Shows
School Reading ListEpisode 39 - “Only 10% of boys aged 14-16 read daily for pleasure.”School Reading List podcast hosted by Tom TolkienSeason 1: Episode 39For transcripts, resources & show notes: https://schoolreadinglist.co.uk/podcasts/series-1-episode-39/Part 1Book postCarnival Fantástico by Angela MontoyaInsectarium Junior Edition by Emily Carter and Dave GoulsonWhen Tad Kicked Vlad by Julian Gough and Ross CollinsDon't Do It, Doug by Maudie Powell-TuckI Am Strong Just Being Me by Laura Dockrill and Kip AlizadehHappy Hills: Cheesy Bob Strikes! by Sophy HennThe Great Glacier Hotel Heist by Meg McLarenDetective Stanley and the Green Thumbed Thief b...
2026-02-2850 min
School Reading ListEpisode 37 - How author visits benefit schools and reading for pleasureSchool Reading List podcast hosted by Tom TolkienSeason 1: Episode 37For transcripts, resources & show notes: https://schoolreadinglist.co.uk/podcasts/series-1-episode-37/Part 1Book postHot Food Nice! by Michael RosenWhat If Every Volcano Erupted at Once? by Emma YoungSnow by Meera TrehanThe Turtle Who Turned the Tide by Rachel Bright and Jim FieldHarmony House by Monika Singh GangotraYou Think You Know Everything About Space? by Sam HutchinsonFlora Stormer and the Wishing Stone by Isabella HarcourtThe Snow Girl by Sophie AndersonElla Jones vs the Battle...
2025-12-3150 min
American History HitWhat if the Texas Republic survived?In 1845, the Republic of Texas stood at a crossroads. In our history, they chose to join the USA… but what if they chose another path? Was this even possible? What impact would this have had on life within Texas? And how would it have impacted its neighbours? Today we welcome onto the show Prof. Sam W. Haynes of the University of Texas at Arlington, and he's the Director of the Centre for Greater Southwestern Studies. He's the author of Unsettled Land: From Revolution to Republic, The Struggle for Texas.Edited by Amy Haddow and...
2025-11-1741 minAmerican History HitWhat if the Texas Republic survived?In 1845, the Republic of Texas stood at a crossroads. In our history, they chose to join the USA… but what if they chose another path? Was this even possible? What impact would this have had on life within Texas? And how would it have impacted its neighbours? Today we welcome onto the show Prof. Sam W. Haynes of the University of Texas at Arlington, and he's the Director of the Centre for Greater Southwestern Studies. He's the author of Unsettled Land: From Revolution to Republic, The Struggle for Texas.Edited by Amy Haddow and...
2025-11-1741 min
Book Off!David McCloskey and Paul VidichBestselling spy novelists, David McCloskey and Paul Vidich, join Joe Haddow for a good ole fashioned booking off!As well as discussing their new novels ('The Seventh Floor' and 'The Poets Game'), they also share some great book recommendations and talk us through their writing processes.Spy novels are such a great way to learn about world history - and have arguably never been more popular - so we delve a little more into this genre, referencing John Le Carre - and his son, Nick Harkaway, who was a recent Book Off guest...
2025-07-0355 min
Start The Most Uplifting Full Audiobook Today!Dave Pigeon: Zombies! by Swapna HaddowPlease visithttps://thebookvoice.com/podcasts/2/audible/203032to listen full audiobooks.
Title: Dave Pigeon: Zombies!
Series: Dave Pigeon, Book 6
Author: Swapna Haddow
Narrator: Sam Devereaux
Format: mp3
Length: 1 hr and 4 mins
Release date: 12-05-24
Ratings: Not rated yet
Genres: Birds
Publisher's Summary:
Help! There are zombie animals in the garden! Dave and Skipper think this is the work of some dreaded green cookies. (Eat them at your peril.) But a cookie's a cookie, and Dave can't resist taking a peck. Now Skipper is in quite the flap! Is Dave about to turn into a zombie? Or are those animals actually...
2024-12-051h 04
What's Happening Now PodcastGlasses, Houses and People in Glass HousesJoined by the comedian Alexandra Haddow and the author of ‘Democracy for Sale’, Peter Geoghegan, Sam and James figure out what’s happening now with donations and money in politics. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.whatshappening.news
2024-09-2847 min
I've Had A Rosé, Let's Talk About Feelings with Sam Lake#5 - Trains & Irn Bru with Alexandra HaddowThe angriest episode to date, Alexandra Haddow absolutely rages it up with Sam Lake as they talk about a personal gripe for all travelling comics, the trains! What is proper train etiquette? Why are they so expensive? Are we allowed to form a rebellion if our train is delayed by more than 15 minutes? Follow The Show on socials: https://twitter.com/ivehadarose https://www.instagram.com/ivehadarose/ https://www.tiktok.com/@ivehadarose Follow Sam Lake on socials: https://twitter.com/mrsamlake ht...Help support the pod by filling out a quick survey:https://acast-d25653fd59cf.intercom-clicks...
