Edmund Gosse's account of growing up the son of a widowed Victorian fundementalist preacher. The trio also talk about Attrib. and …

Author and editor Richard T. Kelly joins John and Andy in the studio to discuss 'I'll Sleep When I'm Dead' The Dirty Life And Times of Warren Zevon' by Crystal Zevon. They also discuss the art of the oral history, and …

Novelist Niven Govinden joins John and Andy to discuss James Baldwin's 1968 novel 'Tell Me How Long The Train's Been Gone'. Also discussed: 'The …

Writer and critic Catherine Taylor joins John and Andy to discuss Vladimir Nabokov's parting love letter to Russia and it's literature, The Gift. Also; singing with nightingales and reading Richard Mabey's book about …

Novelist Rupert Thomson joins John & Andy to talk about the work of French author Patrick Modiano, who's work explores the effect of the German occupation of his homeland during the Second World War. There's also a …

Novelist and writer Elizabeth Day joins John & Andy to discuss Rosamond Lehmann's 1936 novel of a young woman's affair with a married man. Also featured: Magnus Mills record store day novel 'The Forensic Record …

Following on from the Slaves Of Solitude episode, here is an extra half hour of conversation about Patrick Hamilton. Please listen the the main …

Novelists Lissa Evans and Stuart Evers join Andy & John to discuss Patrick Hamilton's 1947 tale of boarding-house life in wartime. Also, this week Andy has been reading Keith Waterhouse, while John talks about …

A little something extra for you, the lovely Backlisted listeners, and a departure from our usual subject matter - a new(ish) book! After recording …

Andy & John are joined by literary agent Claire Conville and writer and author Rowan Pelling to discuss James Salter's 1967 novel of lust and imagination. The book, a description of an affair between an American …

Novelist, critic & lecturer Jonathan Gibbs (a/k/a @Tiny_Camels) joins John & Andy to discuss The Snow Ball, Brigid Brophy's novel of seduction, aging and Mozart.Timings: (may differ due to adverts)5'15 - A …

Max Porter, author of 'Grief Is The Thing With Feathers', joins John and Andy to talk about The Horse's Mouth, Joyce Cary's story of the life of the itinerant artist. Also discussed are Dark Money, Jane Mayer's account …

Critic and author Erica Wagner and novelist S.F. Said join John and Andy to discuss 'Red Shift', the fifth novel by Alan Garner. Also discussed: …

This show sees John and Andy joined by Una McCormack and Cathy Rentzenbrink to discuss Venetia, one of the Regency Romance novels by Georgette Heyer. Includes mild language and various Georgian terms for …

John Grindrod, author of Concretopia, joins John Mitchinson and Andy Miller to discuss Memento Mori, the third novel by Muriel Spark. They also pay tribute to the author and agent David Miller, who passed away recently, …

In a bid to get our fear and creeping dread about the state of the world in early for 2017, author Travis Elborough (A Walk in The Park, The Bus We Loved, and The Long Player Goodbye) joins us to discuss A State of …

John and Andy are joined by Laura Cumming, the art critic for The Observer and author of 'The Vanishing Man: In Pursuit of Velázquez', and Hilary Murray Hill, CEO at Hachette Children's Books, to talk bout Jane Gardam's …

Costa First Book nominee for My Name Is Leon, Kit de Waal joins John & Andy to discuss So Long, See You Tomorrow, the final novel by author and New Yorker literary editor William Maxwell.Timings: (may differ due to …

Monocle culture editor Robert Bound joins John and Andy to discuss JG Ballard's Spanish set thriller Cocaine Nights. Also, The Ballard-Bond …

In a special Halloween edition, John Mitchinson and Andy Miller are joined by Andrew Male to discuss Cold Hand In Mine, a book of 'strange stories' …

Recorded live at the Durham Book Festival 2016, John and Andy are joined by Sally Bayley (author, The Private Life Of The Diary) to discuss Stevie …

Novelist, editor and critic Erica Wagner joins the Backlisted team to discuss one of her favourite books - The Animal Family by Randall Jarrell. …

