The Waterstones Podcast

Mar 04 2025 156 ep. 33 mins 337
The Waterstones Podcast artwork

Going beyond the book with a wide range of authors to discover the story behind the books we love.

  Arts
RSS feed Share
Copy RSS


Subscribe on Podcast Addict


Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Mar 04 2025 20 mins  
When you've waited ten years for a new novel from one of the world's literary luminaries, you want to know as much as you can from the author. We were delighted to sit down and speak with Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie about her new novel, Dream Count, to find out why it took a decade to finish, what binds its four female characters, and what in turn connects them to her readers.

Mark Steel

Feb 25 2025 28 mins  
Mark Steel brings his trademark humour to his account of cancer diagnosis, treatment and recovery but is sure not to pull any punches whilst he’s at it. When confronted with your own mortality, what lessons are learned about life, love and the time we have to enjoy it? We sat down with the comedian and writer to learn more about the miracle of the NHS, what not to say as the anae

Kate Mosse

Feb 18 2025 41 mins  
2025 is a big year for Kate Mosse. Celebrating the 20th anniversary of her bestselling novel, Labyrinth, and the 30th winner of the prize she helped found, The Women’s Prize, we had lots to talk about. Did Labyrinth feel any different to the books that preceded it at the time of writing, what were the sparks for setting up a literary prize that has changed the landscape of publis

Andrew O'Hagan

Feb 14 2025 69 mins  
Andrew O’Hagan’s Caledonian Road was one of 2024’s bestselling novels, with readers delighting in his searing portrayal of privilege punctured in a changing world. To celebrate its arrival in paperback we’re thrilled to share the conversation from his recent event with Natalie Jamieson at Waterstones Piccadilly, in which he shares the connections between his characters, his

Jojo Moyes

Feb 11 2025 29 mins  
Bestselling authorJojo Moyes knows how to create characters and relationships which engage her readers and We All Live Here is no exception. A blended family is tested to its limits when estranged members suddenly appear to upset a fragile balance but might happiness appear on the other side of the drama? We spoke with her about characters who appear fully realised, why acceptance

Han Kang

Feb 04 2025 45 mins  
When Han Kang accepted the Nobel Prize for Literature at the end of 2024, she spoke about the thread that connects her writing, from a poem she wrote at the age of 8, all the way through to her latest novel, We Do Not Part. We were delighted to be able to speak to her from South Korea about the questions that drive her writing, the themes of her latest novel and where that thread m

Holly Bourne

Jan 14 2025 23 mins  
Four university friends now in their thirties are all experiencing their own takes on motherhood in the new novel from Holly Bourne, and a baby shower for one of them becomes the scene of a unique whodunnit. We sat down to speak with her about her own experiences with a baby who just wouldn't sleep, her run-in with a Rotary Club Santa, and why she's only happy as a writer if the pr

Dr Julie Smith

Jan 07 2025 29 mins  
After the success of her first book, Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before? ⁠Dr Julie Smith⁠ wanted to create a new book, something to turn to when you find yourself in the eye of the storm. Whether it's lack of confidence, willpower or the feeling of overwhelm that are leaving you in stasis, this book offers support and real time tools to help get you moving in the right directio

Samantha Harvey

Dec 18 2024 67 mins  
Shortly after her Booker Prize win, we were delighted to host Samantha Harvey in conversation with Chief Executive of the Booker Prize Foundation, Gaby Wood, at Waterstones Piccadilly. In a wide-ranging conversation we discovered so much about Harvey’s writing process, preoccupations and response to seeing her novel Orbital triumph, and it is our privilege to be able to share tha

Hanif Kureishi

Oct 29 2024 24 mins  
On Boxing Day 2022, whilst in Rome, Hanif Kureishi fell after feeling faint. When he awoke, he realised he couldn't move his limbs, and life changed profoundly for him and those around him. What hadn't changed was his desire to write, and Shattered brings together the blogs that he began just a few days after that accident. We joined him at home to speak about that desire to write,