Shows
Our Scotland: A Fantasy 24 Hours in ScotlandS3E9 Exploring the rich history of The Machars - bookshop owner Jayne Baldwin on Wigtown and its surroundsWelcome to Our Scotland, the podcast where we take 24 hours in Scotland, add in teleportation, time travel and anything else we please to conjure up the day of our dreams.
My name is Alison Fraser and in this episode I’m joined by Jayne Baldwin, a bookseller, writer and publisher who lives in Dumfries and Galloway.
Jayne originally trained and worked as a journalist. She now brings those skills, researching and a nose for a good story, to her non fiction books. She says she’s fascinated by social history and although not an historian, she t...
2024-11-2551 min
Read On - The Audiobook Show from RNIBAriane Bankes, Irvine Welsh and Elizabeth Oldfield - Wigtown Book FestivalThis week on Read On we have three very different authors,
Ariane Bankes discovers her mother's and aunt's correspondence in The Quality of Love: Twin Sisters at the Heart of the Century, Irvine Welsh tells us about the third Ray Lennox book, Resolution, and Elizabeth Oldfield is Tending to the Soul in Turbulent Times in her book, Fully Alive.
All that plus some new books (including the new Sally Rooney) in the RNIB Library.
The image features elements associated with the Wigtown Book Festival
Top Left Corner: The book cover for The Q...
2024-11-0157 min
Read On - The Audiobook Show from RNIBCoinneach MacLeod, Pen Vogler and Julian Baggini - Wigtown Book FestivalThere's a food theme in this week's episode as we head to Wigtown to chat to The Hebridean Baker Coinneach MacLeod, food historian Pen Vogler on her books Scoff and Stuffed and philosopher Julian Baggini tells us How The World Eats. Plus we get the Books of Your Life from Gareth Brown and find new books in the RNIB Library.
The image used is a fun collage featuring moments from the Wigtown Book Festival, along with some of the authors and their works.
On the top left, there’s the festival’s lovely handwritten-style logo with litt...
2024-10-1857 min
comicdealer mini-podcastÜber den Tellerrand 34: Eine Reise nach Wigtown Teil 2Unsere Reise nach Wigtown, Schottland Teil 2. Diesmal treffen wir tatsächlich den Autor des wunderbaren "Tagebuch eines Buchhändlers". Inhabers des "The Bookshop" in der schottischen "Booktown". Wir bekommen ein Interview und haben eine trefflich schöne Zeit...
Hier der Link zur Seite von Shauns Buchhandlung
Und hier der Link zur Facebook Seite
Und für unsere wunderbaren Gastgeber aus Wigtown hier die Übersetzung in ein hoffentlich akzeptables Englisch:
"Hello everyone out there. Today I'm assuming that you are regular listeners. If not, you should definitely listen to last week's episode first. Last Friday we started taking you on a trip...
2024-08-1616 mincomicdealer mini-podcastÜber den Tellerrand 33: Eine Reise nach Wigtown Teil 1Unsere Reise nach Wigtown, Schottland zum Autor des wunderbaren "Tagebuch eines Buchhändlers" und Inhabers des "The Bookshop" in der schottischen "Booktown". Der erste Teil heute. Noch ohne Shaun Bythell, aber trotzdem mit jeder Menge Fantasy und Abenteuer. Und dem Wächter des Clan Hannay...
Hier der Link zur Seite der Clan Society
Und hier der Link zur Facebook Seite
Und für unsere wunderbaren Gastgeber aus dem Clan Hannay und unseren Freund Steve hier die Übersetzung in ein hoffentlich akzeptables Englisch:
"Hello everyone out there.
I've already taken you on a trip a few times. Today we're trying that agai...
2024-08-0918 min
Le bookclub du nerdLe libraire de Wigtown - Shaun Bythell : Le vrai quotidien d'un vendeur de livre en EcosseShaun Bythell est propriétaire d'une librairie dans à Wigtown, une petite ville d'Ecosse. Il tient un journal pour suivre l'évolution de la librairie au jour le jour, et décide de le publier, ce qui en fait un livre unique, dépaysant et très divertissant !Notes de l'épisode : Instagram : https://www.instagram.com/le_bookclub_du_nerd/LesLibraires (Affilié) : https://www.leslibraires.fr/livre/9782290170601/?affiliate=lebookclubdunerdAmazon (Affilié) : https://amzn.to/3X2pjFF
2024-05-2013 min
Read On - The Audiobook Show from RNIBNigel Planer, Kate Mosse and Rory Cellan-Jones - Wigtown Book FestivalThree more authors interviewed at the Wigtown Book Festival in this week's show. Ex-BBC technology correspondent, Rory Cellan-Jones tells Robert Kirkwood about his memoir Ruskin Park, we go swashbuckling with Kate Mosse and her book The Ghost Ship, and we time travel with actor and writer Nigel Planer as he tells us about Jeremiah Bourne in Time.Plus we find some new books entering the Talking Books Library.
2023-10-2057 min
Read On - The Audiobook Show from RNIBMaggie O'Farrell, Kathryn Harkup and Jo Caulfield - Wigtown Book FestivalIn a second visit this year to Wigtown, Robert Kirkwood talks to comedian Jo Caulfield about her moving memoir The Funny Thing About Death, we get poisons, monsters and some secret lairs in Kathryn Harkup's Superspy Science and we take a trip during the Italian Renaissance with Maggie O'Farrell and her book, The Marriage Proposal.
All that plus four new gems in the Talking Books library, one of which is narrated by Meryl Streep!
2023-10-1357 min
Read On - The Audiobook Show from RNIBWigtown Book Festival 2022In a packed show recorded on location at the Wigtown Book Festival, Robert Kirkwood chats to a whole host of writers, including three very different historians, Nick Jubber on the Fairy Tellers, Alex von Tunzelmann on toppled statues in Fallen Idols and Estelle Paranque on Fire, Blood and Gold - the relationship between Elizabeth I and Catherine de Medici.
