Short Cuts

Josie Long hears stories of seeing double. Tales of dopplegangers, identity theft and a woman who offered a living counterpart to dead composers. Featuring a new 'documentary song' from Gaggle. Series Producer: Eleanor McDowall A Falling Tree production for BBC Radio 4, first broadcast in November 2014.

Josie Long presents stories about absence and nothing. A decades long murder mystery about the death of a man who never existed, the story of losing someone you never knew and a first time treasure hunter finds something against the odds but ends up with nothing. Series Producer: Eleanor McDowall A Falling Tree production for BBC Radio 4, first broadcast in November 2014.

Josie Long presents tales of blackouts, late nights and bedtime stories. Love found after a blackout, telephone counselling for bereaved rock star managers and erotica for the elderly. Series Producer: Eleanor McDowall A Falling Tree production for BBC Radio 4, first broadcast in October 2014.

Josie Long peers behind the curtain to reveal stories from behind the scenes. There's secret telephone discos for cold calling salesmen, moral dilemmas which emerge behind the scenes on a reality television show and Joe Dunthorne attempts to gain access to the OULIPO. Series Producer: Eleanor McDowall A Falling Tree production for BBC Radio 4, first broadcast in October 2014.

A message in a bottle, cast into the ocean, reaches a woman who needs it. A lifeboat adrift and isolated in icy waters and a crackling, radio connection offers a lifeline between friends. Josie Long hears tales of making contact. Series Producer: Eleanor McDowall A Falling Tree production for BBC Radio 4, first broadcast in October 2014.

Josie Long dives down a rabbit hole in this sequence of short documentaries, true stories and radio adventures. We hear tales of a spam email that alters the course of two people's lives and a mysterious monument made out of shoes at a deserted intersection in rural Indiana. Miranda July leads us into another world with her story of swim coaching an elderly team in a town near no large bodies of w...

Josie Long goes on an adventure as she presents a sequence of mini documentaries about exploration. With tales of riding cellos down the mountain side and romantic exploration on the U Bahn. Great Bear Rainforest Produced by Elizabeth Arnold Die Fremde Produced by Phil Smith Out of the Blocks (Extract) Produced by Aaron Henkin and electronic musician Wendel Patrick Everest Glissando Feat. Stephen...

Josie Long investigates small mysteries in this sequence of mini documentaries. Hearing tales of ghost ships, hidden underground kingdoms and the disappointment of discovering the banality of your family's secrets. The items featured in the programme are: Finding Sumo Produced by Bob Carlson First broadcast in 'Family Justice' on UnFictional: Love Letters Feat. Alan Dearn Ryou-Un Maru Produced by...

Josie Long presents a sequence of mini documentaries exploring what happens when nobody knows your name. From our transgressions online through to an unusual love affair between two strangers who had never set eyes on each other, Josie hears how anonymity can both ensnare and liberate us. Featuring: Long Distance Feat. Victor LaValle Produced by Katie Burningham Undercover Feat. Fergal Keane The M...

Josie Long presents a series of mini-documentaries exploring the idea of being in limbo. From the story of a journalist impersonating a journalist in an Afghan village based in Canada to the music of answer machine messages, Josie examines what happens when we are neither here nor there. Between Feat. Jurate Jurkeviciene Produced by Sara Parker The Village Feat. Chris Bowman Produced by Sophie Bla...

Josie Long ventures where she shouldn't with this sequence of brief encounters, true stories and radio adventures about acts of trespass. Stories of stolen waxworks, formal letters severing friendships, and travels into unknown territory. Urban Exploration Feat. Bradley Garrett http://www.bradleygarrett.com/stills/ Stealing Snowdon Produced by Olivia Humphreys, Chloe White and Will Davies Crown th...

Josie Long presents a sequence of brief encounters, true stories and short documentaries in which the boundaries between 'real' life and dreaming blur. From the addictive, perception-altering qualities of romantic love through to a surreal story about recording dreams. We hear from the legendary film editor and director Walter Murch about the dreamlike qualities of cinematic narratives and the psy...

