Front Row - AL Kennedy, Sam Sweeney performs live, lockdown listening habits

AL Kennedy, Sam Sweeney performs live, lockdown listening habits

Download AL Kennedy, Sam Sweeney performs live, lockdown listening habits

AL Kennedy won the Costa Prize 2007 for her novel Day. She talks about her new book of short stories, the aptly named We Are Attempting to Survive Our Time – a powerful collection about characters living on the edge, from a woman finally snapping at a white man's racist tirade at a zoo, to the host of a podcast revealing why she is haunted by the state of New Mexico.

Sam Sweeney, fiddle player in the trio Leveret and formerly of Bellowhead, has just released his second album, Unearth Repeat. It is, he says, is an un-concept album, where he simply plays the music he loves. He tells Samira what he means and plays a tune.

As our routines are changed beyond recognition, what happens to regular activities like listening to podcasts and radio? Initial statistics suggest that most podcast listening is down, while radio listening is up. Podcasters Caroline Crampton and Joseph Fink consider what this means for listeners and for the people who make audio.

Presenter: Samira Ahmed
Producer: Dymphna Flynn
Studio Manager: Duncan Hannant

Image: AL Kennedy
Credit: Geraint Lewis 2013

Published on Tuesday, 7th April 2020.

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