In a special edition of the podcast Andy, John, Mathew and Matt discuss amongst other things which festivals work, why books win prizes, and why changing the name of a certain Swallows And Amazons character is a shame. …

Slang lexicographer extraordinaire Jonathon Green joins John and Andy in this episode to discuss Absolute Beginners, the classic novel of London …

In a special edition recorded at Port Eliot Festival, the Backlisted team welcome comedy writer Jesse Armstrong (Peep Show, Fresh Meat, The Thick Of It, Four Lions)to discuss F. Scott Fitzgerald's posthumously published …

Author and poet Saleena Godden joins John Mitchinson, Andy Miller and Mathew Clayton to discuss Hubert Selby Jr's legendary transgressive novel of dead end life in working class 50's Brooklyn. WARNING: contains …

Richard King, author of 'How Soon Is Now' and 'Original Rockers', visits Backlisted to talk about Maiden Voyage, an extraordinarily vivid memoir by Denton Welch of his early life in England and China. Timings: (may …

Writer and journalist Alex Clark joins John Mitchinson and Andy Miller in a stormy (and then hammery) podcast to discuss 'Letters from a Fainthearted …

Author Lloyd Shepherd joins the Backlisted crew in their small but functional vessel to discuss what some regard as the first ever spy novel 'The Riddle of the Sands' and the extraordinary life of its author Erskine …

Writer, academic and contributing editor of Bookanista Lucy Scholes joins Andy, John and Mathew on the pod to talk 'The Vet's Daughter', the …

Jason Hazeley and Joel Morris, the creators of the Grown Up Ladybird series of picture books, join Andy Miller and Mathew Clayton to discuss Bert Fegg's Nasty Book for Boys and Girls by Michael Palin and Terry …

Journalist, broadcaster and former editrice of The Erotic Review Rowan Pelling joins John, Andy and Mathew on the show to explain her love of Nigel Balchin's novel of the London Blitz, Darkness Falls From The Air. …

Rachel Cooke, Observer writer, New Statesman TV critic and author joins John, Andy & Mathew to discuss 'All the Devils Are Here', the astounding travelogue through Kent and the depths of human behaviour from David …

Raymond Chandler's 'The High Window', his third book featuring world weary detective Philip Marlowe, is introduced to Backlisted by Mojo magazine's Andrew Male. Plus the joys of walking in the rain in England, …

Kill Your Friends author John Niven joins John, Andy & Mathew in the pod to discuss The information by Martin Amis, on the way answering the …

Sylvia Townsend Warner's debut novel 'Lolly Willowes' is the main book under discussion in this episode. It's nominated by journalist, author & …

Author and playwright Alice Jolly joins the Backlisted crew to discuss The Great Fire by Australian author Shirley Hazzard. Also, AA Gill and Spike …

In episode 6 of the Backlisted Podcast we're joined by Sarah Churchwell, professorial fellow in American literature and chair of public understanding …

Emmy award winning writer and broadcaster David Quantick (Veep, The Thick of It, TV Burp) joins John and Andy in the Unbound offices to discuss his favourite novel, Christie Malry's Own Double-Entry by B.S. Johnson. …

John, Andy and Mathew Clayton discuss Nancy Mitford's novel 'The Blessing' with Nancy's biographer Laura Thompson. Plus, what it feels like to finish 'Finnegans Wake', 'bloke's books', and the rudest word in the …

Andy Miller and John Mitchinson, a/k/a/ Leavis & Butthead, return with another episode of the podcast which gives new life to old books. In this …

John Mitchinson and Andy Miller are joined by author Linda Grant and Unbound's Mathew Clayton to discuss 'Good Morning, Midnight' by 'Wide Sargasso Sea' author Jean Rhys. Plus perfume, the previously unheard of genre of …

in the first episode of a new podcast about books, John Mitchinson and Andy Miller are joined by novelist Lissa Evans and Unbound's Mathew Clayton discuss JL Carr's 'A Month in the Country'.Timings: (may differ due to …