2024-03-1251 min
Unlock This Award-Winning Full Audiobook — Perfect On A Rainy Day.Dave Pigeon: Royal Coo! by Swapna HaddowPlease visithttps://thebookvoice.com/podcasts/2/audible/203063to listen full audiobooks.
Title: Dave Pigeon: Royal Coo!
Series: Dave Pigeon, Book 4
Author: Swapna Haddow
Narrator: Sam Devereaux
Format: mp3
Length: 1 hr and 27 mins
Release date: 06-08-23
Ratings: Not rated yet
Genres: Birds
Publisher's Summary:
Dave Pigeon and his best friend Skipper are taking in the sights of London. Whilst pecking around the gates of the Royal Palace, looking for high-brow snacks to feast on, they meet Prince Raju Pigeon, one of the Queen's personal birds from the Royal Lofts. Raju is tired of royal life and longs to see life beyond...
2023-06-081h 27
Explore Top-Rated Audiobooks for Your LibrarySwapna Haddow - Dave Pigeon: Nuggets!: Dave Pigeon, Book 2Please visit https://thebookvoice.com/podcasts/1/audiobook/675697 to listen full audiobooks.
Title: Dave Pigeon: Nuggets!: Dave Pigeon, Book 2
Series: #2 of Dave Pigeon
Author: Swapna Haddow
Narrator: Sam Devereaux
Format: Unabridged Audiobook
Length: 1 hour 19 minutes
Release date: May 4, 2023
Genres: Humor
Publisher's Summary: WINNER of the Greenhouse Funny Prize; SHORTLISTED for the Sainsbury's Book Award and numerous regional awards, this hilarious series is adored by its readers! This book is in Pigeonese. The following words are a test: cats smell of farts and cabbage. Could you read all the words? Are you sure? Do y...
2023-05-051h 19
Discover This Life-Enhancing Full Audiobook — Perfect On Your Commute.Dave Pigeon: How to Deal with Bad Cats and Keep (Most of) Your Feathers by Swapna HaddowPlease visithttps://thebookvoice.com/podcasts/2/audible/110386to listen full audiobooks.
Title: Dave Pigeon: How to Deal with Bad Cats and Keep (Most of) Your Feathers
Series: Dave Pigeon, Book 1
Author: Swapna Haddow
Narrator: Sam Devereaux
Format: mp3
Length: 1 hr and 4 mins
Release date: 05-04-23
Ratings: Not rated yet
Genres: Humorous Fiction
Publisher's Summary:
If you're a cat and you've learnt Pigeonese . . . (HA HA HA! As if a cat would be smart enough to learn Pigeonese). This must mean if you are a cat and you are able to read this, you have taken a pigeon hostage so that you...
2023-05-041h 04
Grab Your Day With A Eye-Opening Full Audiobook.Dave Pigeon: Nuggets! by Swapna HaddowPlease visithttps://thebookvoice.com/podcasts/2/audible/202961to listen full audiobooks.
Title: Dave Pigeon: Nuggets!
Series: Dave Pigeon, Book 2
Author: Swapna Haddow
Narrator: Sam Devereaux
Format: mp3
Length: 1 hr and 19 mins
Release date: 05-04-23
Ratings: 5 out of 5 stars, 1 rating
Genres: Birds
Publisher's Summary:
Dave Pigeon is BACK! And so is his side-kick Skipper. But trouble is afoot. When their Human Lady leaves to go on a 'holiday' (whatever that is), Dave and Skipper are horrified to find that their food supply quickly runs dry. With delicious biscuits on their minds, they set off in search of a new owner—but is...
2023-05-041h 19School Reading ListEpisode 3 - Does reading decline in children aged 11-16 in secondary schools?School Reading List podcast hosted by Tom TolkienSeason 1: Episode 3For transcripts, links to all the books featured, resources, show notes and contact details, click here: https://schoolreadinglist.co.uk/podcasts/series-1-episode-3 Part one.Book post:Human Kindness: True Stories of Compassion and Generosity that Changed the World by John FrancisIceberg by Claire Saxby, illustrated by Jess RacklyeftEverything Sustainable Energy by National Geographic KidsWhisper on the Wind by Claire Saxby, illustrated by Jess RacklyeftBad Panda: The Cake Escape by Swapna HaddowGross Factopia by Paige T...
