Episodes
| Episode | Title | First Broadcast | Repeated | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Awesome Day | 20110705 | 20131201 (R4) | These stories take their cue from the Johnny Mercer classic 'One For My Baby' - made famous by Fred Astaire, Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday and especially Frank Sinatra. Each of these specially-commissioned pieces tell of a 'brief episode' of the kind the song alludes to but doesn't describe. In other words, these are stories about doomed love: affairs that turned sour, were thwarted by circumstance or were never, ever, going to work. Awesome Day by Shena Mackay Rick looked up at the clock above the counter. A quarter to three. It was always a quarter to three at the Wooden Nickel ... It had been quarter to three when he and Meriel first came to the Wooden Nickel and it was still quarter to three when they left.' Meriel loves the theatre. Rick loves Meriel. Or is it New York he's in love with? Shena Mackay was born in Edinburgh. She is author of two novellas, three collections of short stories and eight novels. Her novel Dunedin and the collection of short stories, The Laughing Academy, both won Scottish Arts Council Book Awards and the bestselling The Orchard On Fire was shortlisted for the 1996 Booker Prize and the McVitie's Prize. Her most recent book, The Atmospheric Railway: New and Collected Stories was published in paperback in 2010. Shena lives in Southampton. Reader: Burn Gorman Producer: Jeremy Osborne A Sweet Talk production for BBC Radio 4. By Shena Mackay. Meriel loves the theatre. Rick loves Meriel, or is it New York he loves? |
| 02 | Mighty | 20110706 | 20131208 (R4) | These stories take their cue from the Johnny Mercer classic 'One For My Baby' - made famous by Fred Astaire, Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday and especially Frank Sinatra. Each of these specially-commissioned pieces tell of a 'brief episode' of the kind the song alludes to but doesn't describe. In other words, these are stories about doomed love: affairs that turned sour, were thwarted by circumstance or were never, ever, going to work. Mighty by Tom Connolly It has been going well for the Man and his lover. So much so that they plan to start a family. But the arrival of a cat in the neighbourhood seems to call his lover back to a painful past ... Tom Connolly is a film-maker and writer. His first novel, The Spider Truces, was published in 2010. This is his first story for Radio 4. He lives in a remote corner of the Rother Valley, in East Sussex. Reader: Tom Goodman-Hill Producer: Jeremy Osborne A Sweet Talk production for BBC Radio 4. By Tom Connolly. All is well with the man and his lover, until the past calls out to her. |
| 03 | Harold Lloyd Is Not The Man Of My Dreams | 20110707 | 20131215 (R4) | These stories take their cue from the Johnny Mercer classic 'One For My Baby' - made famous by Fred Astaire, Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday and especially Frank Sinatra. Each of these specially-commissioned pieces tell of a 'brief episode' of the kind the song alludes to but doesn't describe. In other words, these are stories about doomed love: affairs that turned sour, were thwarted by circumstance or were never, ever, going to work. Harold Lloyd Is Not The Man Of My Dreams by Morven Crumlish She met Walter on the day she was supposed to fall in love. But Walter had no inkling of the conflicting emotions that could be aroused by silent comedians ... Morven Crumlish's stories have been published and broadcast widely, and she also contributes to the Guardian. Her work has featured in three previous Sweet Talk productions for BBC Radio 4. 'Loulou and Barbie and the Seven Deadly Sins' appeared in Curly Tales 2 (2005); Dilemmas of Modern Martyrs - five of her stories - in 2008; and most recently 'A Good Impression' (Platform 3, 2010). Morven lives in Edinburgh. Reader: Morven Christie Producer: Jeremy Osborne A Sweet talk production for BBC Radio 4. By Morven Crumlish. A woman meets Walter on the day she was meant to fall in love. |