In 1987, my wife and I shouldered our backpacks and set off from Australia. The plan was to live and work overseas in England for two years, using it as a base for UK and wider world travels. And the widest of these were inspired by reading books like Alan Moorehead's The White Nile and The Blue Nile. The White and Blue Niles is a travel blog post from the Tall And True writers' website, written and narrated by Robert Fairhead. Read the post on Tall And True: https://www.tallandtrue.com.au/blog/the-white-and-blue-niles Read a post about the nine-month overland journey inspired by travel writer ..read more

Have you ever had one of those mornings? You know, where everything goes wrong. It's like a farce, a series of mishaps increasing in frequency and intensity that have you howling with side-splitting laughter or shedding tears of frustration. One of Those Mornings is a short story from the Tall And True writers' website, both written and narrated by Robert Fairhead. Read the story on Tall And True: https://www.tallandtrue.com.au/fiction/short-stories/one-of-those-mornings Read the Five April Stories blog post: https://www.tallandtrue.com.au/blog/five-april-stories Listen to The Winner's Toast ..read more

I've lost a few things over the years but never imagined losing a story! I only realised I'd "lost" A Window Table when I started working on a blog post to mark my fourth anniversary of writing Furious Fictions. However, when I found and read a copy of the story, I didn't recognise its plot or characters. This double-feature episode includes the short story A Window Table and a companion blog post, The Lost and Found Story, from the Tall And True writers' website, both written and narrated by Robert Fairhead. Read A Window Table on Tall And True: https://www.tallandtrue.com.au/fiction/short-st ..read more

Less than forty-eight hours after receiving her online order, Third Age Cybertronics delivered Jack to Daisy, a sprightly centenarian who purchased the Advanced Companion Droid to help her with household chores and carry her bags when travelling. A New Jack is a short story from the Tall And True writers' website, written and narrated by Robert Fairhead. Read the story on Tall And True: https://www.tallandtrue.com.au/fiction/short-stories/a-new-jack Podcast website: https://www.tallandtrueshortreads.com Episode 87 of Tall And True Short Reads, The Lonely Moon: https://www.tallandtrueshortreads ..read more

My first "published" writing was an Enid Blyton-Famous Five-style adventure story, Sand Island, in 1972. I wrote the story and illustrated it with coloured Texta markers. My aunt, the only one in our family with a typewriter, typed up the manuscript. And my father helped bind and cover the book. I was ten. A Good Story is a blog post from the Tall And True writers' website, written and narrated by Robert Fairhead. Read the post and see my illustrations on Tall And True: https://www.tallandtrue.com.au/blog/a-good-story-sand-island Podcast website: https://www.tallandtrueshortreads.com Episode 8 ..read more

Eighteen-year-old Hugo glanced up at the train station clock. It seemed time had stood still, with the minute hand barely moved since he'd last checked. He confirmed the time on his watch and then looked at the departure board, breathing a sigh of relief. His train was running on schedule. Moving On is a short story from the Tall And True writers' website, written and narrated by Robert Fairhead. Read the story on Tall And True: https://www.tallandtrue.com.au/fiction/short-stories/moving-on Read A Dad and Son Road Trip: https://www.tallandtrue.com.au/blog/a-dad-and-son-road-trip Podcast websit ..read more

While sorting through storage boxes at home, I found an old notebook belonging to my son. It wasn't a school exercise book but something he'd jotted and doodled in as a twelve-year-old. Among its random pages was a short story he'd written in 2014 about a father who doesn't have "great ideas". Trigger warning: This episode mentions teenage self-harm and death. Lifeline Australia: https://www.lifeline.org.au/ Finding Inspiration is a blog post from the Tall And True writers' website, written and narrated by Robert Fairhead. Read the post on Tall And True: https://www.tallandtrue.com.au/blog/fin ..read more

If you ask me, the Moon is the best object in the night sky. And you don't need an expensive telescope to observe it. A pair of binoculars does the trick. I'm looking at the Moon now, leaning against a wall to steady my hands, and it's a beautiful sight. No wonder it inspires poets and lovers. The Lonely Moon is a short story from the Tall And True writers' website, written and narrated by Robert Fairhead. Read the story on Tall And True: https://www.tallandtrue.com.au/fiction/short-stories/the-lonely-moon Listen to Some Things Change:  Episode 79 – Perth, Western Australia, 1979: https ..read more

"In space no one can hear you scream. But what if you're deep in the backwoods, in an isolated cabin on a dead-end trail?" Karen set aside the book. A horror story was not ideal reading for the off-grid log cabin Peter had booked for their thirtieth wedding anniversary weekend, especially as she was alone in bed, listening to wind from a storm whistle through cracks in the doors and windows. A Knock at the Door is a short story from the Tall And True writers' website, written and narrated by Robert Fairhead. Read the story on Tall And True: https://www.tallandtrue.com.au/fiction/short-stories ..read more

I'm taking a short break from podcasting because I'm going on a long road trip with my son from Sydney to Western Australia to spend Xmas and New Year with our WA family. But as I did in 2022, I've put together a Kris Kringle collection featuring three episodes from the Tall And True Short Reads archive: Too Late, Lenny, Stuck in Time and Family Reflections. The Kris Kringle - Xmas 2023 stories first appeared on the Tall And True writers' website, written and narrated by Robert Fairhead. Read the stories on Tall And True: • Too Late, Lenny: https://www.tallandtrue.com.au/fiction/short-sto ..read more