There are some Wigtown natives ... we speak to storyteller Renita Boyle, and bookshop diarist Shaun Bythell.
Plus a trio of female Scottish writers, Olga Wojtas on Maria Blane's Prefect, Lynne McEwan on Dead Man Deep and In...
2022-10-0757 min
Got Books? Conversations with BooksellersS2 Ep 7: Christmas Special w. Shaun Bythell, The Bookshop (Wigtown, Scotland)Welcome back to Got Books, the podcast where we talk to booksellers from all around the world. And welcome to this short Christmas series, meant as a mini-Advent Calendar to get you in the holiday spirit. From Dec 3rd to Dec 17th, we'll be publishing an episode every Monday and Friday - that's 5 Christmas episodes for you, in which we're bringing back some of the booksellers that we know and love from past episodes, so they can tell us how they're preparing their bookshops for Christmas, what books to get for the special people in our lives, and what...
2021-12-1021 min
Read On - The Audiobook Show from RNIBWigtown Book Festival 2021Robert Kirkwood travels to a real life book festival for the first time in a few years!Read On this week was recorded on location at the Wigtown Book Festival and features...Booker Shortlisted author Graham Macrae Burnet on his new novel, Case Study (Starts at 1.56)Comedian Robin Ince on The Importance of being Interested (11.11)Girl on the Train author, Paula Hawkins on A Slow Fire Burning; (25.53)Autograph Hunter Adam Andrusier on Two Hitlers and a Marylin (31.41)We get the Books of My Life from literary editor of...
2021-11-051h 05
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastSame Page | Diverse Book Awards InterviewWe are joined by Abiola Bello and Helen Lewis from the Diverse Book Awards. They discuss how they started the awards in the middle of the pandemic, the challenges of running them and even a sneak peak of what to expect from Wigtown YA 2021.
2021-08-2628 min
Wigtown Book Festival Podcast31 Questions with Caleb Azumah NelsonCaleb Azumah Nelson, author of 'Open Water', answers 31 pressing questions for Same Page.
If you're not signed up for Same Page, here's the link: https://bit.ly/samepageya
2021-07-2811 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastWigtown: Inklings with 404 Ink and Katie GohWe go behind the scenes with publishers 404 Ink and their forthcoming new non-fiction series, Inklings. This conversation features founders Heather McDaid & Laura Jones, and author Katie Goh whose The End: Surviving the World Through Fictional Disasters will be one of the Inklings titles.
2021-04-0730 min
The Semper Reformata PodcastHistory Podcast - The Wigtown MartyrsThe Wigtown (or Solway) MartyrsAt Wigtown, (Dumfries and Galloway) two courageous women, Margaret Wilson and Margaret McLaghlin, were executed by drowning in the Solway Firth, for the crime of worshipping Christ, in accordance with His Word, without interference from the state. Presbyterian Covenanters, they worshipped God in the fields and hills, singing Psalms and listening to faithful preaching. But that broke the law, which required people to attend the services of the Curates and Priests and Bishops of the Episcopalian Orders. Along with many other faithful Christians the two Margarets paid the supreme price, rat...
2021-03-2616 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastWigtown: Steven LovattSometimes a book comes along that marries meaning, moment and enthusiasm with such force and beauty that it stops you in your tracks. Steven Lovatt’s Birdsong in a Time of Silence is such a book. Started as the world ground to a halt - its first page opens on 24th March 2020 - it charts the extraordinary days of the past year spent noticing the chorus around us, despite it all. A keen birder, Steven delves into the magic of birdsong and the places it can take us when we have too much time to dwell in the weeds and ma...
2021-03-2328 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastWigtown: Robert ShearmanAs an audio finale for Big Bang we present an interview with Robert Shearman, a man of many talents whose stellar writing career spans theatre, television, audio drama, novels and short fiction. We discuss Rob's forthcoming novel, a Doctor Who Target novelisation of 'Dalek', an episode, also written by Rob, that many Whovians will fondly remember from 2005.
We also talk about Rob's book We All Hear Stories in the Dark. A titanic triptych weighing in at 3 volumes and nearly 2,000 pages, it is a thing of intricate and labyrinthine beauty, a choose your own adventure which no two readers will ever...
2021-03-0740 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastBig Bang Stargazing: Orion and the Seven SistersAs a special extra for Big Bang, Wigtown's annual dark skies festival, Elizabeth Tindal, Freelance Ranger and Biosphere Dark Sky Ranger, will be talking us through her stargazing adventures in the Galloway Forest Dark Sky Park every evening at 8pm throughout the festival.
This podcast is about Orion and the story of the Seven Sisters.
2021-03-0606 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastBig Bang Stargazing: MarsAs a special extra for Big Bang, Wigtown's annual dark skies festival, Elizabeth Tindal, Freelance Ranger and Biosphere Dark Sky Ranger, will be talking us through her stargazing adventures in the Galloway Forest Dark Sky Park every evening at 8pm throughout the festival.
This podcast is about the winter circle of stars around Orion and where to find Mars. Mars is in a particular position at the moment and very easy to pick out.
2021-03-0608 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastBig Bang Stargazing: OrionAs a special extra for Big Bang, Wigtown's annual dark skies festival, Elizabeth Tindal, Freelance Ranger and Biosphere Dark Sky Ranger, will be talking us through her stargazing adventures in the Galloway Forest Dark Sky Park every evening at 8pm throughout the festival.
Tonight, Elizabeth talks to us about Orion.
2021-03-0406 minWigtown Book Festival PodcastBig Bang Stargazing: The Plough and the North StarAs a special extra for Big Bang, Wigtown's annual dark skies festival, Elizabeth Tindal, Freelance Ranger and Biosphere Dark Sky Ranger, will be talking us through her stargazing adventures in the Galloway Forest Dark Sky Park every evening at 8pm throughout the festival.
Tonight, Elizabeth talks to us about the Plough and the North Star.
