Backstage at the Vinyl Cafe

“And then one night … there were shooting stars.”   Today on the pod, two stories set in Dave’s hometown of Big Narrows, Nova Scotia, stories where the grandparents step in to help, and to work their quiet magic. Ad-free listening is here! Listen to the pod ad-free and early, PLUS a whole bunch of other goodies – like virtual parties, Q&As, listener shout-outs & more. Subscribe h...

“It’s not clear who thought up the defibrillator” On today’s episode, we’re talking about community. We’ll play one of Stuart’s opening scripts, about an inspiring community project that we learned about on our travels with the Vinyl Cafe: The Smiths Falls Station Theatre. Plus, a Dave and Morley story about a more unusual type of community venture. Ad-free listening is here! Listen to the po...

"Galway began flushing the toilet again in the autumn…" For all you cat lovers out there, today is your day. Today on the show we’re all about our feline friends, with two hilarious stories about the cats in Dave & Morley’s neighbourhood. Ad-free listening is here! Listen to the pod ad-free and early, PLUS a whole bunch of other goodies – like virtual parties, Q&As, listener shout-out...

“It would work so much better if we could plug the toaster in at the table” Two of your most-requested Vinyl Cafe stories on this week’s show. Some vintage Stuart McLean, at your service!   Ad-free listening is here! Listen to the pod ad-free and early, PLUS a whole bunch of other goodies – like virtual parties, Q&As, listener shout-outs & more. Subscribe here:  apostrophe.superc...

You asked, we listened! So, this week on the pod, we’ve got two more of Stuart’s love letters to this country, what we call his Postcards from Canada. Ad-free listening is here! Listen to the pod ad-free and early, PLUS a whole bunch of other goodies – like virtual parties, Q&As, listener shout-outs & more. Subscribe here:  apostrophe.supercast.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/priva...

"He looked like a kid on a roller coaster. But not one of the happy ones.” On today’s episode, two stories about transportation—and what happens when it takes on a life of its own (with a little help from Dave of course…) Ad-free listening is here! Listen to the pod ad-free and early, PLUS a whole bunch of other goodies – like virtual parties, Q&As, listener shout-outs & more. Subscribe he...

“Bonjour,” he said. “Je m’appelle Dave.” Stuart loved Quebec and was proud to have grown up there. That influence is apparent in so many of his stories. We’ll play one of them today. Plus one of his Postcards from Canada, from Montreal. Ad-free listening is here! Listen to the pod ad-free and early, PLUS a whole bunch of other goodies – like virtual parties, Q&As, listener shout-outs & mor...

“It was a magnificent tree.” We’re thinking about our connection to the natural world on this week’s pod. We’ve got an essay from Stuart McLean about a Winnipeg tree that galvanized a community, and a story about a woodsman from Dave’s childhood in Cape Breton. Ad-free listening is here! Listen to the pod ad-free and early, PLUS a whole bunch of other goodies – like virtual parties, Q&As, list...

“It was Sam’s first year in high school. And it was not going well.” On today’s episode: two of Stuart McLean's hilarious Dave & Morley stories about the wonderful world of work. And Jess talks about her work on the Vinyl Cafe. Ad-free listening is here! Listen to the pod ad-free and early, PLUS a whole bunch of other goodies – like virtual parties, Q&As, listener shout-outs & more. Su...

“That afternoon, in his first true act of citizenship, Dave wore five lacy bras across the border.” This week is all about the relationship between Canada and the U.S. We’ve got a Dave & Morley story about crossing the border, plus Stuart’s essay from the Haskell Free Library and Opera house, that straddles the Canada U.S. border. An essay that has particular poignance today. Ad-free listening...

“There is nothing like a wedding to addle people’s minds.” Today on the pod we’re celebrating one of Stuart’s favourite stores: The good old hardware store. We’ve got two Dave & Morley stories to illustrate the point. Ad-free listening is here! Listen to the pod ad-free and early, PLUS a whole bunch of other goodies – like virtual parties, Q&As, listener shout-outs & more. Subscribe he...

“He wanted to be alone so he could try the beef-flavoured toothpaste” On this week’s episode: two fan favourites: stories about some of the sweetest characters in the Vinyl Cafe universe – the animals! Ad-free listening is here! Listen to the pod ad-free and early, PLUS a whole bunch of other goodies – like virtual parties, Q&As, listener shout-outs & more. Subscribe here:  apostrophe...

