Local author Jan Carson's new story series 'Moving Mountains' is set to begin this weekend on BBC Radio 4.
Ballymena-born Jan's newest five-part story is set in rural Northern Ireland, where the locals are horrified to learn that Slemish mountain - traditionally believed to be where Saint Patrick was brought to tend sheep before finding God - has been sold to a Japanese theme park.
However on the day Slemish is to be removed and shipped across the world the diggers are beset by protesters, politicians and the Ballymena townsfolk caught in between.
After a recent preview of her brand new story series, Jan quipped:
"Just got a sneaky listen to my new Radio 4 series Moving Mountains in which Ballymena Council sell Slemish to a Japanese theme park, and it is A. Excellent stuff. And B. The most Ballymena accents I've ever heard on a radio station that isn't Radio Cracker!"
Read by Ballymena native Jo Donnelly, 'Moving Mountains' begins this evening, Sunday 24th September at 7:45pm, on BBC Radio 4, and afterwards available on-demand at BBC Sounds.
Author Jan Carson
Born in Ballymena, Jan Carson is a writer and community arts facilitator. Her novel ‘The Fire Starters’ was awarded the EU Prize for Literature 2019 and the author was acclaimed as “one of the most exciting and original Northern Irish writers of her generation” by the Sunday Times.
Her most recent novel ‘The Raptures’ was shortlisted for the Irish Book Awards Novel of the Year and the Kerry Group Novel of the Year. She has also written ‘Wings’ for BBC Three, ‘UnRaveling’ for BBC Radio 3, ‘The Last Resort’ for BBC Radio 4 and was shortlisted for the BBC National Short Story Award 2020. She was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in 2023.
Her new short story collection ‘Quickly, While They Still Have Horses’ will be published in 2024.
Reader: Jo Donnelly
Writer: Jan Carson
Producer: Michael Shannon
Editor: Andy Martin
A BBC Northern Ireland production.