Josie Long gets scared as she presents a sequence of frightening mini documentaries. From the sound of fear to the feel of terror, we hear the story of a sleepwalking menace stalking through an American summer camp late at night and tales of how the young David O'Doherty was terrorised by his older brother. Producer: Eleanor McDowall A Falling Tree production for BBC Radio 4 The items featured in...

Josie Long goes on a series of unusual journeys as she presents a sequence of mini documentaries about adventurous trips. From searching for teenage misadventure through to finding yourself, we travel from the British seaside to the freezing landscape of Minnesota altering minds and bodies along the way. Frank Education Feat. Philip Bill Bruckner Prod. Hana Walker-Brown St Audries Feat. Margaret P...

Josie Long explores the painful process of growing up in a sequence of mini documentaries. From first steps to last love, we hear tales of controversial haircuts, the search for independence and the need to let go of the past. The items featured in the programme are: Singing Boys Prod. Rikke Houd Like Rude Boys Feat. voices recorded at the creative arts organisation Only Connect Prod. Steve Urquha...

Josie Long presents a sequence of mini documentaries about small acts of resistance - from bursting into song to crashing a car into a wall. We hear from a woman whose encounter with an underground resistance movement led to tapped phones and aggressive encounters with ice cream salesmen and listen to the power of a collective as individual voices at a protest are woven into music. The items featu...

Josie Long presents a series of short documentaries about keeping quiet, being lost for words and complete silence. From the crushing silence after a musician's mistake to the tense hush that surrounds two teenage boys as they hide inches from their headmaster in an oversized box - tales of attempts to keep quiet and the struggle to raise your voice. The items featured in the programme are: Wilder...

Josie Long presents a sequence of unbelievable mini documentaries looking at bending the truth, fantasists and outright liars. Josie hears how the writer Ross Sutherland invented a mysterious secret society by accident and looks for secrets scratched into the sidewalks of San Francisco by an enigmatic writer known only as 'Nikko'. The items featured in the programme are: Hearts and Crafts Featurin...

Josie Long presents a showcase for delightful and adventurous short documentaries and makes her escape as we hear stories of running away, flight and car chases. From breaking away to disappearing into escapism - we hear the tale of a narrow escape as three young Australian men desperately try to manoeuvre themselves out of trouble, alongside the story of a 93 year old wing walker getting lost in...

Josie Long presents a selection of short documentaries with stories of loss and discovery. From being lost in the music to lost love - Josie delves into tales of forgotten cassette tapes, voices rediscovered and teenage rebellion. Hide and Seek Feat. Steve Colgan Lost in Music Produced by Steve Urquhart I am Luther Blissett Produced by Rosanna Arbon Fluctuations Produced by Phil Smith Lost Voices...

Josie Long presents a selection of short documentaries about communication - messages that could break your heart, rescue you from a fight or save you from a long stay in jail. The writer Glenn Patterson explains why sometimes we should ignore the writing on the wall, and musician Tom Robinson describes the unlikely message he sent at a time when he was in a lot of trouble. Stories of last words,...

Josie Long presents a series of delightful and adventurous short documentaries, brief encounters, true stories and found sound. We examine rips in the fabric of the universe as Josie Long delves into stories of splits, divisions and tears. From broken hearts to divided personalities. We hear from a woman who was so tired of being in two minds that she surrendered all of her decision making to a pi...

Josie Long presents a selection of short documentaries in which people hurl themselves into the air with the hope of taking flight. We glide through the air, fall into the sea and explore grand leaps of the imagination, which cross the border between dreaming and reality. From comedian Holly Walsh's tale of hurtling off the edge of a pier in a handmade helicopter, through to the story of a trapeze...

In the first programme of this series of Short Cuts, Josie Long presents a selection of short documentaries which peel back the curtain, peer into the darkness and look out at those who are watching us. By turns delightful and unsettling, today's audio adventures include the secret games teachers play when they're invigilating exams, a photographer whose ambition is to capture 'still lives' of peo...