A Good Read – Details, episodes & analysis

Podcast details

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A Good Read

BBC Radio 4

Arts

Frequency: 1 episode/14d. Total Eps: 394

Find reading inspiration with favourite books chosen by our guests.

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RSS

Apple

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Apple Podcasts

🇨🇦 Canada - books
16/08/2026
#95
🇬🇧 Great Britain - books
16/08/2026
#14
🇬🇧 Great Britain - arts
16/08/2026
#34
🇩🇪 Germany - books
16/08/2026
#91
🇨🇦 Canada - books
15/08/2026
#72
🇬🇧 Great Britain - books
15/08/2026
#20
🇬🇧 Great Britain - arts
15/08/2026
#43
🇨🇦 Canada - books
14/08/2026
#93
🇬🇧 Great Britain - books
14/08/2026
#13
🇬🇧 Great Britain - arts
14/08/2026
#31

Spotify

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Score global : 28%

Publication history

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Douglas Stuart and Sian Eleri

Monday, March 31, 2025 • Duration 27:52

Douglas Stuart author of Booker Prize winning novel Shuggie Bain chooses his favourite book - Train Dreams by Denis Johnson - a short novel encapsulating the history of America in the early 20th century through the life of a lonely man in the forests of the Pacific Northwest. He's joined by Radio 1 and The Voice Wales presenter Sian Eleri whose choice is I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman - a dystopian tale of a group of captive women. Harriett's choice is More Than I Love My Life by David Grossman which examines family trauma through the relationship of three generations of women. Strong themes of loneliness run through all three choices as well as questions about our humanity.

Producer: Maggie Ayre

Photo credit Sarah Blesener

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Lucy Speed and Sarah Mills

Monday, March 24, 2025 • Duration 27:50

EVERYONE BRAVE IS FORGIVEN by Chris Cleave, chosen by Lucy Speed THE HUMAN FACTOR by Graham Greene, chosen by Harriett Gilbert 253 by Geoff Ryman, chosen by Sarah Mills

Former Eastenders and present-day Archers actor Lucy Speed and comedian Sarah Mills talk about books set in wartime London, a 1990s underground train, and Graham Greene's MI6.

Lucy's choice is Everyone Brave is Forgiven by Chris Cleave, Which tells the tale of Mary, a woman who becomes a teacher at the beginning of the war, only for her life to take some unexpected turns during the Blitz.

Sarah has selected 253 by Geoff Ryman, the novel originally published on the Internet which tells the stories of 253 passengers on a London Underground train. Harriett proposes a lesser known a Graham Greene novel, The Human Factor, which takes in apartheid South Africa and communism as well as espionage.

Producer for BBC Audio Bristol: Sally Heaven

Join the conversation on Instagram: agoodreadbbc

Photo: Louise Cole

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Naomi Alderman and Abi Dare

Monday, November 18, 2024 • Duration 27:37

A THOUSAND SPLENDID SUNS by Khaled Hosseini, chosen by Abi Dare THE FIRE NEXT TIME by James Baldwin, chosen by Harriett Gilbert DEAR COMMITTEE MEMBERS by Julie Schumacher, chosen by Naomi Alderman

The Power author Naomi Alderman, and Nigerian writer Abi Dare discuss favourite books. Naomi chooses Dear Committee Members by Julie Schumacher, a series of hilarious letters written by a beleaguered academic. Abi champions A Thousand Splendid Suns, Khaled Hosseini's tale of two women in Taliban governed Afghanistan and Harriett recommends James Baldwin's The Fire Next Time, two immensely powerful essays.

Produced for BBC Audio Bristol by Sally Heaven Follow us on Instagram: agoodreadbbc

Photo credit: Annabel Moeller

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Janey Godley and Mel Hudson

Thursday, June 24, 2021 • Duration 28:50

Janey Godley's choice is a thriller Remember Me This Way by Sabine Durrant. It's a page turner with a neat twist and tackles coercive behaviour in an interesting way. And it features a dog called Howard. Janey says it has made her think differently about her own mother's relationship with a controlling man.

