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What do we reach for when our heart is broken, and reading an entire novel feels completely beyond us?

In this episode, I welcome back poetry anthologist Ana Sampson to talk about her wonderful new collection, You Can Do It With a Broken Heart, a book of poems for anyone weathering the end of a relationship.

Ana and I talk about why poetry can be particularly powerful when we’re distressed: short enough for a depleted attention span, but capable of delivering an emotional gut-punch in just a few lines. We explore the strange universality of heartbreak, from the devastation of a first teenage breakup to the grief, rage and disorientation of losing a relationship later in life.

We also discuss the five stages Ana uses to shape the collection, moving from It’s Going Wrong through I Miss You and the gloriously necessary I Hate You, before reaching Picking Up the Pieces and A New Dawn. Not because recovery is ever neat or linear, but because sometimes we need a poem that meets us exactly where we are.

Along the way we talk about reclaiming places haunted by memories, the comfort of discovering that someone else has felt what we are feeling, and why the arts may sometimes have more to offer a broken heart than conventional medicine. There’s also Wendy Cope, Edna St Vincent Millay, Derek Walcott, Sophie Hannah, the therapeutic possibilities of bedazzling, and the excellent concept of a "bedazzle and bitch” party.

A warm, funny and very honest conversation about heartbreak, poetry, friendship and the gradual discovery that, eventually, there might just be a glimmer of light again.

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In this episode of Bedside Reading, I’m joined by Emily Tammam to talk about Virginia Evans' The Correspondent, a novel told through the letters and emails of 73-year-old Sybil Van Antwerp. What begins as a conversation about a wonderfully prickly older woman and the lost art of letter-writing takes us into much deeper territory.

Emily is a writer, painter and speaker. She has a background in lactation support and now works across research, mental health support and children's palliative care. She Her daughter Neve was diagnosed with brain cancer and died after being supported by children's palliative care, an experience that has profoundly shaped Emily's subsequent work and writing.

We talk about writing as a way of making sense of our experiences, and about what letters might leave behind when we are no longer here. We explore Sybil's relationships, including the value of friendships across generations and the importance of the wider, chosen families who may sometimes provide something our biological families cannot.

At the heart of our conversation is grief. Emily and I discuss how the death of a child changes not just an individual but relationships across a whole family, and whether grief and trauma sometimes need to be understood as related but separate experiences. We wonder how much attitudes to bereavement have changed between generations, and what happens when loss becomes something that simply cannot be spoken about.

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This week Tara is joined by fellow GP Francesca to discuss Lisa Ridzén’s beautiful and heartbreaking novel When the Cranes Fly South.

Bo is an elderly man determined to remain in his own home, surrounded by his memories and, most importantly, his beloved dog Sixten. But as he becomes increasingly frail, his son and carers have different ideas about what is best for him.

Tara and Francesca talk about ageing, family relationships, continuity of care and the difficult balance between keeping somebody safe and preserving the things that make their life worth living. They also consider a question that sits at the heart of both the novel and good healthcare: what matters most to the person themselves?

There’s also discussion of dogs, difficult sons, wonderful carers, the joys and perils of audiobooks, and why this relatively short novel resulted in quite so many tears.

A gentle, moving book that stays with you long after you’ve finished it.

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I think Michelle Hills' book The Wrong Order of Things is a contender for my non-fiction read of the year in 2026. It is so readable. It is so engaging. It is funny. It is moving. It is kind. Michelle is an absolute inspiration. I have absolutely loved my conversation with her today and I can't tell you how much I loved The Wrong Order of Things. It is, ostensibly, a book about children's palliative care. But it is that. and so much more. It's about living well. It's about humour. It's about connection and love and life. It really is one of the most brilliantly life affirming and beautiful books that I think everybody should be reading and I have absolutely loved talking to Michelle.

Follow Michelle on Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/michellehills_dr/

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Caroline Litman's memoir, Her Name is Alice, was one of my top reads of 2025. And so it feels like a real honour today to welcome Caroline herself to Bedside Reading to talk about her absolutely brilliant book.

This is a memoir. It is about Caroline's life. She's a former doctor, turned Pilates teacher, turned writer and activist. And it is a book about her family.