2021-03-0307 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastBig Bang: Introduction to Stargazing with Elizabeth TindalAs a special extra for Big Bang, Wigtown's annual dark skies festival, Elizabeth Tindal, Freelance Ranger and Biosphere Dark Sky Ranger, will be talking us through her stargazing adventures in the Galloway Forest Dark Sky Park every evening at 8pm throughout the festival.
Listen to Elizabeth's introduction to find out a few stargazing tips and some recommendations on what to take with you. Then join us tomorrow (3 March) for Episode 1 of Big Bang Stargazing.
2021-03-0205 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastWigtown: Sara BaumeWe chat with writer and visual artist Sara Baume about her third book, handiwork. Just last week shortlisted for the prestigious Rathbones Folio Prize, it is a contemplative short narrative that charts Sara's daily process of making and writing, exploring what it is to create and to live as an artist. Short and spare, gentle and devastating, handiwork reflects on the nature of art, grief, bird migration and a life lived well.
2021-02-1732 min
Got Books? Conversations with BooksellersS1 Ep. 1: Shaun Bythell, The Bookshop (Wigtown, Scotland)This is the first episode of Got Books?, a podcast for those who love getting lost in (and among) books. For those who appreciate the comfort of a bookshop, the smell of a new book and the story of an old one. It's a podcast with those making this possible: the booksellers. We will be interviewing bookshop owners all around the world and for our very episode we travelled to Scotland.
In the south-west parts of Scotland lies Wigtown, a small town where 1,000 people live and 10,000 visit every year. Wigtown is Scotland’s National Booktown, a title won...
2021-01-3144 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastWigtown: Burns Night with Gerard Carruthers and Gerda StevensonOn this episode we’re joined by two special guests well-acquainted with the life and work of Robert Burns in a special episode for Burns Night 2021.
Professor Gerard Carruthers is Francis Hutcheson Chair of Scottish Literature at the University of Glasgow where he’s leading on a major project 'Editing Robert Burns for the 21st Century'. He’s General Editor of the new Oxford Collected Works of Robert Burns, Co-Director of the Centre for Robert Burns Studies and also secretary of the Robert Burns Ellisland Trust. In our conversation with Gerry he tells us more about Burns and Dumfries and how we...
2021-01-2436 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastWigtown: Jenny ColganOn this, the last episode of 2020, we look back at podcasts past to pluck out some books for your reading future. And for Christmas present, we chat with New York Times bestselling author Jenny Colgan about piano playing, Christmas traditions around the world and her return to the island of Mure for ‘Christmas at the Island Hotel’, a heartwarming new novel celebrating the season and Scotland.
2020-12-1427 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastWigtown: Polly PullarThis episode features the wonderful Polly Pullar. No stranger to Wigtown Book Festival audiences as one of our wonderful chair people, the tables are turned here as we hear about Polly’s life and work as a wildlife rehabilitator and journalist - Perthshire’s own Dr Doolittle. In this conservation, Polly tells us about a childhood spent in thrall to nature, introduces us to some of her menagerie and stars of her books, including A Scurry of Squirrels - Nurturing the Wild, due out in July, rewilding, the joys of nature during lockdown, and all other times too.
2020-12-0728 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastWigtown: Douglas StuartThis episode features the entire event from this year’s Wigtown Book Festival with chair Lee Randall in conversation with author Douglas Stuart, who was announced last week as the winner of the 2020 Booker Prize for his novel Shuggie Bain.
2020-11-2752 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastHighlights: Nicola Yoon and Alastair McIntoshOn this episode we continue our series of highlights from this year’s festival with two very different authors who are united in emphasising the importance of promoting healthy relationships between us. The ways in which we relate to the world and to the people in our community has been drawn into stark relief this year and bestselling YA author Nicola Yoon and the pioneering campaigner and author Alastair McIntosh take very different approaches to exploring the best ways we can relate to our environment, to our community and to ourselves.
2020-11-1732 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastHighlights: Michael Longley and Jan CarsonOn this episode we revisit two very special events from this year's festival, featuring two of Northern Ireland’s finest exports, poet Michael Longley and novelist Jan Carson. Listen to the short story 'Soup' which Jan reads in its entirety and hear edited highlights from Michael Longley's conversation with diplomat, author and fellow Belfastian William D. Hanna.
2020-11-1034 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastHighlights: Kate Humble and Simon ConwayOn this episode we feature more edited highlights from this year's Wigtown Book Festival with excerpts from our events with wildlife TV presenter and author Kate Humble and former British Army officer, international aid worker and spy thriller writer Simon Conway.
2020-11-0335 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastHighlights: Peter Ross and Alice TarbuckOn this episode we hear about witches and graveyards with authors Alice Tarbuck and Peter Ross who discuss their books A Spell in the Wild: A Year (and six centuries) of Magic and A Tomb with A View: The Stories and Glories of Graveyards with Hannah Trevarthen and Dani Garavelli. You can buy copies of these from our website https://bookshop.wigtownbookfestival.com
2020-10-2732 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastHighlights: Maggie O'Farrell and Dara McAnultyIn the first podcast of edited highlights from this year's Wigtown Book Festival we feature two award winning authors whose very different books look at our interconnected lives.
Conservationist and nature writer Dara McAnulty, winner of the Wainwright Prize at the age of just 16, talks to Rachel Plummer about his book Diary of a Young Naturalist.
Multi-award winning author Maggie O’Farrell speaks to Stephanie Merritt about her fictional account of Shakespeare's son, the eponymous Hamnet, who died at the age of 11 in 1596.
2020-10-2036 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastWigtown: Susie DentOn this episode Jessica Fox speaks to etymologist and lexicographer Susie Dent ahead of the publication of her new book Word Perfect, a brilliant linguistic almanac full of unforgettable true stories tied to every day of the year.
2020-10-1327 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastFestival 2020 Day 11: Wilde at Heart with Matthew Sturgis and Sally ReesThis episode continues our celebration of the legendary Oscar Wilde with Matthew Sturgis, the author of acclaimed biography Oscar: A Life, and Sally Rees, a teacher and festivals organiser in Enniskillen who offers her unique insights into the world of Wilde.
