Read On - The Audiobook Show from RNIB
502 episodes - English - Latest episode: 5 days ago - ★★★★ - 6 ratingsA weekly show all about audiobooks recorded at the RNIB Talking Book studios.
We talk to your favourite authors and narrators, along with reviews and news about new audiobooks.
Presented and produced by Robert Kirkwood, you'll find a new episode here every Friday at 1pm plus bonus content such as longer uncut interviews and episodes of our occasional extra show, The Book Group.
Talking Books is a free service from RNIB giving access to over 40,000 fiction and non fiction books for adults and children. Find out more by searching for RNIB Library.
Get involved and join the conversation by emailing [email protected] or find Robert on Twitter @Talking_Books
(https://twitter.com/Talking_Books) Other great podcast channels from RNIB Connect Radio
Connect (https://audioboom.com/channel/weeklyconnect) - Our main channel with news, features and articles on sight loss.
Conversations (https://audioboom.com/channel/conversations) - Blind and partially sighted people speaking about a wide range of topics.
Tech Talk (https://audioboom.com/channel/techtalkpodcast) - Technology for blind and partially sighted people.
Sport (https://audioboom.com/channel/sport) - See sport differently.
The Happy Hour (https://audioboom.com/channels/5022411) - Mental health, mindfulness, and overall wellbeing.
Tracks of My Life (https://audioboom.com/playlists/4634228-tracks-of-my-life) - Take a journey through our guest's life.
Support (https://audioboom.com/channel/rnib-support) - Other podcasts from RNIB.
TV Guide (https://audioboom.com/channel/tv-guide) - Daily audio TV listings
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Episodes
Michael Bond - The origins of Paddington
July 28, 2017 11:24 - 18 minutes - 17.4 MBIn memory of the late creator of Paddington Bear, here he is when he visited the Talking Book studios to chat to Robert Kirkwood about the origins of that bear from darkest Peru.
Limmy - Daft Wee Stories
July 28, 2017 10:11 - 11 minutes - 10.4 MBWith Limmy's new book "That's Yer Lot" entering the TB library we went back to his first book for our short story episode and explored some really 'Daft Wee Stories'
26: Louis de Bernieres and Limmy on short stories.
July 21, 2017 11:47 - 57 minutes - 53 MBLouis de Bernieres talks about his "Notwithstanding" tales ... with "That's Yer Lot" in shops and in the RNIB Library we look back at Limmy's first book "Daft Wee Stories" and the RNIB Library staff review some short fiction.
Neil Gaiman - Norse Mythologies
July 14, 2017 12:00 - 27 minutes - 25.1 MBThe author of Coraline, The Sandman and American Gods, amongst many others, joins Hannah Tausz for an exclusive chat. They discuss his new book, Norse Mythologies, his eyesight, collaborations, and the books that shaped him, before he was old enough to know he was being shaped.
25: Neil Gaiman, Philip Reeve and more
July 14, 2017 11:30 - 57 minutes - 53.1 MBPhilip Reeve talks about Railhead with Red Szell, Robert Kirkwood goes on a quest for sci-fi and fantasy in the Talking Books library and Hannah Tausz chats to Neil Gaiman about Norse Mythologies, his eyesight and much more.
Monty Don - A French Garden Oddessy
July 13, 2017 15:15 - 15 minutes - 14.3 MBMonty talks to Robert Kirkwood about his book The Road to Le Thonolet and with blind gardener Kevin Smith talks about the sensory experience of the garden.
Game of Thrones books available from RNIB Library
July 13, 2017 14:58 - 1 minute - 1.64 MBCan't get enough of the new series, or want to learn more about A Song of Ice and Fire? Well all of the books are available from RNIB
24: Ann Cleeves, Monty Don, Frank Cottrell-Boyce and Wolf Brother
July 07, 2017 14:27 - 57 minutes - 53.1 MBAnn Cleeves celebrates writing 30 books in 30 years, Robert Kirkwood talks gardening with Monty Don, Frank Cottrell-Boyce on the books of his life, and Red Szell reviews Wolf Brother
23: Blind Authors with Mark Hardie, Harriet Lane and Joanna Trollope.
