Just Sleep - Bedtime Stories for Adults

Drift off tonight to two tales featuring cats: Puss in Boots and Dick Whittington and His Cat. You have probably encountered the Puss in Boots character on the Shrek movie series as well as his own movie in 2011. There are a number of versions of this tale but all feature a very clever cat that uses trickery to help his master.  If you'd like to support the podcast, you can buy me a coffee here --...

Tonight's story to help you sleep is the continuation of Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland also known as Alice in Wonderland. You can listen to the first chapters in our episode #6 released on the 10th March. In this episode, Alice has grown very large and is stuck in W Rabbit's house. Later, she meets the hookah smoking caterpillar. If you'd like to support the podcast, you can buy...

Fall asleep tonight to the opening chapters of the Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett. This book was published in 1911 and is considered one of the best children's novels of the 20th century.  In this episode, Mary Lennox is forgotten amid the chaos of the cholera outbreak in her home.  If you'd like to support the podcast, you can buy me a coffee here ------> buymeacoffee.com/justsleeppo...

Tonight's bedtime story for adults is the continuation of The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson. You can find the first part published on the 18th April. This Gothic novella was first published in 1886. In this episode, Mr. Utterson learns of the death of his client Sir Danvers Carew and Mr. Hyde's involvement in the tragic affair. His friend Dr. Jekyll briefly come...

Drift off to sleep tonight with The Extraordinary Adventures of Arsene Lupin, Gentleman-Burglar by Maurice Leblanc. You might have seen the series on Netflix inspired by the character Arsene Lupin. This first story, the Arrest of Arsene Lupin, was first published in 1905.  The enigmatic Arsene Lupin is on a steamer heading to New York. He is travelling under the name R. Which passenger is the mast...

Tonight's sleep story is the continuation of The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. You can find Chapter 1 in episode 14 of the podcast. Published in 1925, the novel depicts narrator Nick Carraway's interactions with mysterious millionaire Jay Gatsby and Gatsby's obsession to reunite with his former lover, Daisy Buchanan. In this episode, Nick meets Tom's mistress Myrtle for the first time and s...

Tonight's snoozy tale is the fairytale Sleeping Beauty by Charles Perrault also known as The Sleeping Beauty in the Woods. There are a number of versions of this tale dating back to the 1300s. This version might be a little different from the one that you remember from your childhood. If you'd like to support the podcast, you can buy me a coffee here ------> buymeacoffee.com/justsleeppod If you...

Tonight's sleep story is the Curious Case of Benjamin Button by F. Scott Fitzgerald. This short story was published in 1922. You may have watched the 2008 movie adaptation with Brad Pitt!  The story starts with Roger Button rushing to the hospital to discover, shockingly, that his newborn son has the appearance and speech of a 70 year old man. If you'd like to support the podcast, you can buy me a...

Drift off to sleep with tonight's reading of the classic children's story, The Railway Children by Edith Nesbit. First published in book form in 1906, this story has been adapted for radio, tv, and the stage numerous times. In this first chapter, Roberta, Peter, and Phyllis are surprised when their perfect life is shattered when their father is taken away at night under mysterious circumstances. T...

Tonight's bedtime story is a continuation of A Study in Scarlet: a Sherlock Holmes tale by Arthur Conan Doyle. Published in 1887, this novel is the first appearance of the detective duo Sherlock Holmes and Dr. John Watson. In this episode, Watson and Sherlock visit and inspect the scene of the crime at Lauriston Gardens. The mystery has begun! You can find the first two chapters of the story in ep...

Tonight's story to help you sleep is Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K Jerome. Published in 1889, it is a humorous account of a two week boating trip on the Thames. In this episode, the narrator, his two friends, and his dog decide to embark on the holiday because they are so "overworked". If you'd like to support the podcast, you can buy me a coffee here ------> buymeacoffee.com/justsleeppod If...

Tonight's bedtime story is the Woman in White by Wilkie Collins. Published in 1859, it is a mystery novel often considered one of the 100 greatest novels of all time. In this episode, Walter Hartright tells how he comes to be employed by the Fairlies of Limmeridge House. Later, he meets the woman in white. If you'd like to support the podcast, you can buy me a coffee here ------> buymeacoffee.c...

