August '24: Ballet Shoes

November '24: A Christmas story

As regular readers will be aware, Metropolitan editor and contributor (respectively), Tobias Sturt [https://substack.com/profile/3493742-tobias-sturt] and Jon Millington [https://substack.com/profile/71690541-jon-millington] have a seasonal side project. Every Christmas, Tobias writes a new Christmas story and then Jon reads it and they release it as a podcast of 24 short episodes, one a day for the first 24 days of December. This year’s story is Last Christmas in Hexwood [https://open.spotify.com/show/1cnV4Q5uFiZ667AwCeYWcD?si=b7c64bc9a09d4c65], an excessively cosy and increasingly lunatic story of talking animals, a naughty child and an unlikely plan to kidnap Santa Claus. You can subscribe to the story on the Christmas Stories Substack [https://ruritania.substack.com/], Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/1cnV4Q5uFiZ667AwCeYWcD?si=f25de419ca3647cd], YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@xmasstories] or anywhere you get podcasts, and you can also find the whole audiobook on Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/7AuvL0MQs2GBi1kTFBRHsb?si=7ceee1da75644267] or Audible [https://www.audible.co.uk/pd/B0DNG6337Y?source_code=ASSGB149080119000H&share_location=pdp]. You can find all these links, or just listen there, on the Christmas Stories website [https://christmasstories.co.uk/]. You find out more about the inspiration for the stories in this Metropolitan piece from last year: Get full access to The Metropolitan at www.themetropolitan.uk/subscribe [https://www.themetropolitan.uk/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

October '24: A Halloween Story

The podcast is usually a reading of an essay from our archives, but this being October, we thought you deserved a trick and, hopefully, a treat. Every Halloween, our editor Tobias Sturt [https://substack.com/profile/3493742-tobias-sturt] writes a creepy short story, so our podcast this month is a reading of this year’s: A Ghost Walk. Our theme music is Otra vez by friend of the show S F Gallardo, who you can find on Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/artist/7AbpSsJtpawiPfwU6kkVwz?si=DbnXverqSU-f6fuz-oYWxQ] and Bandcamp [https://sfgallardo.bandcamp.com/album/2020] You can find more of Tobias’ Halloween stories on YouTube: Or on his website: www.ruritania.co.uk/halloween [https://www.ruritania.co.uk/halloween] Get full access to The Metropolitan at www.themetropolitan.uk/subscribe [https://www.themetropolitan.uk/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

September '24: Blank Space

It’s back to school season, so this month’s podcast is Rowan Davies [https://substack.com/profile/1428699-rowan-davies] reading her piece about the experience of sending your children away to become adults (allegedly). Our theme music is Otra vez by friend of the show S F Gallardo, who you can find on Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/artist/7AbpSsJtpawiPfwU6kkVwz?si=DbnXverqSU-f6fuz-oYWxQ] and Bandcamp [https://sfgallardo.bandcamp.com/album/2020] Related essays from September 2024 include: Get full access to The Metropolitan at www.themetropolitan.uk/subscribe [https://www.themetropolitan.uk/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

August '24: Ballet Shoes

We’ve been re-reading a lot of children’s books this month, so this month’s podcast is Rowan Davies [https://substack.com/profile/1428699-rowan-davies] reading her piece on Noel Streatfeild’s Ballet Shoes. Our theme music is Otra vez by friend of the show S F Gallardo, who you can find on Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/artist/7AbpSsJtpawiPfwU6kkVwz?si=DbnXverqSU-f6fuz-oYWxQ] and Bandcamp [https://sfgallardo.bandcamp.com/album/2020] Related essays from August 2024 include: The Metropolitan podcast features readings of pieces from our archive, but you read tomorrow’s podcasts today by subscribing. Get full access to The Metropolitan at www.themetropolitan.uk/subscribe [https://www.themetropolitan.uk/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

July '24: Oh, what a lovely war games!

We’ve been writing around the 55th anniversary of the Moon landings this month, so here’s another piece about 1969 and another anniversary for this month. We’re now twice as far from the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand as we are from Apollo 11. 28th July 1914: the start of the First World War. Our theme music is Otra vez by friend of the show S F Gallardo, who you can find on Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/artist/7AbpSsJtpawiPfwU6kkVwz?si=DbnXverqSU-f6fuz-oYWxQ] and Bandcamp [https://sfgallardo.bandcamp.com/album/2020] Related essays from July 2024 include: The Metropolitan podcast features readings of essays from our archive, but you can get the jump on it by subscribing and reading those essays as they’re published. Get full access to The Metropolitan at www.themetropolitan.uk/subscribe [https://www.themetropolitan.uk/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]