Mayflies by Andrew O Hagan is Harriett's choice. It's an 80s tale of male friendship through music set in Ayrshire and Manchester and following two of the young men into adulthood.

Mel Hudson chooses The Map & The Territory by Michel Houllebecq. To say it divides opinion is to put it mildly.

Producer for BBC Audio in Bristol: Maggie Ayre

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Jason Watkins & Yasmin Alibhai-Brown

Tuesday, June 15, 2021 • Duration 27:45

Jason Watkins chooses Vladimir Nabokov's Laughter in the Dark as his good read, and Yasmin Alibhai-Brown champions a book with some similar themes, The Awakening by Kate Chopin. Harriett's selection is The People on Privilege Hill, Jane Gardam's book of short stories.

Join in the conversation on Instagram: agoodreadbbc

Producer Sally Heaven

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Isy Suttie & Vick Hope

Tuesday, June 8, 2021 • Duration 28:10

Comedian and writer Isy Suttie and the Radio 1 presenter and author Vick Hope are A Good Read's guests.

Vick loves Zadie Smith's Swing Time, Isy chooses Patrick Suskind's The Pigeon and we hear why Harriett's choice of the Young Adult book A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness has her guests in tears.

Producer for BBC Audio in Bristol: Caitlin Hobbs

Join our Instagram book club: @agoodreadbbc

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Bryony Gordon & Hollie McNish

Tuesday, March 30, 2021 • Duration 28:04

Telegraph writer and podcaster Bryony Gordon is with poet and author Hollie McNish on this week's A Good Read.

Bryony loves Rachel’s Holiday by her writing hero Marian Keyes; Hollie hoped the The Queen’s Gambit by Walter Tevis would improve her chess; and Harriett Gilbert finds both absurdity and pain in Reasons to be Cheerful by Nina Stibbe.

Producer: Sarah Goodman

This is the last in our current series of A Good Read, but you can keep in touch with us and find many more book ideas on Instagram: @agoodreadbbc

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Adjoa Andoh & Andy Day

Tuesday, March 23, 2021 • Duration 27:45

Actress Adjoa Andoh and CBeebies presenter Andy Day join Harriett Gilbertt to discuss their favourite books by Aminatta Forna, Virginia M Axline and Kate Clanchy.

Ancestor Stones by Aminatta Forna Publisher Bloomsbury

Dibs - In Search of Self by Virginia M. Axline Publisher Penguin

Some Kids I Taught and What They Taught Me by Kate Clanchy Publisher Picador

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in March 2021.

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Greg James & Bella Mackie

Wednesday, March 17, 2021 • Duration 27:39

Husband-and-wife team: Greg James, host of BBC Radio 1's Breakfast show and Bella Mackie, author and Vogue columnist join Harriett Gilbert to discuss favourite books by PG Wodehouse, Maggie O’Farrell and John le Carré.

Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell Publisher: Tinder Press

The Spy Who Came in from the Cold by John le Carré Publisher: Penguin

Right Ho, Jeeves! by PG Wodehouse Publisher: Arrow Books

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in March 2021.

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Jane Hill & Derek Owusu

Tuesday, March 9, 2021 • Duration 27:59

BBC News presenter Jane Hill and writer Derek Owusu join Harriet Gilbert to discuss books by Kate Summerscale, Mark Olden and F. Scott Fitzgerald.

The Suspicions of Mr Whicher by Kate Summerscale Publisher: Bloomsbury

Murder in Notting Hill by Mark Olden Publisher: Zero Books

Tender is the Night by F. Scott Fitzgerald Publisher: Penguin

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in March 2021.

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A Good Read – Details, episodes & analysis

Podcast details

Recent rankings

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Shared links between episodes and podcasts

RSS feed quality and score

Publication history

Latest published episodes

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

A Good Read – Details, episodes & analysis

Podcast details

Recent rankings

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Shared links between episodes and podcasts

RSS feed quality and score

Publication history

Latest published episodes

Similar podcasts and content

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Apple Podcasts

Spotify