Radio plays revived: 2RPH celebrates a first with local storytellers

A collaboration between theatre and radio is being revived with local community station, 2RPH bringing the Sydney production Little Fictions, to the airwaves.

The Little Fictions theatre group, which produces and presents original Australian theatre in inner city Sydney, are now producing and broadcasting special five-minute fictions for their neighbours 2RPH. 2RPH broadcasts 119 hours of radio per week (excluding the nightly BBC broadcast) from its Glebe-based station and has over 106,000 weekly listeners.

Little Fictions On Air has been made especially for Radio Reading Service 2RPH, Sydney’s only radio station serving those who are ‘audio reliant’ i.e have a disability or condition which inhibits their access to visual published material. 

Little Fictions is a live performance which brings together Australian stories and local acting talent. Its monthly performance is held at the Drum Room, Know Street Bar, in Chippendale and provides a unique return to mesmerising stories. Its on-air version is another adaptation of storytelling and one which was so popular in Australia until as late as the 1970’s. Radio plays such as Blue Hills, Night Beat, Portia Faces Life and No Holiday for Halliday.

Di Collins, Chair of 2RPH says she has fond memories of radio plays,

“As a child growing up in the country I developed an enduring love of radio plays. From Superman through to Blue Hills radio plays were a common feature of entertainment and were provided by almost all radio stations. Little Fictions will be a reminder of those days, and I’m excited to be able to tune in and hear some fresh Australian radio theatre”.

Sancha Donald, General Manager of 2RPH says,

“We are pleased to partner with Little Fictions. The partnership provides an additional platform for new Australian literature and spearheads a new wave of material for 2RPH.”

Little Fictions producer Bronwyn Mehan also runs Spineless Wonders which specialises in publishing short stories. She says that the partnership with 2RPH provides a unique opportunity to share contemporary Australian stories with a wide audience.

“Our live Little Fictions shows were very popular with local audiences,” Mehan says, “and now they can find new listeners via community radio. The show is hosted by Little Fictions’ actor, Ella Watson-Russell who presents interviews with authors and actors as well as stories – light-hearted, satirical and serious and exploring a range of themes.”

Recently, Little Fictions performed at 2RPH’s Mid-Year Celebration, a gathering of volunteers, members, staff and listeners as a way to showcase the new program. The celebration recognised those loyal volunteers who have been contributing their service to the station for over 20 years. Local member for Balmain MP Jamie Parker was in attendance and presented the volunteers with their certificates.