A Reading Life, A Writing Life, with Sally Bayley cover art

A Reading Life, A Writing Life, with Sally Bayley

A Reading Life, A Writing Life, with Sally Bayley

By: Sally Bayley Andrew Smith
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About this listen

 Acclaimed writer Sally Bayley lives on a narrowboat, surrounded by the sights and sounds of nature, sustained by reading and writing. In this series, she invites us into her life, showing us how books have the power to change your life. Sally has recently been diagnosed with an auto-immune disease, but this is not a misery memoir podcast; she shows us how literature and connection to nature can console and give courage and insight. The series is produced by Andrew Smith, James Bowen, Lucie Richter-Mahr, and Dylan Gwalia. To find out more about Sally please visit: https://sallybayley.com.Copyright 2022 All rights reserved. Art Biological Sciences Literary History & Criticism Science
Episodes
  • Sweeping and Editing

    Sweeping and Editing
    Jan 24 2026

    ‘A paragraph made up of waiting…’

    We join Sally this week in the process of editing her forthcoming work, Mrs Parnell, focusing in particular on a single paragraph. Listen for a meditation on the creation of space and time in writing, and how a text can carve out a space to pause.

    The wonderful piano music in the opening section is ‘Doubt’, by Paul Seba. More on Paul and his work can be found here.

    This episode was edited and produced by James Bowen.

    Special thanks to Andrew Smith, Violet Henderson, Kris Dyer, and Maeve Magnus.
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    22 mins
  • On Living in Hundred Acre Wood

    On Living in Hundred Acre Wood
    Jan 2 2026

    For “Husband Ron” and Christopher Robin — may he come by again soon.

    This week, we join Sally at home, seeing in the New Year in the company of the residents of A.A. Milne’s Hundred Acre Wood. Listen for a reflection on domesticity, hospitality, and the physics of intimacy.

    This episode was edited and produced by James Bowen.

    Special thanks to Andrew Smith, Violet Henderson, Kris Dyer, and Maeve Magnus.
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    21 mins
  • River Ruminations

    River Ruminations
    Nov 30 2025

    ‘Writing for me is always an embodied experience of flow…’

    This week we join Sally at home, as she prepares to start her day, thinking in particular about her morning swim. Listen for a meditation on writing and reflecting on one’s environment, embodiment, and the interaction between thought and space, featuring James Joyce’s Ulysses (1922).

    The wonderful piano music in the opening section is ‘Tuesday’, by Paul Seba. More information on Paul and his work can be found here.

    This episode was edited and produced by James Bowen.

    Special thanks to Andrew Smith, Violet Henderson, Kris Dyer, and Maeve Magnus.
    Show More Show Less
    15 mins
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