June 30, 2017 13:53 - 57 minutes - 53 MBFrom James Thurber to Mark Hardie we talk to writers who haven't let sight loss get in the way of success. Crime writer Mark Hardie tells us how blindness doesn’t prevent him from describing a murder scene. Harriet Lane reveals how sight loss allowed her to become an author. International best-selling writer Joanna Trollope tells Leanne why she’s such a passionate supporter of Talking Books.
Book Review - All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
June 28, 2017 14:24 - 13 minutes - 12.7 MBRed Szell reviews All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr ... even though as a person with sightloss, he avoids books with blind characters! What will he think?
Julia Donaldson - Illustrations in audio
June 28, 2017 11:41 - 11 minutes - 10.9 MBWhen Julia Donaldson came to RNIB to read Freddy and the Fairy a problem arose. How to deal with pages with no text? Robert Kirkwood finds out.
22: The voice of Buffy and other American Imports
June 23, 2017 14:32 - 57 minutes - 53 MBMarti Leimbach talks to Red about being an American author in England, BJ Novak tells Robert about ‘The Book With No Pictures’ and narrator Laurence Bouvard gives voice to Buffy the Vampire Slayer!
Bill Bryson - The lost travel book, dogs, Katz and more.
June 22, 2017 14:00 - 34 minutes - 32 MBFrom the archives, an interview with the best selling non-fiction writer, Bill Bryson. Find out about his lost book, why dogs hate him and why he could've swapped Stephen Katz for a plank of wood at one point during his Walk in the Woods. #LoveAudio
21: Children's and YA with Frank Cottrell-Boyce, Julia Donadson and more.
June 16, 2017 12:24 - 57 minutes - 53.4 MBRed Szell talks to Frank Cottrell-Boyce about Sputnik's Guide to Life on Earth, Julia Donaldson records a book with Robert Kirkwood, and we get some reading suggestions from younger listeners.
Educating Red: Lady Audley's Secret
June 09, 2017 13:32 - 9 minutes - 8.53 MBRed reads and reviews this classic of 19th Century Literature.
Dave John - Narrating for RNIB
June 09, 2017 13:25 - 8 minutes - 7.61 MBDave John, RNIB Talking Book narrator, talks about the book he's currently recording, Man & Wife by Tony Parsons.
Gail Honeyman - 'Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine'
June 09, 2017 12:29 - 15 minutes - 14.3 MBThe author tells Robert Kirkwood about her debut novel and how it came to be one of the biggest releases of 2017
20: Gail Honeyman and Tony Parsons on Chic Lit and Man Lit
June 09, 2017 12:12 - 57 minutes - 53 MBTony Parsons and Gail Honeyman talk about their work and the labels that can hinder it. Dave John talks about narrating Mand and Wife and Red reviews Lady Audley's Secret.
Andrew Cullum - Narrating for RNIB
June 01, 2017 14:41 - 9 minutes - 9.11 MBRed Szell bumps into Andrew Cullum, a narrator he'd previously heard reading some terrifying books, and finds out he's not scary at all ... and that he's covered 2,500 years of history!
Giles Abbott - Narrating for RNIB
June 01, 2017 14:12 - 11 minutes - 10.6 MBGiles Abbott, the UK’s only professional blind storyteller, tells Red Szell about his work for RNIB Talking Books.
19: The voices of RNIB Talking Books
May 30, 2017 09:24 - 57 minutes - 53 MBGiles Abbot talks about his sight loss and narrating, Penelope Freeman gives some tricks of the trade and Paul Birchard talks Fusion.
18: Live at the Boswell Book Festival (2017)
May 19, 2017 11:53 - 57 minutes - 53.5 MBWith Nigel Havers, Private Eye co-founder and editor Richard Ingrams and bomber pilot George Dunn, Robert Kirkwood records this week's show at the Boswell Book Festival. Also with Festival Director Caroline Knox, Paul Tankard and Gordon Turnbull, there's a look at the life and works of James Boswell himself.
17: RNIB Writing Competition
May 12, 2017 10:23 - 57 minutes - 53.1 MBHost Red Szell listens to the winning entries of this year's RNIB Writing Competition and we look back some previous winners. WARNING - This is the uncensored version and contains an expletive.