2020-10-0434 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastFestival 2020 Day 10: Wilde at Heart with Rupert EverettOn this episode we feature actor, director and author Rupert Everett for a very special chat with Wigtown favourite Lee Randall. In his highly anticipated third memoir, Rupert Everett tells the story of how he set out to make a film of Oscar Wilde's last days, and how that ten-year quest almost destroyed him.
2020-10-0328 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastFestival 2020 Day 9: Featherston Book TownOn today's episode we're teaming up with our sister book town, Featherston, to celebrate all things New Zealand. Featherston became a full member of the International Organisation of Booktowns two years ago in 2018 and so we’re taking the opportunity to present an episode with a distinctive New Zealand flavour. We talk to the former poet laureate of New Zealand, Selina Tusitala Marsh, about what life was like as a poet laureate and how poetry found her. We discuss what it's like to teach a course on Scottish crime fiction in New Zealand and find out more about a Dunedin-James Ho...
2020-10-0254 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastFestival 2020 Day 8: Reading Luis Sagasti and Alycia Pirmohamed with Open BookClaire Urquhart and Marjorie Lotfi Gill from shared reading charity Open Book present the second of their two Wigtown Book Festival takeovers. On this episode they discuss an excerpt from the book A Musical Offering by Luis Sagasti and the poem 'Hinge' by Alycia Pirmohamed.
You can read along with each of the readings by having a look at Open Book's special Wigtown newsletter bit.ly/WigtownOpenBook - and do come along to Luis Sagasti's digital event at 1700 on Saturday http://bit.ly/WigtownOpenLS or catch up with Alycia's event from Sunday 27th: bit.ly/WigtownOpenAP
Find out more about...
2020-10-0136 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastFestival 2020 Day 7: Year of Coasts and Waters Part IIIn the second of our two episodes dedicated to Scotland’s Year of Coasts and Waters, we speak to former coastguard Tony Wood about his experience working on the Solway, to author Donald S Murray about his forthcoming book on lighthouses and his many works that have focused on the sea, and we feature two poems about the sea by poet Marjorie Lotfi Gill.
2020-09-3039 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastFestival 2020 Day 6: Robyn Marsack and Yvonne Ridley2020 is a year of literary anniversaries. As well as the 250th anniversary of James Hogg, which we featured a few episodes ago, it also marks the 100th anniversary of Scotland’s first Makar, or National Poet, Edwin Morgan. We talked to Robyn Marsack, the chair of StAnza, Scotland’s Poetry Festival and a trustee of the Edwin Morgan Trust about the work they do and she reflects on Edwin Morgan’ legacy as a poet and as a translator.
The spectre of Scotland’s other national bard, Robert Burns, burns brightly in a new Young Adult series set around a time travelli...
2020-09-2934 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastFestival 2020 Day 5: Reading 'Pigeon' and 'Meditation While Plaiting My Hair' with Open BookClaire Urquhart and Marjorie Lotfi Gill from shared reading charity Open Book present the first of two Wigtown Book Festival takeovers this week, focusing on authors who feature in our programme. In this special podcast version of one of their sessions, they read and discuss an excerpt from the essay 'Three Meditations on Absence in Nature and Life' by Chitra Ramaswamy and the poem 'Meditation While Plaiting My Hair' by Alycia Pirmohamed.
You can read along with each of the readings by having a look at their special Wigtown newsletter at http://bit.ly/WigtownOpenBook - and do come along...
2020-09-2830 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastFestival 2020 Day 4: Year of Coasts and Waters Part IIn the first of two episodes dedicated to Scotland's Year of Coasts and Waters we talk to writer Vicky Allan and photographer Anna Deacon, whose book Taking the Plunge is dedicated to the joys of wild swimming. We also include readings from three of the brilliant local poets - Celia Donovan, Fiona Lindsay and Peter Roberts - who have been featured in Hugh McMillan’s daily spotlight on our website during the Festival.
2020-09-2732 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastFestival 2020 Day 3: Libraries of the Future and the UnheardWe talk to Katie Paterson, the artist behind the Future Library, a public artwork that aims to collect an original work by a popular writer every year from 2014 to 2114. The works will remain unread and unpublished until 2114. One thousand trees were specially planted for the project.
We also talk about The Dark Outside, a project that broadcasts hitherto unheard sounds and music in the middle of a forest. The person behind this marvellous project is Stuart McLean, who also happens to be our sound artist in residence this year. We find out more about this thrilling aural adventure.
2020-09-2640 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastFestival 2020 Day 2: The Whole HoggThis year, 2020, is the 250th anniversary of the birth of the remarkable Scottish author James Hogg. To mark this we’ve decided to dedicate an episode to the Ettrick Shepherd himself, author of the celebrated novel The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner but also a subtle and multifaceted writer whose other work occasionally gets overlooked. We talk to Valentina Bold, a Hogg expert, as well as two authors who have been influenced by James Hogg in their work — James Robertson and Graeme Macrae Burnet.
2020-09-251h 00
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastFestival 2020 Day 1: Shaun BythellWe'll be releasing a daily podcast during the 2020 Wigtown Book Festival and as this is our first day, here's the first podcast! In this very special episode we're featuring our first online event with Wigtown's very own Shaun Bythell. Usually you have to watch these events on our website wigtownbookfestival.com or on our YouTube channel, but as a special treat we present Shaun and the marvellous Lee Randall in conversation in their audio-only glory!
2020-09-2455 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastWigtown: Astrid Jaekel and Ken IlgunasThis week has a distinctive Wigtown theme as we feature Astrid Jaekel and Ken Ilgunas, a married couple who met at the Festival and who have both featured prominently over the past few years.
Astrid Jaekel is an artist and illustrator. Her project to wallpaper the buildings of Wigtown, 'If These Walls Could Talk', which celebrated the 20th anniversary of the Book Town, was the winner of the 2019 AOI World Illustration Awards. We are celebrating her contribution to the Festival with a retrospective of her many works with us over the years.