2022-09-2536 min
Stage BletherEpisode 35: Beltane Fire Festival, Part 4In this final episode on Beltane Fire Festival I talk to Angus Farquhar and Margaret Bennett, participants in the first revivals in the 1980s. We talk about ritual, space, politics, Scottishness and folkoric traditions. I also chat with Callum Donald, performer and former event co-ordinator with Beltane Fire Society and finish up with a song from Daniel Tysen.
2021-04-221h 20Stage BletherEpisode 34: Beltane Fire Festival, Part 3In this third episode on the Beltane Fire Festival I speak to Dr Neil Rhind about poetry, faeries, situationism, severed heads and tiny coffins. I also talk to Will, a performer with the festival, about his experiences as Green Man.
2021-04-141h 29Stage BletherEpisode 33: Beltane Fire Festival, Part 2This episode of Stage Blether continues our four part series on the annual Beltane Fire Festival held in Edinburgh at the end of April. We speak to Alex, a performer who describes her experiences both in preparation and on the night itself, and with Kate, Rob and Rob, who talk more broadly about nature and conservation in relation to Beltane. The episode concludes with a reading of three poems by Neil Rhind in celebration of different aspects of the festival.
2021-04-071h 24Stage BletherEpisode 32: Beltane Fire Festival Part 1The first of a four-part series featuring interviews, stories, poems and songs from members of the Beltane Fire Society (BFS).
Beltane Fire Festival, held annually at the end of April, celebrates the end of winter and the beginning of summer. Normally this involves a huge event on Edinburgh's Calton Hill with hundreds of performers and thousands of spectators. Such an event is not possible under the current Covid-19 restrictions and so members of BFS are involved in online or socially distanced activities to help celebrate in whatever way possible. Over the next four episodes, Stage Blether is hosting members of...
2021-03-311h 02
It's Your FuneralEp7: Alexandra Haddow - 'Get it Here'Comedian Alexandra Haddow tells Sam and Barnaby how she once accidentally crashed the wrong person's burial.Follow It's Your Funeral on Instagram: @poditsyourfuneralWe want to hear from you about any weird, funny or just interesting stories that you have around the subject of funerals… or death… or anything really. The best stuff we get in, we’ll read out on the show.Email: Poditsyourfuneral@gmail.comFollow Sam on Instagram: @vomcruise
2020-10-2934 min
Stage BletherEpisode 31: Ordinary Violence and The Last Of Us videogamesIn a departure from my usual subjects, this episode analyses two video games - "The Last of Us" and "The Last of Us 2", both by Naughty Dog. The analysis discusses post-apocalyptic literature, 'ordinary violence' and revenge tragedy. Contains spoilers of both games.
2020-10-0831 min
The Cynical OptimistsThe Mandalorian, Rise of Skywalker on Disney+, Battlefront II DLC – May the 4th Be With You (#63)This week, Phill and Nick celebrate May 4th by reviewing The Mandalorian.
Other news includes cinemas boycotting Universal, Rise of Skywalker coming to Disney+, Google Stadia’s Connect showcase and a late night talk show in Animal Crossing New Horizons.
Subscribe on Spotify, iTunes or SoundCloud to get each new episode direct to your device!
Follow us on Twitter for updates, news and the occasional joke:
www.twitter.com/cynoptpodcast
Check out The Cynical Optimist Blog:
cynoptblog.blogspot.co.uk/
-CREDITS-
The Cynical Optimists is created and hosted by
Phill "haddowinc" Haddow (@haddowinc)
Nick "NGM" Mortimer (@MickNortimer)
Logo by Nick
Cy...
2020-05-041h 39Stage BletherEpisode 30: A Brief History of EmergenciesThis episode of Stage Blether offers a brief history of the phenomenon of the 'emergency'. It is recorded at the beginning of UK responses to the global pandemic caused by the Covid 19 virus, and also speaks to the peculiarities of the states of emergency and emergency measures that are being implemented in response to this pandemic.
2020-03-1944 min
FedRadio DetroitTalking About Today’s Anti-SemitismIn FedRadioDetroit’s Second Episode, Dr. Howard Lupovitch Defines, Debunks and Details Anti-Semitism’s Past and Present After the Tree of Life massacre in Pittsburg, everything changed for Jewish Americans. You could no longer talk about anti-Semitism in America the way you could the day before. That may sound like a bold statement, but it’s one that Dr. Howard Lupovitch makes and backs up in FedRadioDetroit’s most recent episode. “For a long time in the United States, anti-Semitism was a relatively marginal phenomenon,” says Lupovitch. “We could talk about a significant difference between anti-Semitism in Europe and...
2020-01-0343 minStage BletherEpisode 29: Precarious SpectatorshipThis episode discusses my forthcoming book "Precarious Spectatorship: Theatre and image in an age of emergencies" (Manchester University Press, 2019). Many of the ideas in this book were first trialled on the Stage Blether podcast, so my heartfelt thanks to anybody and everybody who has listened over the last few years.
