British Christmas Short Stories

Charles Dickens is known for writing the greatest of all Christmas stories: A Christmas Carol. But few know that he wrote a number of other short stories for that holiday season. Here in one wonderful audio collection are six short stories about Christmas: "A Christmas Tree", "What Christmas Is as We Grow Older", "The Poor Relation's Story", "The Child's Story", "The Schoolboy's Story" and "Nobody's Story".

Read by Juliet Stevenson and Simon Callow, A Literary Christmas is a seasonal anthology that collects together poems, short stories, and prose extracts by some of the greatest poets and writers in the English language. Like Charles Dickens’ ghosts of Christmas Past and Present, they are representative of times old and new - from John Donne’s Elizabethan hymn over the baby Jesus to Rudyard Kipling’s "Christmas in India", from Thomas Tusser counting the cost of a Tudor feast to Laurie Lee’s "Cider with Rosie".

Jack Scrooge is tighter than the proverbial duck’s arse. He’ll hide in t’bog before getting a round in, pays his only clerk three quid an hour, and refuses to put lecky on. But this Christmas Eve, three very unusual ghosts – and a slightly confused whippet – have other plans. Dragged across Yorkshire in one night (and even, God forbid, down south), Jack sees it all: the crackhead carol singers, the boozers he swore he’d never step foot in, and a final phantom so camp it’d make Widow Twanky blush. By morning, even Jack’s frozen heart might thaw – especially when he learns ...

Finn wants precision and calm. His boyfriend, Aly, the charming, chaotic former rower, wants him—and isn't afraid to use a little holiday labour and athletic heat to push Finn's strict boundaries. The other two couples are just as complicated, battling old secrets, simmering jealousies, and the memory of their intense past in the competitive world of rowing. The tension peaks with the arrival of Matt, a handsome Canadian visitor who brings a fresh, unpredictable energy to the house.

Christmas in Stoke-on-Trent turns deadly as heavy snow falls. A killer targets three victims, linked by forty-year-old sins: a poisoned pensioner with a hidden past; a charity worker, hung by Christmas lights; and a carer with a dark secret, tortured to death. Private Detective Tom Blake and criminologist Martha Lennox hunt a killer who’s a literary executioner. The meticulously staged crimes blend Classic Agatha Christie mystery with the moral fury of Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. Sinister warning notes at each scene declare: “I am the Jacob Marley of Death, and there will be more ...

Twelve days. Three couples. One manor house full of forbidden heat. PART TWO! Welcome back to Silverbourne Manor, the grand Oxfordshire estate where tradition meets temptation. In this uncut bonus collection of steamy holiday stories, the six men of Silverbourne return for twelve days of indulgence, confession, and raw desire. This time, the gloves and the clothes come off. Finn, ever the perfectionist, craves peace and order, but his athletic boyfriend Aly has other plans, using Christmas chaos and carnal persuasion to melt Finn’s icy self-control.

"Get ready to be swept away on a sleigh ride of emotions you won't soon forget." In the enchanting embrace of Worthington Hall, a whirlwind of festive delights unfurls as sisters, Annie and Vicky Abbott, step into their new roles as shop owners poised to dive headfirst into the electrifying spirit of Christmas. But amidst the dazzling kaleidoscope of twinkling lights and jubilant decorations, an unanticipated guest is thrown into the mix. Can someone so charming, so seemingly perfect, be too good to be true? Or is Annie allowing the shattering losses of her past to dictate the happiness she...

Snow, Stars - and murder! When Bernie, the star of breakfast show TV Rise & Shine, is murdered in her dressing room, Celebrity Crimes Investigation Agents Abi and Jake are sent undercover just before Christmas to catch the killer. With suspects aplenty, the snow building up outside and the holidays fast approaching, they’ve certainly got their work cut out!

A former Royal Marine and veteran of the Afghan war confronts his past and seeks solace and meaning at Christmas time. A story of inspiration and hope.

Matt is exhausted and short on cash, but when the charismatic couple Freddy and Andy invite him on an impulsive New Year's Eve trip to Berlin, he can't refuse. After spending a charged Christmas at Silverbourne Manor, the Canadian expat knows he wants to be with them—but not the mess that comes with dating.

Rajeev’s caravan remains parked on the roundabout, and the Easter Fair is in full swing. Bruno Mars is still playing on full volume, and the vodka continues to flow through the gals’ veins. Yes, we are back in the crazy world of Sheila Patel. And all is good. Well, nearly. The usual suspects are up to their usual reprehensible tricks. Flying chuppels and flip-flops make way for happy times at the Leeds Road police station. Letters to James Bond segue seamlessly into cricket, Shaz’s birthday celebrations, Diwali fireworks, bobble hats and ghee. further generous helpings of Indian ...

The festive season should be a time for generosity and goodwill, but in Glasgow, Leger finds that is not the case. His human companion's attempt to raise funds for a CT scanner for a local hospital has been thwarted by a callous thief who has stolen decorations from her seasonal garden display. Now Leger resolves to mend Annabella's broken heart by finding the thief. With Ginger nursing her newborn kittens, Isabella confusing him with erratic behaviour and Bob more interested in Hugh's discarded slipper than helping solve this mystery, Leger's only clue comes from an unexpected source - a ...