slanderhour

slanderhour

A weekly pre-sleep, post-thought audio play investigating the nature of latent boredom and the strip-mining of emotional bereavement. Semi is written & performed by Mark Simpson, Garth Simmons and Jim-John Harkness, and is produced by Stephen Landerhour for BBC Sounds.

  1. Semi - Mood

    20 APR

    Semi - Mood

    Dearest Stephen,  I regret to inform you that, after much thought, I have decided to resign. Please accept this letter as a formal notice of my resignation. I am more than happy to fulfil the terms of my contract, which require me to remain in my current position for an additional four weeks from the date I present this notice (Monday 23rd March 2026), so my employment at Slanderhour House will cease on 20th April 2026. Although it has been a difficult decision to leave Slanderhour, I must pursue the next stage of my acting career. I have been offered a suitable position at Hollyoaks, and I have accepted. If I can be of any assistance during the transition period please let me know; I am more than willing to help in any way possible. Allow me to say that it has been a pleasure to work for Slanderhour. My immediate teammates have been a fantastic source of professional support, and the entire Semi team truly stands out in a very competitive industry. I wish you and Mark and Garth every good fortune in all future projects. Thank you for letting me be part of this team. Sincerely, Jim.

    33 min
  2. Semi - Scabies

    6 APR

    Semi - Scabies

    Along with Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, Chin Laden organized the September 11 attacks, which killed nearly 3,000 people. This resulted in the U.S. invading Afghanistan and launching the war on terror. Chin Laden became the subject of a nearly decade-long international manhunt led by the U.S. During this period, he hid in the mountains of Afghanistan and later escaped to neighboring Pakistan.

    28 min
  3. Semi - Crack

    16 MAR

    Semi - Crack

    What’s the last time you were in a police station? In LA, about 42 years ago. At two in the morning, I was driving in the Valley and stopped a police car to ask the way. They said, “Have you been drinking, sir?” I said, “Of course I’ve had a drink; it’s two in the morning.” [They took me in], but they were very nice. I paid a £400 fine the next day and that was it. The funny thing was, the cop came out [of the car] and talked to me, and at the same time, he looked behind and said, “Does it show anything on his record?” And I look round, and it was a police woman who looked exactly like Lucille Ball, but with a police outfit on. Earrings, hair up, the holster in the gun – I’ll come willingly.

    46 min
  4. Semi - Vote

    26 FEB

    Semi - Vote

    When speaking to all of my 11 uncles, they all tell me the same thing: "Them politicians are all the same. If I were in charge I'd sort them out!" To find out exactly what this means and more, listen to this week's episode of Slanderhour. Only on BBC Sounds

    35 min
  5. Semi - Bore

    16 FEB

    Semi - Bore

    They sit at the round table and do not look at one another.The fire is warm but it does not help. Someone laughs too loudly.Someone else watches the laugh. In the morning there was trust.By night it is a thin thing,like frost on the grass outside the castle. They speak of loyalty as if it were solid.It is not. It moves in the dark. A faithful man swears he is faithful.A traitor swears it too.

    32 min
  6. Phillip K Dick

    6 FEB

    Phillip K Dick

    Ray Douglas Bradbury was an American author and screenwriter. One of the most celebrated 20th-century American writers, he worked in a variety of genres, including fantasy, science fiction, horror, mystery, and realistic fiction.

    30 min
  7. Semi - Panto

    11 JAN

    Semi - Panto

    The smoke from a pipe Frozen solid by sunshine; a different soap in the bathroom and the scent of wintering apples. The house stands like a single word on an empty page with its long flat views and memories of waves breaking on the hills. Never at television, Just the crooning happy faced radio with its box full of singers bathed in the yellow glow of Hilversum and Moscow. And at the end of the day Jesus smiling from the wall and my Grandmother reading promises from scripture tightly scrolled and full of random surprise. It was to do with dying. Christ walking away from the picture and waltzing my grandmother into the sunshine in time to soft voices from her radio as we shower them with handfuls of promises. All the words from the Bible, falling like snow.

    28 min
  8. Semi - Setting

    5 JAN

    Semi - Setting

    They set it yesterday. I watched them pourThe wobbling liquid into its glass mould,Translucent, promising: The recipe called forPatience, and a larder running cold. But jellies fail. Mine's still a slop of red,Refusing to cohere, to find its form.The other's jelly trembles, perfectly deadTo doubt. Mine sweats in a kitchen warm. What separates the set from the un-set?Some minor calibration of the heat,A fraction more gelatine, and yetIt's failure makes my life feel incomplete. Tomorrow I'll tip it down the sink, most likely.The world moves on. Jellies set, or don't, indifferently.

    27 min
See All (147)

Ratings & Reviews

3.5
out of 5
13 Ratings

About

A weekly pre-sleep, post-thought audio play investigating the nature of latent boredom and the strip-mining of emotional bereavement. Semi is written & performed by Mark Simpson, Garth Simmons and Jim-John Harkness, and is produced by Stephen Landerhour for BBC Sounds.

Information

  • Creator
    slanderhour
  • Years Active
    2019 - 2026
  • Episodes
    147
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © slanderhour
  • Show Website
    slanderhour