Ken Ilgunas first came to Wigtown to present...
2020-09-2235 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastWigtown: Dean Atta and Sam BakerThis week’s episode features Dean Atta and Sam Baker, two authors who have recently moved to Scotland, and whose very different books are united in looking at the potentially liberating possibilities of change in our lives.
Dean Atta was named as one of the most influential LGBT people in the UK by the Independent on Sunday and his debut novel The Black Flamingo was awarded the 2020 Stonewall Book Award. Told through verse, it is a bold coming of age story which follows a mixed-race gay teen as he begins to accept his identity.
Sam Baker is a journalist, broadcaster, and...
2020-09-1539 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastWigtown: Andy MillerAndy Miller is one of the hosts of Backlisted, a podcast which gives new life to old books. It features a guest (usually a writer) who has chosen a book they love and which they think deserves a wider audience. Author of The Year of Reading Dangerously, Andy is a fantastic ambassador for reading more diversely and boldly and it was a delight to speak to him for this episode.
2020-09-0829 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastWigtown: Previewing this year's Wigtown Book FestivalWe talk to our Operations Director, Anne Barclay, and our Artistic Director, Adrian Turpin, about what to look forward to at this year's digital incarnation of the Wigtown Book Festival including our involvement in the Reading is Magic festival and a special premiere from Alexander McCall Smith. Our official launch is on Wednesday 2 September - find out more on our website https://www.wigtownbookfestival.com/
2020-09-0122 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastWigtown: Maisie Chan and Jenni FaganOn this episode we speak to two recent recipients of the Gavin Wallace Fellowship, a prestigious award aimed at allowing established writers the opportunity to work creatively with an organisation based in Scotland.
Maisie Chan, author of Stories From Around the World and The Legend of Hua Mulan, is this year’s Gavin Wallace Fellow based at the National Centre for Children's Literature at Moat Brae in Dumfries. She tells us about her plans for the fellowship and how her early experiences of reading influenced her decision to become a writer.
Jenni Fagan is an award winning novelist and poet, an...
2020-08-1032 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastWigtown: Philip ArdaghWinner of the Roald Dahl Funny Prize, Philip Ardagh is a prolific writer of adult and children's fiction and non-fiction and towers over us mere mortals at over 2 metres tall. He often has trouble fitting into things designed for ordinary human beings - aeroplane seats, hotel beds and Wigtown Book Festival judges’ thrones. So it’s no surprise that we couldn’t fit him into our ordinary podcast— we had to dedicate an entire episode to the Great Ardagh himself.
2020-08-0333 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastWigtown: Kirstin Innes and Bernadette RussellOn this episode we feature two really important and timely books that take a look at activism and hope, and consider the effects of trying to work to change the world for the better.
Kirstin Innes discusses her phenomenal novel Scabby Queen, a tantalising portrait of a woman who defies the norms, painted in a half a century’s worth of memories from those whose life she touched.
Bernadette Russell talks about her upcoming book How to Be Hopeful: Your Toolkit to Rediscover Hope and Help Create a Kinder World. Filled with cutting-edge research, timeless philosophy and tales of triumph ov...
2020-07-2730 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastWigtown: Shoo Rayner, Heather Parry and Jules DanskinWe talk to an inspiring illustrator whose YouTube videos have taught millions to draw and to two editors who feature a guest illustrator for every issue of their literary magazine.
Children's author and illustrator Shoo Rayner, a firm festival favourite, talks about how he learned to tell a story through pictures, his evolution as a writer, the glorious Wigtown Sketchbook and how he developed a substantial following on YouTube, as well as some exciting new projects he has in store.
Literary editors Heather Parry and Jules Danskin discuss the second issue of their magazine Extra Teeth, which has been delayed...
2020-07-2030 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastWigtown: Kirsty Logan, Robin Ince and Rev Richard ColesOn this episode we delve into the world of horror, taking a look at the classic 70s film The Wicker Man and talking with someone whose latest short story collection is currently being considered in Hollywood. What is the appeal of horror? Why has it increased in popularity during lockdown? Why do we tell stories about ghosts? In this episode we will try to find out.
Award winning novelist and short story writer Kirsty Logan tells us why Things We Say In The Dark, her latest collection, is darker and more horror inspired than her previous work. She also talks...
2020-07-1330 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastWigtown: Dan Richards and the Cochranes of The Old Bank BookshopOn this episode we talk to Dan Richards about his book Outpost. He tells us about his journeys to far flung areas of the world and the adventures he got up to on the way including spending time in haunted sæluhús (houses of joy)in Iceland, attempting to get to a Mars camp in Utah and retracing Jack Kerouac’s 1956 journey to Desolation Peak.
We also talk to Joyce and Ian Cochrane about the wonderful Old Bank Bookshop in Wigtown, about the story of how they came to run the shop and what plans they have coming out of l...
2020-07-0631 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastWigtown: Val McDermid, Jo Sharp and Hugh McMillanOn this episode we feature Imagine a Country: Ideas for a better future, the brainchild of crime writer Val McDermid and Jo Sharp, a geography professor at St Andrews University. Starting off as a discussion over a glass of wine at last year's Edinburgh International Book Festival, they've asked from people from all walks of life to ponder the possibilities of life, work, love, and a whole lot more, in a future Scotland.
We also chat to Festival favourite Hugh McMillan. A former history teacher and accomplished poet, Hugh talks to us about some of his past, present and future...
2020-06-2931 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastWigtown: Shaun Bythell and Renita BoyleIn this episode we come home and feature two fabulous authors who live in Wigtown.
Shaun Bythell is the author of the internationally successful books Diary of a Bookseller and Confessions of a Bookseller. We ask him about the recent new diary extracts he has written for our website, as well as getting a sneak peek of a new book due out this autumn.
Renita Boyle is our Storyteller in Residence and she joins us to tell us all about Friday Funky Folk and Fable Fridays that take place every Friday and also Tuck in Tales that launches next month...
