Podcast
A Good Read
Hosted by BBC Radio 4 · EN
Find reading inspiration with favourite books chosen by our guests.
12episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Patrick Grant and Mary-Ann Ochota
Apr 100:27:40Tap to summarizeThis time the community clothing entrepreneur and host of The Great British Sewing Bee Patrick Grant chooses his favourite book along with fellow guest anthropologist and broadcaster Mary-Ann Ochota.The books are:Parsnips Buttered by Joe Lycett The Flow by Amy Jane Beer Heatwave by Penelope LivelyProduced in Bristol by Maggie Ayre
Transcribe →Maryam Moshiri and Doug Naylor
Mar 2300:27:42Tap to summarizeNewsreader Maryam Moshiri and Red Dwarf creator Doug Naylor discuss their chosen books, including Bridget Jones's Diary, with Harriett Gilbert.Bridget Jones's Diary by Helen Fielding, chosen by Maryam MoshiriWhy You Should Read Children's Books, Even Though You Are So Old and Wise by Katherine Rundell, chosen by Doug NaylorNothing to See Here by Kevin Wilson, chosen by Harriett GilbertJoin us over on Instagram @agoodreadbbcProduced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Sally Heaven
Transcribe →Victoria Pile and Julian Baggini
Mar 1600:27:43Tap to summarizeTHE LIVES AND LOVES OF A SHE DEVIL by Fay Weldon, chosen by Victoria Pile THE OLD MAN AND THE SEA by Ernest Hemingway, chosen by Julian Baggini CLEAR by Carys Davies, chosen by Harriett GilbertComedy writer and director Victoria Pile joins philosopher and author Julian Baggini to talk about their favourite books with Harriett Gilbert. On the menu is a feminist revenge novel that is as dark as it is funny, a classic Hemingway novella that casts us out to sea, and an evocative short story set on a remote island off Scotland. Join the conversation on Instagram: agoodreadbbcProduced for BBC Audio Bristol by Becky Ripley
Transcribe →Lolita Chakrabarti and Dr Guy Leschziner
Mar 900:27:47Tap to summarizeThis week's books are: How to Measure a Cow by Margaret Forster (chosen by Lolita Chakrabarti) The House of God by Samuel Shem (chosen by Guy Leschziner) A Very Easy Death by Simone de Beauvoir (chosen by Harriett Gilbert) The producer is Eliza Lomas for BBC Audio Bristol Join us over on Instagram @agoodreadbbc
Transcribe →Frank Cottrell-Boyce and Jung Chang
Mar 200:27:39Tap to summarizeThe children's author Frank Cottrell-Boyce and the author of Wild Swans and Big Sister Little Sister Red Sister Jung Chang choose their good reads.Where Should We Run To by Alan Garner chosen by Frank Cottrell-Boyce Death of A Naturalist by Seamus Heaney chosen by Harriett Gilbert Hans Christian Andersen's Fairytales chosen by Jung ChangProduced in Bristol by Maggie Ayre
Transcribe →Martin Edwards and Tom Shakespeare
Feb 2300:27:31Tap to summarizeThis week's books are:Five Little Pigs by Agatha Christie, chosen by crime writer Martin Edwards At Swim-Two-Birds by Flann O'Brien, chosen by sociologist, bioethicist and comedian Tom Shakespeare Thursday Night Widows by Claudia Pineiro, chosen by Harriett GilbertJoin us over on Instagram @agoodreadbbcProduced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Sally HeavenPhoto credit: Belinda Mason
Transcribe →Maria Balshaw and Léa Ypi
Feb 1700:27:40Tap to summarizeThis week's books are: Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler chosen by Maria Balshaw. The Overcoat by Nikolai Gogol (translated by Isabel Hapgood) chosen by Léa Ypi. Small Bomb at Dimperley by Lissa Evans chosen by Harriett Gilbert.The producer is Eliza Lomas for BBC Audio Bristol. Join us over on Instagram @agoodreadbbcPhoto credit: Erdem Moralioglu
Transcribe →Robin Ince and Philip Hensher
Feb 900:27:35Tap to summarizeThis week's books are:Water Shall Refuse Them by Lucie McKnight Hardy, chosen by comedian Robin Ince Pnin by Vladimir Nabokov, chosen by Harriett Gilbert Esther Waters by George Moore, chosen by writer Philip HensherProducer Sally Heaven, BBC Audio Bristol
Transcribe →Gwyneth Lewis and Annabel Abbs
Dec 800:27:45Tap to summarizeThis week's books are: Lolly Willowes by Sylvia Townsend Warner chosen by the Welsh poet and writer Gwyneth Lewis The LIving Mountain by Nan Shepherd picked by author Annabel Abbs Emma by Jane Austen chosen by Harriett Gilbert ahead of the writer's 250th birthday in December 2025Join us over on Instagram @agoodreadbbcProduced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Maggie AyrePhoto credit: Edward Brown
Transcribe →Michelle Ogundehin and Lisa St Aubin de Terán
Dec 100:27:52Tap to summarizeMichelle Ogundehin is a broadcaster, magazine editor and author also known as a presenter on TV's Interior Design Masters. She and author Lisa St Aubin de Terán give their book recommendations. Michelle's is 4000 Weeks: Time Management For Mortals by Oliver Burkeman which she says has helped her simplify her life. Lisa chooses Small Boat by Vincent Delecroix the powerful retelling of the 2021 incident in which 27 people drowned in the English Channel attempting to make the crossing from France. It's a fictionalised account of a real event told from the perspective of the French Coastguard blamed for not taking adequate action. Harriett's choice is The Party by Tessa Hadley set in post war Bristol.Have your say on any of these books on Instagram @agoodreadbbcProducer: Maggie Ayre
Transcribe →