It's a book about her daughter, Alice, who died by suicide at the age of 20. It's a book about grief. And it's a book about identity and most particularly the fact that Alice was trans and the difficulties that Alice had in articulating this and then in receiving anything like appropriate care.
There are so many lessons that we can learn from this book, and I feel really privileged that Caroline has chosen to come and join me today talk about it.

It's a book I will never forget. it is absolutely brilliant, and I would thoroughly, thoroughly recommend it.

The systematic review Caroline recommends is:
Society for Evidence-Based Gender Medicine. The “Utah Review” of Hormonal Treatments for Gender-Dysphoric Minors: A Methodological Appraisal. April 2, 2026. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.19388024

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Welcome to Season 13 of Bedside Reading.

In this episode, I am delighted to be joined by Dr Helen Haynes, to discuss her novel A Bridge Across Minds: Mental Illness, Grief and the Fragile Brain.

Helen is an old age psychiatrist and, as the saying goes, writers are often encouraged to write about what they know. Set on an older adults' psychiatric ward, this is not a textbook or a clinical guide. Instead, it is a beautifully written work of reflective fiction that explores mental illness, grief, relationships and the complexities of being human. It is a thoughtful and compassionate novel that I thoroughly enjoyed reading.

This conversation feels particularly timely. On 17 September, we mark the Memorial Day for Healthcare Professionals Who Have Died by Suicide. Helen felt strongly that we should acknowledge this day and the important conversations it prompts.

Healthcare professionals face an increased risk of suicide, and many colleagues may be struggling in silence. In this episode, we reflect on the importance of recognising distress, supporting one another, and ensuring that help is available when it is needed.

Although we touch on themes of mental illness, grief and suicide, this is ultimately a conversation about people, their lives, and the importance of compassion, connection and support. We hope listeners will find it thoughtful and hopeful rather than depressing.

As we approach 17 September, we encourage everyone to take a moment to remember colleagues who have died by suicide and to familiarise themselves with the support services available for healthcare professionals.

Resources and Support

Links to resources, support services and information about the Memorial Day for Healthcare Professionals Who Have Died by Suicide can be found below.

https://www.practitionerhealth.nhs.uk/national-suicide-memorial-day

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As we reach the end of Season 12, I'm delighted to close with a truly special conversation.

In this episode, I speak with author, illustrator, educator, and autism advocate Eliza Fricker about her latest book, Could Try Harder. Written in a graphic novel format, the book draws on Eliza's own experiences growing up as an autistic girl and young woman who remained undiagnosed until her mid 40s.

Many listeners may already know Eliza through her writing and illustrations, or from her widely recognised social media presence under the name "Missing the Mark". Through her work, she has helped countless people better understand autism, neurodivergence, and the realities of navigating a world that often misunderstands autistic experiences.

Could Try Harder is an insightful, accessible, and deeply relatable read. Combining humour, honesty, and striking illustrations, Eliza shares her journey from childhood through to adulthood, offering a powerful perspective on identity, belonging, and late diagnosis.

Preparing for this conversation was a joy, not least because Eliza has long been one of my social media heroes. Thankfully, despite the saying that you should never meet your heroes, this meeting exceeded all expectations.

It feels like the perfect way to bring another great season to a close.

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I'm delighted to welcome Ian Seymour to Bedside Reading to discuss the first two novels in Armistead Maupin's beloved Tales of the City series: Tales of the City and More Tales of the City.

These are books I have returned to repeatedly throughout my adult life, and each time I revisit them, I discover something new to love. Rich in warmth, humour, compassion, and humanity, Maupin's novels continue to resonate decades after their original publication.

One of the great pleasures of this conversation was discovering just how much Ian also loves these books. Together, we explore what makes the series so enduring and why the residents of 28 Barbary Lane continue to feel so relevant today.

As well as celebrating these brilliant novels, we reflect on what they can teach us about community, belonging, identity, and acceptance. We discuss their significance not only as readers and lovers of literature, but also as doctors, considering how the stories might shape our understanding of the people and communities we serve.

Whether you're revisiting these books or discovering them for the first time, this conversation is a celebration of a series that has touched generations of readers and continues to offer insight, comfort, and joy.

Pride in Practice

We discuss the Pride in Practice programme during the episode. Pride in Practice is an LGBTQ+ inclusion programme designed to support primary care services in improving the experiences of LGBTQ+ patients.

Find out more here: https://lgbt.foundation/help/pride-in-practice/