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The Follycast

www.theuncertainsmile.com
The Follycast
Latest episode

19 episodes

  • The Follycast

    The Follycast #18 – Stone & Sky

    27/07/2025 | 52 mins.
    In this episode…

    It’s here! The latest juicy novel in the Rivers of London series for Margaret, Jan and Richard to get their teeth into and it doesn’t disappoint.

    As the focus moves from London to Aberdeen, it’s a tale of men with gills, panthers, lighthouses and oil rigs, of horror, romance and humour.

    We tackle such questions as:

    As Peter shares narration duties in a novel for the first time how well does that work?

    How essential is it to have read the graphic novel ‘Here Be Dragons’?

    How much is it stretching credibility for the whole cast to decamp to Aberdeen en masse? Why didn’t they just fly?

    Just why does Ben write so many named characters? Can we keep track?

    Where does the series go from here as the pandemic looms on the horizon?

    and most worryingly of all, why does Richard now want someone to die?

    Shownotes:

    Here be Dragons
    Monday Monday
    Erland Cooper
    Dr Who and the Sea Devils (John Pertwee) – IMDB (for UK listeners it is also on iPlayer)
    Dr Who and the Silurians (John Pertwee) – IMDB for UK listeners it is also on iPlayer
    Slow Horses – Mick Herron
    Macaroni cheese pie (recipe)


    Hosted by Margaret Holborn, Richard Marks and Jan Trott

    Produced by Richard Marks for Uncertain Smile productions

    Theme tune: ‘London Is Inspired’ by Cutwater: www.cutwaterband.co.uk.

    Follycast image: Mack Chater (@MackChater)

    Contact us

    Email follypodcast@gmail.com with your feedback on this and upcoming books. We particularly like short (max 2 mins) audio feedback via mp3 or the audio format of your choice!

    We are available via iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, YouTube, Audible and all good pod catchers, so don’t forget to subscribe.

       Subscribe to our RSS feed for further updates
  • The Follycast

    The Follycast Episode 17: The Christmas Quiz

    16/12/2024 | 42 mins.
    In this month’s episode…

    Up to date with all the books and novellas, the Follycast breaks its usual format for a quiz about all things Folly-related.

    Seven rounds of (hopefully) guessable questions as Margaret and Jan fight it out for the coveted ‘Rivers Of London’ Mastermind title.

    Pit your wits against the Follycast team by playing along at home.

    Will Margaret have a significant advantage in having read all the books twice, compared to Jan just the once?

    Does Richard’s complicated scoring system make any sense at all?

    These questions and many more will be answered in the Follycast Christmas Quiz.



    Hosted by Margaret Holborn, Richard Marks and Jan Trott

    Produced by Richard Marks for Uncertain Smile productions

    Theme tune: ‘London Is Inspired’ by Cutwater: www.cutwaterband.co.uk.

    Cover image: Mack Chater (@MackChater)



    Contact us

    Email follypodcast@gmail.com with your feedback on this and upcoming books. We particularly like short (max 2 mins) audio feedback via mp3 or the audio format of your choice!

    Follow us on Twitter @thefollycast

    We are available via iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, YouTube and all good pod catchers, so don’t forget to subscribe.

       Subscribe to our RSS feed for further updates
  • The Follycast

    The Follycast Episode 16: Winter’s Gifts & The Masquerades of Spring

    28/10/2024 | 48 mins.
    In this month’s episode…

    Margaret, Jan and Richard discuss the two remaining books in the ‘four seasons’ quartet of novellas in the Rivers Of London universe.

    Along the way we debate such issues as:

    Wodehouse and the X-Files: influence or parody?

    Nightingale’s de-aging and whether Augustus Berrycloth-Young actually could turn up in the main range.

    Richard’s experience listening to a Rivers Of London audiobook for the first time.

    Our impressions of the novellas overall and the results of a reader poll ranking the four novellas.

    Listener feedback on Masquerades of Spring

    …all in just 48 minutes.



