Alternative Stories and Fake Realities

Send us Fan Mail 'Theatre Workshop or The Ballad of Ewan And Joan' tells the true story of Theatre Workshop, an innovative theatre and performance company and the individuals who founded and ran it from its formation in Manchester in the 1930s to its move to London in the 1960s including theatremaker and folk singer Ewan MacColl and actor, director Joan Littlewood.  Theatre Workshop is w...

Send us Fan Mail When Harry and Agnes Wells inherit an old house in Cornwall in the summer of 1999 they visit with the intention of renovating the building.  But as days pass they discover the house has some unexpected secrets.    The Angry House is an award-winning drama by novelist Thomas Wrightson. In 'The Angry House' by Thomas Wrightson you can hear: Charlie Richards as Harry Marie-...

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to a new mini series of the Alternative Stories and Fake Realities Podcast  This week we have short fiction from Welsh poet, novelist and short story writer Christopher Meredith.   The story you're about to hear is a seasonal piece set in the early 1960s in south Wales.  It's  called 'The Cavalry' and it's from Chris's brilliant collection &ap...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of the Alternative Stories podcast we're chatting with poet, novelist and audio drama writer Madeleine F White about the two books she is publishing in the first part of 2025; the poetry collection 'The Horse and The Girl' and the verse memoir 'Maiden Mother Crone'   We have a full length interview with Madeleine and excerpts from the colle...

Send us Fan Mail There are hundreds of Blue Plaques on buildings around London commemorating the famous people who lived there at some time in the building’s history .  But only one building has three plaques for three different people who lived in the building at the same time.  Chiltern Court on Baker Street was home to novelists HG Wells and Arnold Bennett and composer Eric Coates in the early...

Send us Fan Mail In this short episode Chris Gregory and Emily Inkpen introduce two new Alternative Stories audio drama series.   You can hear trailers for our two new shows Wasteland and Burnout which are both available on their own podcast platforms.  To listen to Wasteland you can search "Wasteland A Dex Legacy Story" wherever you listen to podcasts or you can click here to find it ht...

Send us Fan Mail In orbit around our planet, an alien creature is listening in on Earth noise.  One sound in particular seems to have a greater significance than others but what does it mean and how will Skim and Beta find out more about it?  In our final Alternative Stories episode of 2024 we are bringing you the winner of the 2024 Pen to Print Audio Play Competition “The Earth Serenades” by Emma...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode we look at the world of gaming and discuss the many and varied storytelling styles and approaches within games.  Our guests are games industry expert, actual-play podcaster and author Oscar Clark and novelist, audio drama author and game writer Emily Inkpen. If you would like to watch a video version of this conversation you can find it on the Alternative Stories Y...

Send us Fan Mail In this bonus episode of the podcast we are looking at the Script Club New York City production of  "The Out-Of-Towners Club", an adapted version of an audio drama that originally ran on this podcast back in 2019. In our interview you can hear Script Club NYC members Jackie Jorgenson, Roger Lipson, Alex Highsmith and Jess Thompson talking about their roles in the upcomin...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode we are introducing another Alternative Stories podcast you may enjoy.  The Writers' Gym features Chris Gregory, Dr Rachel Knightley and Emily Inkpen and each week we discuss a different writing topic.  Whether you are a writer yourself or simply interested in books and writing you'll find plenty to enjoy.  Covering novels, short fiction, scripts, screenpl...