"It began simply enough. It began with a phone call." Stuart loved talking on the phone: much of his work revolved around phone calls. Jess talks about some of the memorable phone calls you may have heard on the Vinyl Cafe radio show over the years, plus we’ve got an essay Stuart wrote about his journalistic practice and a Dave and Morley story. Ad-free listening is here! Listen to the pod ad-free...

“What’s in a name? When it’s yours – a lot, apparently.” We’re talking about Canadian humour today on the podcast. We're following a thread back to Stephen Leacock and the ways in which he influenced Stuart McLean's writing. We have a Dave & Morley story for you, plus a postcard from Leacock’s hometown, which includes memories of Stuart's friend, the late CBC Radio host Peter Gzowski.&nbs...

“Dave’s relationship with hospitals over the years has not been without problems.” The two Stuart McLean stories on today’s episode are connected in a very cool way. Both contain secret shout outs to people Stuart loved. Jess tells the backstory behind the little easter eggs like this that Stuart occasionally hid. Ad-free listening is here! Listen to the pod ad-free and early, PLUS a whole bunch o...

“They tried to stop us, says the old man. But we kept playing.” We’re talking about winter sports on this week’s episode. We’ve got two stories about hockey – a Dave & Morley story and a listener story exchange. Plus, a back story from Jess about her personal connection to sportswriting and how that informed Stuart’s research for his hockey story. Ad-free listening is here! Listen to the...

Season 7 of Backstage at the Vinyl Cafe started last week, did you catch the first episode? We’ll be with you every Friday until the summer. Whoo!   And for those of you who have asked: Our friends at the Apostrophe Podcast Network are now offering a subscriber option. Subscribers listen to the pod ad-free –  zero ads  across the entire catalogue. Every week subscribers get the show...

“It was the greatest skate of her life.” Happy New Year! Welcome back to Backstage at the Vinyl Cafe! Light a fire, get a bowl of soup, and a cozy blanket and settle in, because we’re celebrating the season today on the show. We’ve got a story exchange for you, plus an essay Stuart wrote for the radio show about walking on ice. And we have a Dave and Morley story for you about their trip...

“Did you take the turkey out of the freezer?” For our last episode of the season – and our last before the Holidays – two Christmas classics! Plus, a beautiful, seasonal listener story from the Vinyl Cafe Story Exchange. For many of you, these Stuart McLean stories need no introduction, so grab a cup of egg nog, put your feet up and enjoy. Merry Christmas! Ad-free listening is here! Listen to the...

“First fires…. and then floods” On this week’s episode, two hilarious Stuart McLean stories about being out and about, Christmas visiting. Our first story is one that many of you may not have heard before, about Dave and Morley’s visit to the home of Stephanie’s boyfriend,Tommy. Tommy's parents are facing their own challenges with cooking the turkey. Jess shares a backstory about some of the chara...

“Eustache was bracing himself for a long and lonely Christmas” It’s December so we’re going the full festive from now until Christmas! This week, two classic Dave & Morley stories of seasonal shenanigans, plus a story exchange about a very special Christmas Eve.  Ad-free listening is here! Listen to the pod ad-free and early, PLUS a whole bunch of other goodies – like virtual parties, Q&a...

“Christmas in Dave’s record store is just plain fun” On today’s episode, Jess talks about the challenges of trying to create Christmas magic when you’re not necessarily feeling it yourself. That’s a bit of the back story behind Stuart’s writing of “Dave Plays Santa” - we’ll play that story for you. And we’ve got another back story connected to “Dave Plays Santa”, which links to our second sto...

“Dave stared at the duck in disbelief. The duck stared back at him.” This week, we’re back talking about birds again, with two of Stuart McLean's hilarious stories about Dave and… poultry. Yes, this week’s theme is quite specific! Our first story is one you may not have heard before: Dave decides to try his hand at small-scale poultry farming… Ad-free listening is here! Listen to the pod ad-free a...

“Christmas Day is going to be a little strained in Dave’s neighbourhood this year.” Today on the pod we’re all about Vinyl Cafe: The Musical! To celebrate its premiere, Jess shares the story of how the musical came into being and the excitement of seeing it come to life. Plus, you can hear one of the stories that inspired the musical in the first place. Vinyl Cafe: The Musical has been held over f...

“There’s something about the ghosts who live in the house where you live.” This week something special for Remembrance Day: an essay Stuart McLean wrote about George Lawrence Price, a Canadian soldier killed in the very last moments of the first world war. And we have two Vinyl Cafe stories for you: a wartime story exchange, and a Dave and Morley story where they learn about the life of someone wh...