Julian Fellowes - Behind the scenes of Belgravia
May 09, 2017 09:51 - 13 minutes - 12.1 MBRobert Kirkwood talks to the team behind the innovative serialisation of Julian Fellowes Belgravia in audio and e-text.
16: Stories of Love with Sarah Mallory and Francesca Segal.
May 09, 2017 09:32 - 57 minutes - 53 MBIn today's show Red and Robert get intimate! In a love story special, Red chats to Francesca Segal about her new novel and Robert gets the scoop on Mills and Boon from author Sarah Mallory. Plus we explore the Talking Books library for books on love in all its forms.
15: Jane Harris, Alexander McCall Smith and Julian Fellowes
April 28, 2017 11:52 - 57 minutes - 53 MBRed Szell chats to Jane Harris, Robert Kirkwood talks to Alexander McCall Smith and we discover more about the making of Julian Fellowes Belgravia.
Kate London: Post Mortem and Death Message
April 21, 2017 15:29 - 20 minutes - 19.1 MBThe author chats to Red about her books Post Mortem and Death Message.
14: Crime with Peter Robinson, Kate London and remembering Colin Dexter.
April 21, 2017 14:18 - 57 minutes - 53.1 MBKate London talks to Red Szell and provides evidence that crime is alive and kicking with her new novel ‘Death Message’, Peter Robinson gives us the intel on DCI Banks and we say a long goodbye to Colin Dexter.
Book Review: The Lie Tree
April 07, 2017 11:32 - 7 minutes - 7.26 MBRed finds out if Frances Hardinge's book 'The Lie Tree' lives up to the hype that surrounded it on release.
13: Joanne Harris and Tanya Landman on what makes a prizewinning book
April 07, 2017 11:09 - 57 minutes - 53 MBRed Szell talks to Joanne Harris about being a judge on the RNIB writing competition, Robert chats to Tanya Landman about winning the CILIP Carnegie Medal and Marc Macree talks about RNIB being nominated as the library of the year.
12: Days That Changed The World
March 31, 2017 13:00 - 57 minutes - 53 MBRed is joined in the studio by John Carlin, author of 'Playing The Enemy', Sherri Baines, narrator of Emmeline Pankhurst's autobiography and Kate Hamer, who shares the books of her life
Booker 2016 - Paul Beatty: 'The Sellout'
March 24, 2017 15:31 - 9 minutes - 8.54 MBRobert Kirkwood talks to Paul Beatty about his prize-winning book. #RNIBConnect, #readonair
11: Through The Looking Glass of Satire
March 24, 2017 14:00 - 57 minutes - 53 MBHoward Jacobson talks to Red about his latest title, 'Pussy', and the critical role of satire in understanding the world we live in. RNIB Librarian Nuala gives her thoughts on the modern classic 'Brave New World' and Red passes through the portal to Discworld as he reads Terry Pratchett for the first time.
10: Sam Hepburn, Kate Hamer and Graeme Macrae Burnet on the Psychological Thriller
March 20, 2017 12:41 - 57 minutes - 53.1 MBSam Hepburn, Kate Hamer and Graeme Macrae Burnet join Red Szell as he dips his toes into the murky and dark world of psychological thrillers.
Ruth Rendell: Adam and Eve and Pinch Me
March 20, 2017 11:59 - 10 minutes - 9.94 MBRed reviews one of his favourite Ruth Rendell novels and Robert Kirkwood digs a little deeper into her reasons for writing some of her books as Barbara Vine
Verity Smith - The Groper's Guide
March 10, 2017 16:43 - 12 minutes - 11.8 MBBonus Content - Verity talks to Red about the perils of writing when you can't see the page and shares some of the books of her life.
9: Blind Authors with Verity Smith, Mike Brace and Dianne Woodford.
March 10, 2017 16:30 - 57 minutes - 53.1 MBRed talks to international dressage rider Verity Smith, Paralympian Mike Brace MBE and single mum Dianne Woodford about their biographies of blindness.
