Our Thoughts On “Reading Between The Lines”


reading between the lines

The first season of “Reading Between The Lines”, our story podcast in association with the Oddfellows, has now come to an end.

Our episodes have been downloaded nearly 5000 times to date, and we couldn’t be more pleased! We hope that more and more of our readers discover these little audio gems. And subscribe for the upcoming season two!

Our thoughts

From podcast experts to archivists, fiction aficionados to features writers, we’ve had a lot of contributors this season.

We’re asking them all for their thoughts on how our series is going so far. Here are our first few responses . . .

secret project

Photograph by Chris Phin.

Chris Phin

Chris is Head of Podcasts at DC Thomson, and was instrumental in getting “Reading Between The Lines” off the ground and into your ears.

“Don’t tell the other dozen or so shows across DC Thomson Media, but ‘Reading Between The Lines’ is one of my favourite of our podcasts.

“It’s not just that I smile every time I hear the theme tune – beautifully performed for us by Neil Brand – but because it’s such a lovely mix of the old and the new. How wonderful to be able to find stories in our vast archives to share with people through a medium unimaginable when they were written a hundred years ago and more!

“Of course it’s different to lots of our other podcasts in the specifics. Our gardening podcast The Dirt, our golf podcast from Bunkered, our politics podcast The Stooshie, for example, aren’t about fiction directly, even if you might be tempted to make up stories about the size of your marrows or your handicap on the course, and of course we can all name a politician who makes up tales with less bearing on reality than Lewis Carroll!

“But it’s just the same in spirit: helping tell stories, to entertain and educate, and to be a companion with you wherever you find yourself with a few minutes to spare in our company. We’re honoured and delighted if you do, and if you’ve run out of episodes of Reading Between The Lines, try our series interviewing children’s writers and illustrators, Author In Your Classroom!”

editors diary

Photograph by Steve Brown/DCT Media.

Editor Angela

“I’ve absolutely loved having this opportunity to bring some of the long-forgotten gems in our archives to a whole new audience.

“And that includes our wonderful podcast theme tune! I have wanted to find a way to breathe new life into this little piece of “Friend” history for many years, and musician Neil Brand has managed to do just that.

“Interviewing him to promote the podcast was one of my highlights of the year – I just loved talking to him and finding out more about his amazing career.”

reading between the lines

Image by Iain McDonald.

“Reading Between The Lines” episodes

Here’s a list of all our season one episodes. Just click the titles to open the episodes automatically in a podcast app you have installed on your computer, phone or tablet.

Episode 1: “A Night Among Robbers: An American Adventure” (1871), by anon.

Narrated by Alex, with a panel of Alex, IainMairi and David.

Episode 2: “The MacPeevers’ Christmas Cards” (1906), by A.P. Macdonald.

Narrated by Judey, with a panel of Iain, Judey, Marion and Barry.

Episode 3: “The Story Of A Masterpiece: An Artist’s Romance” (1905), by Agnes Grozier Herbertson.

Narrated by Alex, with a panel of Iain, Alex, Mairi and David.

Episode 4: “The MacPeever Wrangles: The Secrets Of Freemasonry” (1906), by A.P. Macdonald.

Narrated by Judey, with a panel of Iain, Judey, Abbie and Barry.

Episode 5: “Love And Pride” (1927), by Rachel Monroe.

Narrated by Judey, with a panel of Iain, Judey, Abbie and Barry.

Episode 6: “The MacPeever Wrangles: The Burglar” (1906), by A.P. Macdonald.

Narrated by Judey, with a panel of Iain, Judey, Angela and Barry.

Episode 7: “The Girl Engine Driver: A Tale Of A Race With A Forest Fire” (1916), by W.D. Morris

Narrated by Marion, with a panel of Iain, Marion, Tracey and Barry.

Episode 8: “Caroline Wickham” (1910), by Herbert Jamieson

Narrated by Marion, with a panel of Iain, Marion, Tracey and Barry.

Episode 9: “The Black Sheep Of The Family: A Tale Of A Fancy Dress Ball” (1911), by Evelyn Hope

Narrated by Marion, with a panel of Iain, Marion, Tracey and Barry.

Episode 10: “Stella And The Spy: The Romance Of A Spring Holiday” (1917), by Margaret Douglas

Narrated by Judey, with a panel of Iain, Judey, Marion and David.

Episode 11: “A Marked Man” (1911), by Paul Herring

Narrated by Judey, with a panel of Iain, Judey, Marion and David.

Episode 12: “My Connemara Ghost” (1910), by J.E.M.

Narrated by Lucy, with a panel of Iain, Lucy, Angela and Barry.


For more on “Reading Between The Lines”, click the tag below.

Iain McDonald

Iain is Digital Content Editor at the "Friend", making him responsible for managing flow of interesting and entertaining content on the magazine's website and social media channels.