    Shownotes:

    PG Wodehouse
    Bertie Wooster
    Jazz Age
    Tin Pan Alley
    Big Finish
    Pinkerton Agency
    Tecumseh confederacy
    1812 War
    Latest Graphic novel – Stray Cat Blues



    Hosted by Margaret Holborn, Richard Marks and Jan Trott

    Produced by Richard Marks for Uncertain Smile productions

    Theme tune: ‘London Is Inspired’ by Cutwater: www.cutwaterband.co.uk.

    Cover image: Mack Chater (@MackChater)



    Contact us

    Email follypodcast@gmail.com with your feedback on this and upcoming books. We particularly like short (max 2 mins) audio feedback via mp3 or the audio format of your choice!

    Follow us on Twitter @thefollycast

    We are available via iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, YouTube and all good pod catchers, so don’t forget to subscribe.

       Subscribe to our RSS feed for further updates
  • The Follycast

    The Follycast 15 – In conversation with Ben Aaronovitch

    21/08/2024 | 1h 6 mins.
    The Follycast Episode 15: In Conversation with Ben Aaronovitch
    In this month’s episode…

    Richard and Margaret welcome Ben Aaronovitch onto the podcast. The interview was recorded a few weeks ahead of the publication of the Masquerades of Spring and we discuss the origins of the series, cover the novels, novellas and graphic novels and look to the future.

    Along the way Ben reveals:

    What order the books originally were supposed to be released in

    When book ten and eleven are set

    How Molly was not supposed to be a regular character

    Ben’s writing process

    What the graphic novels can do that the books just can’t

    The latest status of ‘Schroedinger’s TV series’, and the potential challenges of casting Nightingale

    The timetable for the next main novels.

    Hosted by Margaret Holborn and Richard Marks,

    Produced by Richard Marks for Uncertain Smile productions

    Theme tune: ‘London Is Inspired’ by Cutwater: www.cutwaterband.co.uk.

    Cover image: Mack Chater (@MackChater)

    SHOW NOTES AND LINKS



    The book tour for Masquerades Of Spring

    Ben’s interview with Radio Free Skaro

    Ben enjoyed reading: Legends and Lattes by Travis Baldree. 

    Ben’s collaborator Andrew Cartmel has his own hit book series, The Vinyl Detective.

    Ben’s novel Genius Loci, sadly not currently in print.

    Remembrance Of The Daleks, which happily is..

    Cutwater live at The Bedford on 25 September (free to attend or watch live stream) 

    Ben discusses Rivers of London with Kobna Holbrook-Smith

    Contact us

    Email follypodcast@gmail.com with your feedback on this and upcoming books. We particularly like short (max 2 mins) audio feedback via mp3 or the audio format of your choice!

    Follow us on Twitter @thefollycast

    We are available via iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, YouTube and all good pod catchers, so don’t forget to subscribe.

       Subscribe to our RSS feed for further updates
  • The Follycast

    The Follycast 14- Amongst Our Weapons

    01/05/2022 | 40 mins.
    The Follycast Episode 14: Amongst Our Weapons
    In this month’s episode…

    Amongst Our Weapons by Ben Aaronovitch, book nine in the Rivers Of London series, is hot off the press at the time of recording and we meet up to share our views. No spoilers in this episode description, but plenty in the podcast itself, so probably best to wait if you haven’t had a chance to read it yet!

    Credits

    Hosted by Margaret Holborn and Richard Marks, with Jan Trott and Jennie Beck

    Produced by Richard Marks for Uncertain Smile productions

    Theme tune: ‘London Is Inspired’ by Cutwater: www.cutwaterband.co.uk.

    Cover image: Mack Chater (@MackChater)

    Contact us

    Email follypodcast@gmail.com with your feedback on this and upcoming books. We particularly like short (max 2 mins) audio feedback via mp3 or the audio format of your choice!

    Follow us on Twitter @thefollycast

    We are available via iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, YouTube and all good pod catchers, so don’t forget to subscribe.

       Subscribe to our RSS feed for further updates
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About The Follycast
The Follycast is a bookclub podcast series focused on the Rivers Of London series by Ben Aaronovitch. Each episode we discuss a book in the series.
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