Fall into a deep sleep tonight with the old English fairy tale, Jack and the Beanstalk. There a number of versions of this tale. This version was retold by Flora Annie Steel and published in 1918. If you'd like to support the podcast, you can buy me a coffee here ------> buymeacoffee.com/justsleeppod If you like this episode, please follow the podcast in your favourite app. Also, share with any...

Drift off tonight to the opening chapters of North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell. This social novel was published in 1854. In this episode, Margaret spends the last few days in London preparing for the wedding of her cousin Edith. She then returns home to Helstone and struggles a little with her new home life. If you'd like to support the podcast, you can buy me a coffee here ------> buymeacof...

Tonight's sleepy tale is Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë.  Wuthering Heights is Emily's only book, published in 1847 under the pseudonym Ellis Bell. In this episode, Mr Lockwood, the new tenant of Thrushcross Grange, visits Heathcliff during a snowstorm and meets the "amiable" inhabitants. If you'd like to support the podcast, you can buy me a coffee here ------> buymeacoffee.com/justsleeppod...

Tonight's snoozy tale is Black Beauty by Anna Sewell. Published in 1877, this book was her only published work. It is one of the first English novels to be written from the perspective of an animal. In this episode, Black Beauty recounts his early days on a farm with his mother, his breaking in and, his first new home. If you'd like to support the podcast, you can buy me a coffee here ------> b...

Drift off to sleep tonight with The Tale of Peter Rabbit, The Tale of Benjamin Bunny, The Tale of the Flopsy Bunnies and, The Tale of the Two Bad Mice, all from the Great Big Treasury of Beatrix Potter. If you'd like to support the podcast, you can buy me a coffee here ------> buymeacoffee.com/justsleeppod If you like this episode, please leave a review or rating on your favourite podcast app o...

Tonight's sleep story is Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift. Published in 1726, it is the story of Lemuel Gulliver, " First a Surgeon, and then a Captain of Several Ships". In this episode, Gulliver recounts the early years of his life and what happened when he was shipwrecked and washed ashore in Lilliput, a land of tiny people. If you'd like to support the podcast, you can buy me a coffee here...

Tonight's story to help you fall asleep is Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton. This American classic was published in 1911.  Set in a fictitious town in Massachusetts, it reveals the past of the "most striking figure in Starkfield", Ethan Frome. If you'd like to support the podcast, you can buy me a coffee here ------> buymeacoffee.com/justsleeppod If you like this episode, please leave a review or r...

Tonight's bedtime story (or stories!) are the Ugly Duckling and the Emperor's New Clothes, both fairy tales by Hans Christian Anderson. If you'd like to support the podcast, you can buy me a coffee here ------> buymeacoffee.com/justsleeppod If you like this episode, please leave a review or rating on your favourite podcast app or, simply, follow the podcast. Goodnight and Sweet Dreams.... We ar...

Tonight's story to help you fall asleep is Chapter 2 of The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame. This classic children's book was published in 1908. It follows the adventures of Mole, Rat, Toad, and Badger. In this episode, Mole meets Toad and they all go on an adventure in a canary coloured cart. If you'd like to support the podcast, you can buy me a coffee here ------> buymeacoffee.com/jus...

Tonight's bedtime tale is Persuasion by Jane Austen. This was her final completed novel published in 1817 after her death. In this episode, we are introduced to the Elliots and learn about their financial troubles.  If you'd like to support the podcast, you can buy me a coffee here ------> buymeacoffee.com/justsleeppod If you like this episode, please leave a review or rating on your favourite...

Tonight's snoozy tale is The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams. This book was first published in 1922. It follows the tale of a stuffed rabbit and his desire to become real. Sweet Dreams.... If you'd like to support the podcast, you can buy me a coffee here ------> buymeacoffee.com/justsleeppod If you like this episode, please leave a review or rating on your favourite podcast app or, simply...

Tonight's sleepy story is the War of the Worlds by H.G Wells. This science fiction classic was first published in 1897. In this episode, the narrator witnesses the explosions on the surface of Mars, and then, the Thing lands on Horsell Common. If you'd like to support the podcast, you can buy me a coffee here ------> buymeacoffee.com/justsleeppod If you like this episode, please leave a review...

Drift off to sleep with tonight's reading of two short stories by Oscar Wilde - The Remarkable Rocket and the Selfish Giant. These stories come from a collection first published in 1888. If you like this episode, please leave a review or rating on your favourite podcast app or, simply, follow the podcast. If you'd like to support the podcast, you can buy me a coffee here ------> buymeacoffee.co...