Shows
Talking Scared236 – Brian Keene & Living in the SplatterBrian Keene has written so many damn books!
…and I had never read any of them.
This absolute horror faux-pas (and my embarrassment) is the reason that it’s taken so long to get Brian on the show. But I set a week aside and read as many Keene books as I could and here we are… on a leisurely stroll through Brian’s life and career,both of which he has devoted to stories of really nasty s*** happening to undeserving people.
We talk abouthis bleak coming-of-age novel, Gh...2025-04-291h 19Talking Scared206 – Gabino Iglesias & Doing Really Bad Things for All the Right ReasonsSend us a textFinally, Gabino Iglesias is on the show. I tried, and failed, to get him for his break-out Stoker-winning smash, The Devil Takes You Home. Now he’s here to talk about his brand new barrio-noir, House of Bone and Rain. It’s an amalgamation of brutal street violence and Lovecraftian otherness – all taking place in the sweltering eye of a Puerto Rican hurricane. Gabino and I talk about the parts of the book that reflect his own life and youth. We talk about his rapid rise, and...2024-08-061h 23
Talking ScaredOff Book #2 – National Park After DarkSend us a textIn the second Off Book episode we get out of our armchairs and go on a real adventure. Well, not really – but we talk to two people who do. Danielle and Cassie are the hosts of National Park After Dark – a podcast catering to the “morbid outdoor enthusiast.” They have skyrocketed to success, with well-researches stories of murder, maulings and mad incidents out in the world’s national parks. I’ve listened for years now and I’m delighted to finally get the chance to ask them all the...2024-06-211h 10
School Reading ListEpisode 18 - BookTok: a blessing or a curse?School Reading List podcast hosted by Tom TolkienSeason 1: Episode 18For transcripts, resources, show notes and contact details, see https://schoolreadinglist.co.uk/podcasts/series-1-episode-18/Part 1Book postGigantosaurus – I Love Giganto by Cyber Group StudiosI Really, Really Need a Poo by Karl Newson and Duncan BeedieSammy and the Extra-Hot Chilli Powder by Charlie P. BrooksBronte Tempestra and the Lightning Steeds by Bex HoganFrank the Unicorn Alpaca by Gavin Puckett, illustrated by India JosephBlue’s Planet: Australia by Lucy McRobertThe Bad Ones by Melissa Albe...2024-02-2938 minSchool Reading ListEpisode 17 - Why school libraries are so importantSchool Reading List podcast hosted by Tom TolkienSeason 1: Episode 17For transcripts, resources, show notes and contact details, see https://schoolreadinglist.co.uk/podcasts/series-1-episode-17/Part 1Book postMeet the Wildlings by Gwen MillwardThe Best You by Nima PatelI Love You to the Moon and Back: All Year Long by Amelia HepworthNikhil and Jay by Chitra SoundarThe Shape of Rainbows by Neal ZetterDiamond Jack: Your Magic Or Your Life by Anna RainbowThe Floating Witch Mystery by Nicki ThorntonWinner Takes Gold by Eloise SmithBeastlands: Race...2024-02-0139 minTalking Scared135 – Victor LaValle & The Weird, Weird WestSend us a textWagons West this week, with a guest I’ve been trying to get on the show since the early days. It’s Victor Lavalle.I had always wanted to speak to him about The Ballad of Black Tom in the dream that we could join together to call Lovecraft names. As it turns out, that will have to wait, cos he’s brought out a brand-new novel … and it’s a Weird Western. Cue squealing!! It’s one of my favourite sub-genres.We talk about homesteading and wilderness, a...2023-03-211h 20Talking Scared115 – Andy Davidson & Ornate Maps of HellSend us a textThe last episode before Halloween and it’s suitably about my favourite book of the year: Andy Davidson’s The Hollow KindAndy is the Stoker-nominated author of In the Valley of the Sun and The Boatman’s Daughter. The Hollow Kind is his third book and it packs a lot into its 400 pages. It’s as dense and weighty as an imploding paper star. It’s a haunted house story (of sorts), a creature feature (of sorts) and a whole lot of Southern Gothic of many kinds. The prose is lu...2022-10-251h 14Talking Scared97 – A Monstrous Roundtable, with Ellen Datlow, Nathan Ballingrud, Chikodili Emelumadu & Joe R. LansdaleSend us a textThis week on Talking Scared it’s monsters all day, every day. To celebrate the release of Screams From the Dark: 29 Tales of Monsters and the Monstrous, we gather around the campfire with editor Ellen Datlow and three of her contributors – no less than Nathan Ballingrud, Chikodili Emelumadu and the great Joe R. Lansdale.As a result, this is not your average Talking Scared episode. There is interruption, overlap, argument much good humour. Amidst the chaos we still manage a fascinating conversation about the creatures that lurk in the...2022-06-211h 14
Sober Yoga GirlRegulating the Nervous System through Meditation: The Science behind Ancient Practices that work with Tom Cronin, Founder of The Stillness ProjectIn this episode Alex sits down with Tom Cronin, founder of the Stillness Project and producer of the Portal Film. Tom worked as a bond and stockbroker for 26 years. During this time, he suffered from a nervous breakdown from living in chronic stress with no coping skills. He discovered meditation, and used that to regulate his nervous system. Tom now teaches individuals all over the world the powerful meditation practices he learned, both online and at in person retreats. You can discover Tom's Youtube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcgcSsEfvssq4ty12aaaouw. He can also be found o...2021-12-1643 minTalking Scared04 - Jo Kaplan and What Makes a Great Haunted House?Send us a textThis week’s guest is up-and-coming horror extraordinaire, Jo Kaplan. Jo’s new haunted house novel, It Will Just Be Us is a tour-de-force of chills, thrills and things that kill. It’s got everything you could possibly want: creepy old house – check, mysterious locked room – CHECK, a witch who lurks in a swamp – CHECK!!!! It’s also got some of the best female relationships I’ve read in horror for a while, enough to pass the Bechdel test with flying colours.Jo and I talk about Freud’s uncanny and the infamous Winch...2020-09-2351 min