meta_pixel
Tapesearch Logo
Log in
Simon Mayo's Books of the Year

John Lanchester Q&A

Simon Mayo's Books of the Year

Bauer Media

Arts, Books

4.9994 Ratings

🗓️ 22 April 2026

⏱️ 20 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Bestselling novelist and journalist, John Lanchester, joins Simon and Matt to answer some of our classic Q&A questions.

We learn about his writing process, his favourite authors, some of his quirks, get some good writing advice - and find out who he'd invite to his fantasy dinner party.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

Changes in sexual performance are more common than most people realize, and support doesn't need to feel awkward.

0:05.8

With MedExpress, everything happens privately online.

0:09.1

Start by completing a short consultation reviewed by UK registered clinicians.

0:13.3

If eligible, treatment is delivered discreetly to your home with ongoing support whenever you need it.

0:18.7

You're not alone in this.

0:20.2

Visit Medexpress.com.

0:21.8

dot UK slash podcast to learn more. Three, two, Sun. EasyJet's big orange sale is now on, with up to

0:30.4

400 pounds off package holidays and up to 20% off flights. Book now at easyjet.com. Get out there. Selected dates and flights,

0:39.4

sail end 5th of May. Holidays minimum spend and attle protected. Tees and Cs apply.

1:03.8

Hello, welcome. It's our bonus Q&A episode of Books of the Year in the studio with best-selling author and journalist at John Lancaster.

1:10.6

John's book is out now if you want a major conversation about the book. That's came, hopefully you heard that just a few days ago. Question number one, John, what is the last book that you really, really enjoyed reading?

1:16.6

Crikey. Does it have to be one?

1:19.5

No, no, no. You're John Lancaster. You can do as many as you like, really.

1:22.8

Well, I really liked Drayton & McKenzie by Alexander Starrett, which has, it's an unusual thing, because it's a novel about friendship and about male friendship and about business, which are two things that you don't often, don't often get treated in very much.

1:35.9

Okay, what's the title again?

1:36.9

Drayton and Mackenzie.

1:38.2

Drayton and Mackenzie.

1:39.1

You want more than one, who?

1:40.8

And then I really liked a very dark, very funny novel called Euro Trash by a Swiss German writer called Christopher Kracht.

1:48.6

It was about going on a road trip with his sort of semi-Nazi dementia suffering alcoholic mother.

1:58.2

Wow.

1:58.4

And it's about how horrible Switzerland is, but it's also very funny. Is she a squid as well? She's sort of madder than that, but yeah, she's a bit of a squid. So, you're a trash, nothing to do with the TV show that was like everywhere. Is it Channel 4 in the 90s? No, it's guaranteed Antoine de Cairn Free. That's the guy I was trying to think of. Okay, Euritrash and Draynickinem McKenzie. So we were talking in the last podcast about screen adaptations. Do you have a favourite screen adaptation of a novel? I mean, is it too boring to say The Godfather? No, you can say the Godfather. I mean, it has come up before because it's very, very good. Do you know that story, sorry, I always love about Mary, because Mario Puzzo, who wrote the novel, Godfather comes out as monster hit. And he worked quite a lot on the screenplay with Coppola and they talked things through. And then they were going to, so decided to make Godfather two at which point Puzozo, because he'd written a bunch of literary novels that hadn't had good rep, but hadn't really taken off. Puzo thought, okay, I have to find out something about screenwriting. So, goes to the book shop, picks up a book on screenwriting, takes it home, he says, in order to learn the craft of screenwriting, you need to begin by studying screenplays and an example of a perfect

...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Bauer Media, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Bauer Media and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.

Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.