2020-06-2231 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastWigtown: Nadine Aisha Jassat and Kevin BarryIn this episode of the Wigtown Book Festival podcast we catch up with poet Nadine Aisha Jassat and novelist and short story writer Kevin Barry.
Nadine Aisha Jassat talks about her unique experience of lockdown as she was taking part in the Edinburgh International Book Festival's Outriders Africa project. She also discusses her debut collection, Let Me Tell You This, and talks about a future piece of work which she is writing as part of her Scottish Book Trust New Writer's Award.
Longlisted for last year's Booker Prize, Kevin Barry first attended the Wigtown Book Festival in 2012. He chats to...
2020-06-1531 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastWigtown: Michèle Roberts, Jenny Brown and Francis BickmoreOn this episode we consider different aspects of the publishing world— from the perspective of an author, an agent and a publisher.
Author Michèle Roberts discusses her new book Negative Capability, a candid and refreshing honest diary of a year in which she delves into the daily world of an artist and explores the relationships with her agent and publisher following their rejection of her novel.
We also talk to two prominent figures in the Scottish literary scene, Jenny Brown of Jenny Brown Associates and Francis Bickmore, Publishing Director of Canongate Books, to get their insight into the publishing wor...
2020-06-0828 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastWigtown: Denise Mina and Simon StephensonOn this episode we speak to three very versatile guests whose careers have spanned various professions.
We chat to award-winning writer and former academic Denise Mina about her recent play Mrs Puntila and Her Man Matti, what it was like to choose a career as a crime fiction writer and her upcoming novels The Less Dead and Confidence.
We also talk to screenwriter and former doctor Simon Stephenson, whose novel Set My Heart To Five has been optioned by director Edgar Wright. He talks about how the novel is a love letter to the films he grew up watching...
2020-06-0133 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastWigtown: Roseanne Watt and Stephen RuttOn this episode we talk to poet and Wigtown Poetry Competition judge Roseanne Watt about what makes an interesting poetry submission. She also reads from her debut collection Moder Dy and tells us about how it marked a returning to the Shetlandic dialect of her childhood. For more info on the prize head to: https://www.wigtownpoetryprize.com
We also feature birder and naturalist Stephen Rutt, whose award-winning The Seafarers is out in paperback next month. He shares his passion for seabirds and also tells us a little about an exciting new project he's concocting with Wigtown Book Festival.
Music...
2020-05-2530 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastWigtown: Ghost lands, mostlyJoin us for a supernatual-themed edition of the podcast this week with host Peggy Hughes.
Karen Campbell discusses her new tale of the supernatural, "The Ghosts of Wigtown", which was written exclusively for the Wigtown Book Festival, and how it was inspired by her own research into the women who used to live here.
Edward Parnell talks about Ghostland, his moving exploration of what has haunted writers and artists such as M.R. James and W.G. Sebald. In particular he tells us about visiting the locations in Galloway where cult 70s horror film The Wicker Man was filmed.
And...
2020-05-1833 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastWigtown: The joy of PostWe talk to former Home Secretary Alan Johnson about his memoir Please Mister Postman, where he shares his experience as a postie and how the postal service has changed over the years. He also discusses his recent memoir on music, In My Life, and give us a flavour of his debut novel, Mascara.
Owner of the Wigtown Post Office, Mary Wallace, tells us the story of her journey back to Wigtown after a nursing career in Australia.
Award winning novelist Jan Carson is a dedicated user of the post to send new stories to readers near and far. She talks...
2020-05-1132 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastWigtown: The pull of home and the lure of the open roadIn this week's edition, we consider the pull of home and the lure of the open road.
Sara Maitland, author of The Book of Silence, joins us on the phone from her home in rural Galloway and talks about her unique experience of lockdown, her tips for thriving on your own and her upcoming story commissioned by the Festival.
Carys Davies discusses her transition from short story writer to novelist, muses on how contemporary events influence her work and talks about her latest novel, West, and her upcoming novel,The Mission House.
We share an excerpt from our #WigtownWednesday event...
2020-05-0429 min
Wigtown Book Festival PodcastWigtown: Exploring Digital FestivalsIn this pilot episode Peggy Hughes explores the world of literary festivals in lockdown. Critic, chair and programmer at Granite Noir Lee Randall shares her thoughts on how we are adapting to the new landscape with Wigtown Artistic Director Adrian Turpin. We also chat to Sasha de Buyl of the Cúirt International Festival of Literature, fresh from their very successful digital festival over the weekend. Check out their archive of events: https://www.cuirt.ie
Find out more about Wigtown Book Festival and our own regular events in lockdown at http://www.wigtownbookfestival.com
Incidental music by Ragland.
2020-04-2832 min
Read On - The Audiobook Show from RNIBThe Booker Prize 2019 and more from the Wigtown Book FestivalIn today's show we listen to the Booker winning audiobooks, 'Girl, Woman Other' by Bernardine Evaristo and 'The Testaments' by Margaret Atwood (Starts at 1.07)
Salman Rushdie tells us about the joint narratives of 'Quichotte' (13.02)
We return to the Wigtown Book Festival where founder of The Big Issue, Lord Bird, reveals how learning to read saved him from a life of crime. (28.02)
Journalist Melanie Reid discusses coming to terms with disability and recording her memoir as a Talking Book. (37.00)
And Professor Steve Jones shares some fascinating facts about the vital role the sun plays in our lives. (45.42)
2019-10-1857 min
Read On - The Audiobook Show from RNIBLive at the Wigtown Book Festival (2019)In a packed show Red Szell and Robert Kirkwood report from the Wigtown Book Festival with ...
