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1 August 2007: The Bookshop Game

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1 August 2007: The Bookshop Game

 

Scott and the team call up real bookshops asking for made-up books with ridiculous titles and author names, catching the booksellers’ increasingly baffled responses.

This is a playful wind-up feature where the show rings random bookshops and requests fictional titles. The first call targets Apple Bookshop, asking for “Bubbles in the Bath Tub” by Windy Bottom — the bookseller gamely tries to look it up but eventually admits defeat. The second attempt is at a book centre, where the caller enquires about “Songs of the Thrush” by Mobitsa Ritchie, steering the bookseller toward the romantic fiction section before the joke becomes clear. A third bookshop call involves an even more chaotic exchange, with the caller deliberately mumbling and repeating nonsensical author names to create maximum confusion. The feature plays on the genuine helpfulness of bookshop staff, who initially try to assist before realizing they’re being had. It’s a classic prank-call style game that plays well to radio — the humour comes partly from the absurdity of the fake titles and partly from the awkward moment when the bookseller catches on.

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August 2007 Podcasts

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