Arts

Short Story

BBC

Your weekly fix of brand new stories written specially by today’s best writers. Brought to you by BBC Radio 4, home of the Modern Short Story.

Episodes

11 episodes

Lauren Layfield presents this year's special showcase of the five shortlisted stories for the 2025 BBC Young Writers' Award. Alongside the 2...

48:15Sep 14, 2025

Ashley Margolis reads Ghost Kitchen by Ross Raisin, the fifth story shortlisted for the 2024 BBC National Short Story Award, followed by an...

35:23Sep 20, 2024

Paterson Joseph reads Nice Dog by Vee Walker, the fourth story shortlisted for the 2024 BBC National Short Story Award, followed by an inter...

33:34Sep 20, 2024

Rebekah Staton and Hasan Dixon read Pieces by Manish Chauhan, the third story shortlisted for the 2024 BBC National Short Story Award, follo...

35:19Sep 18, 2024

Mark Strong reads The Barber of Erice by Will Boast, the second shortlisted story for the 2024 BBC National Short Story Award, followed by a...

34:16Sep 17, 2024

Lisa Dwyer Hogg reads Hamlet, a Love Story by Lucy Caldwell, the first shortlisted story for the 2024 BBC National Short Story Award, follow...

35:52Sep 17, 2024

Katie Thistleton presents a showcase of the five shortlisted stories for this year's BBC Young Writers' Award. Celebrating its tenth anniver...

51:48Sep 15, 2024

A specially commissioned short story for BBC Radio 4 by the award-winning Lottie Mills. In this fantastical tale, a strange illness takes ho...

14:40May 21, 2024

A new short story for Radio 4 by the award-winning writer, Naomi Wood. Nursing a broken heart, a woman turns to an AI dating coach for help...

14:26Apr 25, 2024

A specially commissioned story from BBC NSSA 2023 shortlistee, Cherise Saywell. Reader: Katie Leung Producer: Elizabeth Allard Podcast prese...

14:18Feb 8, 2024

A newly commissioned story from Roddy Doyle, author of The Commitments and the 1993 Booker Prize winner, Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha. Read by Liam...

14:12Oct 20, 2023