Former Home Secretary Alan Johnson on his book, 'In My Life: A Musical Memoir' (Starts at 1.34)
Kerry Hudson on Lowborn (Down the Chipper) (7.00)
Shaun Bythell has some 'Confessions of a Bookseller' (13.41)
Sarah Jane Douglas treats illness and grief as 'Just Another Mountain' (21.08)
Chair of RNIB Scotland Sandra Wilson on sponsoring a Talking Book (25.03)
Music from, and chat with, The Bookshop Band (27.08)
We go 'Under the Wig' with William Clegg QC (36.00)
2019-10-0457 min
RamblingsWigtown, Dumfries and GallowayClare Balding walks the final part of the Whithorn Way with a local group of walking enthusiasts. It's an an an ancient pilgrim route from Glasgow down along the west coast ending at the holy site of St Ninian's Cave on the southern tip of the peninsula looking towards the Isle of Man. Pilgrims have been making the journey for centuries until they were banned from doing so after the Reformation during the 16th century, but the tradition has been revived and with the restoration of the walking route, more people are expected to do the 146 mile route through...
2018-10-1624 min
Read On - The Audiobook Show from RNIBLive at the Wigtown Book Festival (2018)With Red away in San Fransico this week, Robert Kirkwood recorded this packed show live on location at the Wigtown Book Festival and coming up today …
Robin Ince on a comedian's guide to what makes us human,
Broadcaster Sally Magnusson on her first novel and her links to Iceland,
Ann Cleeves on her last 'Shetland' book,
John Connell on his bestselling book about the humble cow,
William Davies on 'Nervous States,' a look at our new political reality,
Shaun Bythell on life at the Bookshop during th...
2018-10-0557 min
Damian Barr's Literary SalonEXCLUSIVE: Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon talks books with Damian Barr at WigtownThis intimate discussion made headlines around the world as Sturgeon revealed she's writing a diary which she may publish.
In an intimate conversation with Damian Barr she reveals the books that shaped her as a person and a politician, from Lewis Grassic Gibbon's 'Sunset Song' to 'The Colour Purple' by Alice Walker, and recommends some reading for President Trump.
Recorded live at Wigtown Book Festival in September 2018. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2018-09-2557 minThe Literary SalonEXCLUSIVE: Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon talks books with Damian Barr at WigtownThis intimate discussion made headlines around the world as Sturgeon revealed she's writing a diary which she may publish.
In an intimate conversation with Damian Barr she reveals the books that shaped her as a person and a politician, from Lewis Grassic Gibbon's 'Sunset Song' to 'The Colour Purple' by Alice Walker, and recommends some reading for President Trump.
Recorded live at Wigtown Book Festival in September 2018. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2018-09-2557 min
Science(ish)Gattaca – Live from The Wigtown Book Festival, Series 2 Episode 7To celebrate the release of the Science(ish) book, Rick and Michael travel to the Wigtown Book Festival in Scotland to record a special live episode on dystopian classic 'Gattaca'. Are we more than our genes? Can they predict our future? And should we use genetic technology to create the perfect human?
This episode features; Professor Steven Rose and Professor Peter Singer.
https://radiowolfgang.com/s/scienceish
2017-10-061h 00
Radio WigtownRadio Wigtown Podcast - Skye Loneragan Writer in ResidenceWriter in Residence, Skye Loneragan, has been standing at the Edge of the Impossible Rim, where she's been connecting across distances.
2016-10-0323 minRadio WigtownRadio Wigtown Podcast - Kate Timney Artist in ResidenceInside this year's Artist in Residence Kate Timney's workshop where she has been running printing workshops.
2016-10-0307 minRadio WigtownRadio Wigtown Podcast - Charlotte McDonald-GibsonCharlotte McDonald-Gibson has covered the global refugee crisis for many years. In Cast Away: Stories of Survival from Europe's Refugee Crisis she tells the personal stories of five refugees.
2016-10-0108 minRadio WigtownRadio Wigtown Podcast - Childrens FestivalChildren's author Philip Ardagh is a popular and regular feature at the Children's Festival at the Wigtown Book Festival. He's got a new collaborator: illustrator and author Elissa Elwick. And a new pet: Leafy.
2016-10-0108 minRadio WigtownRadio Wigtown Podcast - Kathy Agnew Peter PanKathy Agnew from the Peter Pan Moat Brae Trust explains how the house in Dumfries that inspired JM Barrie's Peter Pan is being given a new lease of life to inspire children's literature.
2016-10-0107 minRadio WigtownRadio Wigtown Podcast - Kathy Agnew DG UnlimitedKathy Agnew explains how DG Unlimited is helping the arts throughout Dumfries and Galloway.
2016-10-0104 minRadio WigtownRadio Wigtown Podcast - Cally Phillips"When he grips you, he never lets go," author Cally Phillips says of 19th Century Galloway writer SR Crockett. "It's Boys' Own stuff," she tells the Wigtown Book Festival, adding he's "more readable" than Sir Walter Scott and Robert Louis Stevenson.
2016-10-0105 minRadio WigtownRadio Wigtown Podcast - Anna PasternakSix years ago Anna Pasternak came to Wigtown Book Festival to talk about her famous great uncle - Boris Pasternak, author of Dr Zhivago. She revealed she was writing a book about the real life inspiration between his nobel prize winning novel. Anna said when she'd finished it she would come back. She did. Her book is called Lara - and it promises to be a gripping and revealing tale.
2016-10-0107 minRadio WigtownRadio Wigtown podcast - WTF festival DOROTHY RAYNERDorothy Rayner is a volunteer @WigtownBookFest. Her real job is in a Stately home where she's a Furniture and Textiles Conservator. Dorothy joined the WTF team to talk about how she got her job and what she does. Some of the WTF team would like to follow in her footsteps!
2016-10-0106 minRadio WigtownRadio Wigtown podcast - Peggy Hughes talks to Shelly DayPeggy Hughes chats to Shelley Day about her first novel - The Confession of Stella Moon. Fresh out of the McNeillie Tent where the audience were treated to tea and cakes they talked about Stella Moon and also Shelley's many different lives before writing her novel.
2016-10-0108 minRadio WigtownPaul MacAlindin Podcast TXConducter Paul MacAlindin tells the story of the National Youth Orchestra of Iraq founded by Zuhal Sultan in his book Upbeat.