Send us Fan Mail The Bone Diver is the latest novel from Chicago born novelist Angie Spoto who now lives in Edinburgh.  Telling the story of Keir, an expert diver who is unable to kill, The Bone Diver is a gothic tale of family, the legend of the selkies and a young woman who is offered an impossible choice. Readings from The Bone Diver are by Sophie Macnair. Find out more about Angie Spoto and bu...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode we chat with blogger, poet and freelance writer Alanna Duffield about her writing and the art of blogging.   With advice and thoughts on topics, style, frequency of posts and titles this not only a guide to getting started as a blogger but also an insight into Alanna's own creative practice.  We end with a look at Alanna's poetry. Throughout this episode...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode we chat with fantasy author Alethea Lyons about her series of novels and short stories called The Seer of York.  We look at the influences on Thea's writing including the folklore of the British Isles and the inspiration that the City of York has been on her world.   Along the way we hear excerpts from Alethea's writing read by Emily Inkpen Find out more...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode we share two short audio dramas by Nottingham based playwright and short fiction author Robbie Laughton. These were two of four plays we recorded with Robbie and our cast in August.  You can listen to our first podcast featuring Robbie's dramas "Hairy Fairy" and "Tormeted" which has since been featured on BBC Radio, here https://www.buzzspr...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode we chat with novelist, academic and short story writer Philippa Holloway about her new short fiction collection "Untethered" which was published last month by Parthian.   Along the way we hear excerpts from the collection performed by Emily Inkpen and Chris Gregory.   In this podcast you heard excerpts from the following stories  A Cloud of Starlings - re...

Send us Fan Mail In this episodes we share a short series of monologues written by Stella Klein and performed by members of the Alternative Stories acting team.  Stella Klein is a London-based writer of very short stories and occasional poems. Her flash and micro fiction has appeared in print and online collections published by Fish, 101 Words, Spread the Word, FlashBack Fiction, Flash Fiction Mag...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode we chat with fantasy author Alexandra Beaumont about her new novel Dissonance of Birdsong (Brigids Gate Press 2024) Alexandra Beaumont is a fantasy author and folklorist whose debut novel "Testament of the Stars" was also featured on this podcast.  Her latest book, Dissonance of Birdsong draws on the folklore and landscape of Cornwall. You can listen to o...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of the podcast, recorded on a walk in The Welland Valley in eastern Leicestershire Chris Gregory is in conversation with novelist, poet and journalist Tim Relf.  Tim writes fiction under the name T.R. Richmond and his novel "What She Left" is published by Penguin. In this podcast you can hear three poems Scrambler by Tim relf read by Jackie Jorgenson Blac...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode we share two short audio dramas by Nottingham based playwright and short fiction author Robbie Laughton. These were two of four plays we recorded with Robbie and our cast in August and we'll be sharing the other two and more about Robbie in a forthcoming episode Hairy Fairy Big Dean is preparing for his release from prison while on the streets of the city a my...

Send us Fan Mail Today we’re sharing an interview with novelist, short story writer and award winning audio drama script writer, Emily Inkpen.    You can back our kickstarter to make season 3 of The  Dex Legacy Season here https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/emilyinkpen/the-dex-legacy-science-fiction-audio-drama-season-3 If you’d like to see a video version of this interview you can find it on th...

Send us Fan Mail In this edition we chat with author Lyndsey Croal about her new and acclaimed short fiction collection “Limelight”,  We are also joined by Limelight’s publisher Alan Lastufka from Shortwave Publishing for a conversation about the topics covered in the collection, Lyndsey’s writing and inspiration and the world of indie publishing.  The podcast includes excerpts from Limelight.   ...

Send us Fan Mail In this bonus episode we have an interview with the writer of our audio drama Winter Spring, Dr Rachel Knightley.  Rachel talks with co-director Emily Inkpen about the inspiration for her story and the joy of bringing it to life in the studio.     This interview was recorded at Orpheus Studio in London by Richard Campbell.    If you would like to find out more about Rachel Knightl...

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to Season 8 of the Alternative Stories and Fake Realites Podcast.  Our new season begins with Winter Spring, an audio drama by Dr Rachel Knightley.    Alice Winter, her brother Ash Winter and cousin Harris Spring are the third generation of a family property company, founded by their German immigrant grandfather who taught them the one thing the world would always need was...

Send us Fan Mail In this edition of the podcast we're chatting with writer, folklorist and historian Amy Boucher about plans for more from the world of her folk horror audio drama The Best of Men which was originally broadcast on this podcast.    If you would like to find out more about the project to make season 2 of The Best of Men and to pledge your support to the project via our kickstart...

Send us Fan Mail Following the loss of her father,  Margo is trying to come to terms with bereavement and the unkindness of her classmates at school when she begins to experience some strange encounters.  In this moving drama by Gemma Johnson, performed by members of the Creative Youth Company we explore Margo's journey towards recovery and the individuals and communities that help her.  In M...