Book Shambles

Since today is publication day for Robin Ince's book I'm a Joke and So Are You we've got a very special double episode. In a front room in Northampton Robin is joined by Alan Moore, subbing in as co-host for Josie Long this week, to chat with author of Drunken Baker Barney Farmer. They chat about all their new books, accents, Viz, Laurence Scott, HP Lovecraft and a whole lot more. Part Two will be out very soon. As always, thanks to our Patreon supporters who have a a whole 15 minutes of extra exclusive chat this week, and the same again in Part 2. Support the show at patreon.com/bookshambles

Canadian singer-songwriter Ben Caplan is on tour in Europe at the moment with his band and new musical Old Stock: A Refugee Love Story, so he dropped by the studio to chat with Robin and Michael Legge, subbing for Josie again whilst she's on maternity leave. They chat of Jewish refugees, squeezing philosophy lines into songs, great music biographies by hard rockers and much more. And Michael does an ad for Mercedes for which we very much didn't get paid for. Extended edition for Patreons as always. Please consider supporting the show at patreon.com/bookshambles so we can keep on making it!

Another of our live shows from the Edinburgh Fringe and this time Robin is chatting to Sofie Hagen and Martin Mor. They talk about Sofie writing her own book at the moment, Martin's favourite counter culture magazines of the 1980s plus dinosaur erotics, Oliver Sacks, Hunter S Thompson and plenty more. This was the first of our live shows in Edinburgh and there was a bit of an issue with the sound in the venue that wasn't fixed in time for the show. As such there's some distortion and hiss in the this episode that was cleaned up best we could but apologies for the less than ideal sound. There is a bonus twenty minutes for Patreon supporters this week. Head to patreon.com/bookshambles to support the show.

Another episode recorded live at the Edinburgh Fringe, this time Robin is joined by comedians Jen Brister and mere hours after finding out he was nominated for the Comedy Award, Alex Edelman. They chat about which books inspired their comedy, Jane Austen, Janne Teller, graphic novels,  lesbian fiction, Jewish fiction and how Robin helped Alex through a medical crisis many Edinburgh's ago... Support the podcast by pledging at patreon.com/bookshambles and get extended episodes and more. For instance, this episode features a bonus 15 minutes for Patreon supporters.

First episode of six recorded live at Edinburgh Fringe, in this episode Robin chats to comedian and co-host of All Killa No Filla, Kiri Pritchard-McLean and comedian and DIY chef George Egg. They chat best books about serial killers, favourite cookery books, the precarious crossover of the two and home made Russian antennas. Support the show, and The Cosmic Shambles Network at patreon.com/bookshambles. Lots of great rewards including extended episodes. There's an extra 15 minutes of this chat for instance. And be sure to check out the launch our new blog network, featuring Robin, Dean Burnett, Helen Czerski, Jon Butterworth and more at cosmicshambles.com/blogs

Recorded live at Latitude, it's a Book Shambles - Science Shambles crossover. Robin Ince hosts a discussion about The Magick of the Future, which is to say, what scientific discoveries and technological advancements are so incredible they seem like magic? Robin is joined by author John Higgs and scientists and broadcaster Dr Suzi Gage and Dr Lucy Rogers. You can support the show at patreon.com/bookshambles Book Shambles will be on a short hiatus for a couple of weeks now as the entire team is up at the Edinburgh Fringe. If you're up there, come and see some of our live shows with special guests such as Neil Gaiman and Ian Rankin. Entry is free! Info at cosmicshambles.com/events/edfringe

With Robin out of the country, and Josie on maternity leave, producer Trent Burton is taking up the hosting duties for a week. Which is appropriate as our guest for this Book Shambles Extra is author and journalist Mat Oxley. Mat is one of the world's leading motorcycle writers, and motorcycling racing is Trent's 'other world'. They chat about Mat's books including his latest Speed: The One Genuinely Modern Pleasure, as well as some of the great books and authors of fiction to tackle humankind's speed fetish including Aldous Huxley, Hunter S Thompson, Hemingway and others. You can support Book Shambles on Patreon and get lots of extras by visiting patreon.com/bookshambles

Our second special from this year's Latitude Festival, again recorded backstage at the Speakeasy tent. Robin chats her Ladybird Guide to Consciousness with Dr Hannah Critchlow and science books with Dr Michael Brooks of Science(ish). We catch up with Matt Haig about Notes on a Nervous Planet and Jen Brister on her new Edinburgh show. As before, being a festival, there can be some background noise in some of these chats. Like Gospel choirs at full tilt. Support the podcast at patreon.com/bookshambles

It's the first of a number of specials we recorded at this year's Latitude Festival. On this first episode we've got a bit of a focus on poetry. Robin chats to host of The Verb, Ian McMillan, poet Luke Wright, the Octavia Poetry Collective, punk poet, musician and Josie Long's primary school classmate Brigette Aphrodite and comedian and author Jonnie Bayfield. There's chat of Dylan Thomas, Melvyn Bragg, Dostoevsky and astrophysics based poetry. As always with the interviews we record at festivals, there's a bit of background noise from bands and other performers. Become a Patreon supporter at patreon.com/bookshambles

Our second episode recorded live at the Royal Albert Hall, Robin is once again joined by guest co-host Sarah Kendall, with this week's special guest mathematician, author and broadcaster Dr Hannah Fry. They chat about Hannah's upcoming book Hello World, books on AI and the internet, air crash investigations, butter, baby food and making bad decisions based off of junk maths. Hear an extended edition of this episode, and almost all our other episodes too, plus bonus episodes and more by becoming a Patreon supporter at patreon.com/bookshambles