2016-10-0110 minRadio WigtownRadio Wigtown Podcast - Polly PullarPolly Pullar is a writer, photojournalist and field naturalist. As well as hosting events @WigtownBookFest she is helping to organise a new book festival later this month in Mallaig @WriteHoolie. Pauline Moore caught up with her between events to find out more about A Write Highland Hoolie.
2016-10-0108 minRadio WigtownRadio Wigtown Podcast - Kevin MacNeilLewis author Kevin MacNeil talks about how his island upbringing has been integral to his writing.
2016-10-0106 minRadio WigtownHardeep Singh Kohli cooks dinnerThis year's festival guest director Hardeep Singh Kohli is no stranger to a kitchen. The broadcaster, columnist and chef prepared a meal for Dinner with Juno Dawson at the Old Manse. It was in aid of www.fighforsight.org.uk. Pauline Moore tracked him down mid prep for a chat.
2016-10-0112 minRadio WigtownJames Hanratty Podcast TXImmigration is one of the most contentious issues in Britain. And every immigrant who comes to the UK has a personal story. Some stories are heartbreaking. Some, on the other hand, are a pack of lies. For 16 years retired judge James Hanratty tried to ascertain the truth in court.
2016-09-3015 minRadio WigtownRadio Wigtown Podcast - Mapping ScotlandMaps are stories that aren't always true. They're sometimes deceits that need to be unravelled, the Geographer Royal for Scotland tells the Wigtown Book Festival. Prof Charles Withers from the University of Edinburgh has been mapping Scotland's islands along with Christopher Fleet from the National Library of Scotland.
2016-09-3016 minRadio WigtownJennifer Morag Henderson Podcast TXSir John Gielgud launched himself onto the theatrical stage in Richard of Bordeaux written by Inverness crime wirter and playwright Josephine Tey. Jennifer Morag Henderson tells the story of this private and even mysterious mystery writer.
2016-09-3005 minRadio WigtownJason Lewis Podcast TXExplorer Jason Lewis is the first person to circumnavigate the world using only human power: walking, cycling, swimming, kayaking... anything that didn't involve motors or sails. He tells Radio Wigtown that "human power keeps you close to the planet and people."
2016-09-3016 minRadio WigtownRadio Wigtown Podcast - Lord Baker"If you start by burning books, you end up burning people," Kenneth Baker quotes Heinrich Heine as he charts the history of burning books from Qin Shi Huang to Oliver Cromwell and Adolf Hitler.
2016-09-3013 minRadio WigtownRadio Wigtown Podcast - Sian EvansSian Evan's book QUEEN BEES is the story of six remarkable society Hostesses who came into their own between the wars. Not only did they shake up Britain's class and gender boundaries but they had an impact on history - from politics to royalty. Sian Evans is a cultural historian and she told Pauline Moore the story of two of these Queen Bees.
2016-09-2909 minRadio WigtownRadio Wigtown Podcast - Allison OuvreyAllison Ouvrey has just started people walking. She's also taking part in Of Mice and Men - a choral treatment of John Steinbeck's novel. Performances are at Unit 3, Bladnoch Bridge Estate. As she ambled with purpose around Wigtown she also told Pauline Moore about the innovation academy's This is Your Story on Friday night at the McNeillie Tent. And they also decided on the name of her new business venture!
2016-09-2915 minRadio WigtownRadio Wigtown Podcast - Adrian SykesAdrian Skyes was alarmed to discover that 23 % of Britons thought Churchill was fictional. There were many things which disturbed him about the lack of historical knowledge. He decided to tell the story of the British Isles through 3000 people through their innovations. Pauline Moore joined him on a bench at the bowling green to find out more about why he wrote 'They Made Great Britain'.
2016-09-2912 minRadio WigtownPeggy and Pauline Show (PPS) 28th September 2016Peggy Hughes ducks out of playing 'bubble' football because she's got her good shoes on. She also attempts some side line analysis of the WTF game, but doesn't know who's playing. All this and a look at what's been happening at the Festival and what's coming up.
2016-09-2913 minRadio WigtownPeggy and Pauline podcast Tuesday 27thThe Peggy and Pauline show is back. We are on the road, out and about so beware! As well as a look through today's events we discuss the presidential debate, last night's dinner cooked by Hardeep Singh Kohli with special guest Juno Dawson and speculate on Stuart Kelly's Literary Pub Quiz... and lots more.
2016-09-2717 minRadio WigtownRadio Wigtown Podcast - Nikolas LloydBowie or cyborg? YouTuber and historian Nikolas Lloyd, aka Lindybeige, explains how he and illustrator Chris Steininger chose to depict Hannibal in their forthcoming graphic novel In Search of Hannibal, which tells the story of the Punic general's war with Rome.
2016-09-2609 minRadio WigtownRadio Wigtown Podcast - Sir Malcolm RifkindSir Malcolm Rifkind talks about his memoir "Power and Pragmatism" at the Wigtown Book Festival.
2016-09-2510 minRadio WigtownRadio Wigtown Podcast - Claire FoxClaire Fox, Director of the Institute for Ideas, talks to Anne Brown at the Wigtown Book Festival on the importance of engaging with and talking to people one disagrees with.
2016-09-2516 min
Book TalkBookmarked: GiftED, Jenni Fagan, living in Wigtown and moreBookmarked is Scottish Book Trust’s latest podcast, bringing you a monthly dose of bookish action from all around Scotland. Each new episode is jam-packed with book news, interviews, readings, roundups and sneak previews.
Whether you are a staunch bookworm or looking for something new to get you stoked about reading, be sure to catch Bookmarked, hosted by Ryan Van Winkle, arriving for your listening pleasure in the first week of every month.
In our inaugural podcast, you’ll catch a behind-the-scenes tour of ‘GiftED’, the Edinburgh book sculptures exhibition currently touring Scotland; a catch-up with author, Wigtown resident and book...
2012-10-2430 min