Jo Brand - Look Back in Hunger
March 06, 2017 11:22 - 8 minutes - 7.97 MBBonus Content - Jo Brand talks to Claire Carson about her experience of writing as opposed to doing the rounds on the comedy circuit and the challenges of both! #readonair #RNIBConnect
World Book Day 2017
March 06, 2017 11:10 - 4 minutes - 4.54 MBIn celebration of World Book Day, Read On Air digs into the archive to bring you Roald Dahl, with his own reading of his classic story. #readonair #RNIBConnect
Limmy - That's Yer Lot
March 06, 2017 11:05 - 11 minutes - 10.6 MBBonus Content - Limmy talks to Robert Kirkwood about his new book and gives Read On Air a world exclusive preview of the audiobook. #readonair #RNIBConnect
8: Comedy in books with Limmy, Jerome K Jerome and Jo Brand.
March 03, 2017 15:23 - 58 minutes - 54.1 MBMake 'Em Laugh: What do Limmy, Rum Doodle and Jerome K Jerome have in common? They've all made Red laugh out loud. Find out what tickles his funny bone.
7: Piers Plowright and the Talking Book narrators on what makes a good book?
February 25, 2017 05:02 - 57 minutes - 53.3 MBWhat makes a good book? Red and the panel discuss this as a theme on this week's episode, plus we eavesdrop on a book group who talk about 'The Essex Serpent'. And the RNIB Librarians talk about romantic fiction. #RNIBConnect #ReadOnAir
6: Childhood memoirs with Esther Freud on Hideous Kinky
February 17, 2017 18:08 - 57 minutes - 53 MBThis week we return to the age most often viewed as a time of innocence and simplicity, and reflect on memoirs written of childhood. Esther Freud tells Red Szell about the writing of ‘Hideous Kinky’ from the perspective of her 4 year old self, Poh Sim Plowright revisits one of her favourite books and the rites of passage at the heart of To Kill A Mockingbird and the RNIB Library team review Sue Perkin’s memoir, Spectacles.
Books On Film: Brokeback Mountain
February 10, 2017 15:31 - 8 minutes - 7.63 MBRed finds out about the various books that take the written word and turn it into movie blockbusters. But which is better? We take the case in point of Brokeback Mountain. #RNIBConnect #ReadOnAir
Author Interview: Kate Summerscale
February 10, 2017 15:23 - 18 minutes - 17 MBOne of Red's favourite books is The Suspicions of Mr Witcher by Kate Summerscale. He was delighted to speak to her to find out more about her writing career and background. #RNIBConnect #ReadOnAir
5: Irvine Welsh, Kate Summerscale and translating a book for the screen.
February 10, 2017 14:43 - 57 minutes - 53.2 MBThis week we feature a host of books from the movies including the most recent book to be made into a movie - T2: Trainspotting - plus classics available in the RNIB Talking Book library. #RNIBConnect #ReadOnAir
4: Non Fiction with Mark Miodownik, Lynne Reid Banks, Stephen Grosz and John Aitchison
February 04, 2017 16:46 - 57 minutes - 53 MBThis week we take a look at non-fiction books in the RNIB Talking Books library including Stuff Matters: Exploring the Marvelous Materials That Shape Our Man-Made World by Mark Miodownik and The Shark and the Albatross by John Aitchison. #RNIBConnect #ReadOnAir
Narrator Interview: Kate & Penelope
January 27, 2017 23:00 - 7 minutes - 6.71 MBHave you ever wondered what it takes to be a talking books narrator? Red decided to find out and spoke to two of RNIB's narrators at the Talking Books studio in Camden. #RNIBConnect #ReadOnAir
3: Sebastian Barry, Joanne Harris and The Kilmarnock Edition of Robert Burns
January 27, 2017 20:56 - 57 minutes - 53 MBWe talk to Costa Award winner Sebastian Barry, Joanne Harris talks about her writing and Robert Kirkwood finds out about the printing of the Kilmarnock Edition of Poems Chiefly in the Scottish Dialect by Robert Burns.
2: The Great Spy Debate, Narrator David Thorpe, Creating a Book Group
January 23, 2017 09:24 - 57 minutes - 53 MBIn the second episode Red finds out which is the best spy writer - John le Carré or Ian Fleming. Also we hear from David Thorpe, the narrator of Red's book 'The Blind Man of Hoy', and there's another chance to 'Educate Red' from one of your chosen books this week. #RNIBConnect #ReadOnAir