AustLit

'This year, the ABR Elizabeth Jolley Short Story Prize received nearly 1500 entries from thirty-six different countries, a record field. Placed third was ‘A Fall from Grace’ by John Richards. The story is the first work of historical fiction to appear on the shortlist of the Jolley Prize. In today’s episode, listen to the author read ‘A Fall from Grace’, which our judges described as ‘a deliciously enigmatic story, rich in the overtones of the international canon: Balzac, Calvino, Borges. Set in pre-revolutionary rural France, a talented painter’s career receives an unforeseen jolt that simultaneously shadows his life and propels his work from realist proficiency to metaphysical greatness.’'(Production summary)

'Outland is a six-part comedy series about a gay science fiction fan club and the lives, loves and never-ending dramas of its five members. There's Max (Toby Truslove), insecure and looking for love; the sexually-adventurous, muffin-baking Andy (Paul Ireland); Rae (Christine Anu), the moral centre and unofficial head of the group; the high-camp, high-maintenance Fab (Adam Richard); and the wealthy but socially-inept Toby (Ben Gerrard). It's an odd, and often precarious combination of personalities. Every week they meet in each other's homes, but as the meetings become more untenable, a decision has to be made - are they willing to commit to the idea of the group or is it time they went their separate ways? Are the slender things that bind them enough? Can science fiction save them all? Outland is a series about belonging, no matter who you are, and how everyone searches to find a place to fit in.' (Source: ABC website)