Author Will Hodgkinson and actress and director Caroline Catz join Andy and John to discuss James Young’s Nico: Songs They Never Play On the Radio, first published in 1992. This...

This episode features a live recording made at Foyles in London, where John was joined on stage by Una McCormack, making her record breaking tenth appearance on Backlsited, and...

This episode explores the third novel by the nonagenarian American writer Lore Segal which was originally published in 1985 by Knopf and is due to be released in the UK...

The waiting is nearly over! Ahead of Backlisted Season 3 – and our tenth anniversary year – John, Andy and Nicky get together to chat about books, vintage vinyl,...

A classic episode from 2018 with a new introduction. This week John and Andy are joined by actor and director Sam West and writer and academic Sophie Ratcliffe to...

Slang lexicographer extraordinaire Jonathon Green joins John and Andy in this episode originally recorded in 2016 to discuss Absolute Beginners, the classic novel of London teenage life set around Soho and Notting Hill.

Despite the team’s somewhat complex relationship with the idea of ‘summer’, this episode is full of seasonal recommendations. Andy previews Intermezzo, the new Sally Rooney (out in September) and enjoys A...

At long last, it’s our Agatha Christie show! We are joined by Caroline Crampton, writer and host of the Shedunnit podcast, and Laura Thompson, author and Christie biographer, for an investigation of Endless Night (1967), a late entry in the Queen of Crime’s extensive catalogue and perhaps her last truly great novel of suspense and surprise. NB. Whilst we refrain from revealing the killer’s identity (just about), there are enough clues sprinkled throughout the podcast that listeners may be advised to read the book first; you don’t need to be Hercule Poirot or Miss Marple to work out whodunnit. This episode was recorded in front of a live audience at Foyles in Charing Cross Road, London, on 17th July 2024. If you would like to hear more, including some excellent contributions from members of the audience, subscribe to our Patreon at the Locklistener level or above; we will be making this part of our conversation available next weekend as a bonus podcast.

Children’s writer Rachael King and novelist Richard Blandford join John and Andy for a discussion of Marianne Dreams by Catherine Storr, the eerie, disturbing tale of two sick children who meet in a realm of nightmares. First published in 1958, the book is now considered by critics to be a sui genesis classic. Storr was a prolific author, with dozens of titles to her name; her work for children often mixes fantasy and horror with her extensive professional knowledge of child psychology. In 1972, Marianne Dreams was adapted for television as Escape Into Night; in 1988, a film version entitled Paperhouse was released; and in 1999 the author herself turned the novel into an opera libretto. What is it about this story that speaks to successive generations of readers, viewers and listeners? Only the stones – and our guests – know for sure…