Topics discussed include Islamic State, States of Emergency, the Refugee Crisis and storytelling.
2019-10-1539 minStage BletherEpisode 28: Oedipus in the age of Post TruthThis episode reviews Robert Icke's Dutch Language production of "Oedipus" at the Kings Theatre in Edinburgh, part of the Edinburgh International Festival. The general conversation is about the ways in which this production relocates Oedipus in a world of post-truth, and the ways in which Sophocles' text still presents challenges to contemporary audiences.
2019-08-1537 min
The Cynical OptimistsInto the Spider-Verse - The Cynical Optimists #44Phill and Nick discuss Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse alongside the film, tv and gaming news of the week. Show outline with time stamps below.
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Check out The Cynical Optimist Blog:
http://cynoptblog.blogspot.co.uk/
Follow us on Twitter for updates, news and the occasional joke:
http://www.twitter.com/cynoptpodcast
-CREDITS-
The Cynical Optimists is created and hosted by
Phill "haddowinc" Haddow (@haddowinc)
Nick "NGM" Mortimer (@MickNortimer)
Logo by Nick
Cynical Optimists Theme and Stingers by Joe Hayward
Edited by Phill
Show Outline and Time Stamps:
0:00:40 Skip the intro
0:02:42 TV...
2018-12-171h 162018-12-1333 min2018-12-1330 min2018-12-1332 min2018-12-1328 min2018-12-1331 min2018-12-1329 minStage BletherEpisode 12: Terrorism Part 2: Death and the MachineEpisode 12: Terrorism Part 2: Death and the Machine by Sam Haddow
2018-12-1334 minStage BletherEpisode 27: Children out of timeThis episode reviews the production "Wendy and Peter Pan" at the Lyceum in Edinburgh, talking about theories of childhood, temporalities and grief.
2018-12-1330 minStage BletherEpisode 26: La Maladie de la MortThis is a strange episode, documenting my immediate response to Alice Birch's adaptation of Margeurite Duras' play "La Maladie de la Mort", playing as part of the International Festival at the Edinburgh Fringe. This play upset me more than any theatre that I have seen for a long time, and I wanted to document this response without finesse. Don't expect coherence.
2018-08-1625 minStage BletherEpisode 25: I Don't Belong HereThis episode offers reviews of Chris Thorpe's "Status", ThisEgg's "dress" and Dante or Die's "User Not Found", all part of the Edinburgh Fringe 2018. There are also discussions of theatrical spectatorship, the MeToo movement and Derrida, amongst other things.
2018-08-0930 minStage BletherEpisode 24: Inventing the ShipwreckThis episode offers reviews of Penelope Skinner's play "Angry Alan", Knaive Theatre's "War With Newts" and Darkfield's "Flight", all showing at the Edinburgh fringe 2018. There is also a discussion of Paul Virilio's theories on speed, and the ways in which the problems of acceleration manifest in the three shows analysed here.
2018-08-0829 minStage BletherEpisode 23: On WeaknessWhy is weakness important? This episode reviews two Edinburgh Fringe shows - Beadledom's "Omega" and Chris Thorpe and Rachel Bagshaw's "The Shape of the Pain", under the topic of 'weakness' and 'story'. There are discussions of Simon Critchley, St Paul and Giorgio Agamben thrown in for good measure.
2017-08-2224 minStage BletherEpisode 21: A Monster CallsThis episode examines Patrick Ness' book "A Monster Calls", and J. A. Bayona's film adaptation, in the context of Jacques Derrida's "Work of Mourning".
**Spoiler alert: please do not listen if you are interested in reading the book or watching the film, and have not already done so.**
2017-01-1734 minStage BletherSeries 2, Episode 1: Amateur (Half) HourSeries 2 starts with a discussion of the 'amateur' in performance. How do we engage with amateur performances, and performers, in ways that do justice to their work without unfairly critiquing it? This episode includes a discussion of Bernard Stiegler, and a recent commemoration of the 1947 partitioning of India and Pakistan. References to the US elections are kept to a minimum.
2016-11-2633 min
State of the TheoryEpisode 24: CommemorationsThis is Episode 24 of the State of the Theory Podcast.
Politics. Power. Popular Culture. And other stuff, probably.
In this series, we’re like super nerdy philosophical DJs: mashing up Serious Academic Questions with the most topical news and trends in pop culture. Each week, we’ll tackle a new topic and collide it with ‘critical theory’ (we’re pretty loose with our definitions, though, so expect the unexpected). Our aim is to destroy the stuff we know, explore the stuff we don’t and unsettle everything we think we know about the world. We take the obvious, the commonsensical, the certain...
2016-07-1600 min