Backstage at the Vinyl Cafe welcomes listeners into the warm and comforting world of the Vinyl Cafe. Each episode features stories about Canada’s favourite fictional family: Dave, Morley and the kids, narrated by the late Stuart McLean and recorded live in concert. For the first time ever, long-time producer Jess Milton shares rare, behind-the-scenes stories from her 15 years touring, travelling, laughing, and recording with her close friend Stuart.This is a world that is rooted in kindness, connection, and the laughter of recognition. A world that brings people together to rejoice in our ridiculousness. A world where we celebrate the small triumphs over the adversities of the everyday: like trying to find the perfect gift for someone you love, or the first Christmas without your sister; like trying to stage manage the school Christmas pageant, or trying to defrost a turkey with a hairdryer (we’ve all done that, right?).Join us. New episodes every Friday.www.vinylcafe.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
PodSkip has analyzed 3 episodes of Backstage at the Vinyl Cafe, averaging 1.7 ads per episode (1% of runtime).
Loading In - The Lost Chords & The World’s Smallest Record Store
Oct 16, 2026
“Dave thought, it will never get any better than this. Some people have God, and some people have money, and some people don’t have anything at all. I have this. I have the beat and the back beat.”On…
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It's Arthurs Time!
Oct 09, 2026
“When Stuart stepped off his bus and waved goodbye, he thought to himself: This guy deserves an award.”Happy Canadian Thanksgiving! This week: shout-outs to some new Arthur nominees and a selection…
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Performance - Kenny Wong and the Tank of Tranquility
Oct 02, 2026
“When things go wrong, when, it is seldom the result of some big thing, it is always a chain of simple things, almost all of them avoidable.”What makes a good performer? What makes a great…
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M’Chigeeng - Le Morte D’Arthur
Sep 25, 2026
This week we’re spending the entire episode on beautiful Manitoulin Island. We have Stuart’s opening essay from our wonderful visit back in 2010, plus a story exchange and a very special Vinyl Café…
Looking Good - The Hairdresser & The House Next Door
Sep 18, 2026
“Coming into Dave and Morley’s house is a bit of a challenge. You have to really want to get in.”There’s how things look…. And how things actually are! Today on the pod, two stories about looking…
School Days - School Lunch & Planet Boy
Sep 11, 2026
“Just one day, she wanted one of them to come home and say ‘Gee, lunch was good.’”The alarm clocks are set, the pencils are sharpened, the backpack is loaded. It’s September! We’re back to school and…
Season 8 - Starting September 11th
Sep 04, 2026
Whether you've been on the road, by the lake or curled up with a good book, we hope you have enjoyed your summer. We are so looking forward to welcoming you back to the Vinyl Cafe. We have more of…
REWIND WEDNESDAY: All’s Well That Ends Well – Car Wash & Murphy’s Bar Mitzvah
Aug 26, 2026
"Thank God, he thought, help has arrived.”Dave tries to be helpful by offering to take Mary Turlington’s car to the car wash — but things don’t go exactly as planned. No stranger to car wash…
REWIND WEDNESDAY: Summer Things - Dave and Morley, Dancing
Aug 19, 2026
"Dave said: 'You're thinking about dancing, aren't you?'"We’re looking towards summer on today’s episode. We have a script Stuart wrote about a magical evening spent in pursuit of fireflies. And a…
We Regret to Inform You: Rejecting the Goalie Mask
Aug 12, 2026
Today we bring you an episode from our friends at the Apostrophe Podcast Network – one of the most-loved shows from the podcast ‘We Regret to Inform You.’If you’re new to the pod, it’s a series that…
REWIND WEDNESDAY: The Cricket - The Cricket & I Need to Pee
Aug 05, 2026
“He’s not well, Stuart.”We’re going way back today with two pieces from pre-Vinyl Cafe days! One is a favourite you’ve been requesting, back from Stuart McLean’s regular appearances on Peter…
REWIND WEDNESDAY: Hero Dave - The Yoga Retreat & Dave's Truck
Jul 29, 2026
“Dave chose Happy Hour: Three honey-mint-refresh-colonic cocktails.”The Yoga Retreat: a place of well-being, calm and reflection. Usually. But not always; or not for Dave and Stephanie, at least…
REWIND WEDNESDAY: Seeds of Hope - The Fig Tree & Morley's Garden
Jul 22, 2026
“Eugene’s fig tree is the best-known tree in the neighbourhood.”We’re all about gardening on the podcast this week, with two Dave and Morley stories about the act of faith and hope that goes into…
Under the Influence - Setting the Table: Best Opening Stories
Jul 15, 2026
This week we bring you an episode from another Apostrophe Podcast network show: Under the Influence with Terry O'Reilly. In this episode, Terry shares some of his best opening stories of all time…
REWIND WEDNESDAY: Bonus Episode - The Boy Who Went Over the Falls
Jul 08, 2026
In this bonus episode you’ll hear my conversation with Roger Woodward, the boy who went over the Falls. You loved hearing his remarkable story in our Niagara Falls episode (back in October 2023) and…
REWIND WEDNESDAY: There’s No Place Like Home - Tree of Heaven & Burd
Jul 01, 2026
“She was a woodland bird, in the middle of the city, way off course, and she had landed at his feeder.”Stuart McLean tells two Dave and Morley stories that explore the idea of home in its various…
Summer in the City - The Waterslide & Rosemary Honey
Jun 19, 2026
“This waterslide was the waterslide to end all waterslides” School’s – almost – out for summer! For our final episode of this season we've got the podcast equivalent of a banger end-of-year pool…
Summer Adventures - MacCaulay’s Mountain & Letter from Camp
Jun 12, 2026
"This is the first summer Sam has been in Big Narrows without Dave and Morley..."We are so ready for summer here! Are you? So on today’s podcast we’re talking summer adventures, start to finish, with…
Dads - Field Trip & Dave and the Rollercoaster
Jun 05, 2026
We're a few weeks early, I know, but this week on the podcast we’re celebrating Dads! We’ve got two hilarious stories about Dave’s parenting adventures.Ad-free listening is here! Listen to the pod…
My Dying Wish - Dave Buys a Coffin & Dad is Dying
May 29, 2026
What song would you want played at your funeral? Dave starts thinking about that in our first story and ends by taking funeral preparation to a whole new level! Our second story is also about death…
Eugene Double Bill - Rendi & Eugene's Teeth
May 22, 2026
“It has been many long years since he sunk his teeth into anything.”On this week’s episode, two stories about everyone’s favourite Vinyl Cafe neighbour: Eugene! And Jess notices some similarities…
Gone Fishing - Curse of the Crayfish & Mabou
May 15, 2026
“I swear I smelled his breath.”We’ve got another Postcard from Canada for you today. It’s about the town of Mabou, Cape Breton, but it’s also about the art of fly fishing. And we’ve got a Dave &…
Where We Gather - Fire at the Old Town Hall
May 08, 2026
“Everyone in town heard the lightning hit.”We’re talking about gathering places on this week’s episode; those vital places that serve our communities in so many ways. We start with a piece Stuart…
Grandparents are the Best Parents -The Mermaid and Other Mysteries & Summer of Stars
May 01, 2026
“And then one night … there were shooting stars.” Today on the pod, two stories set in Dave’s hometown of Big Narrows, Nova Scotia, stories where the grandparents step in to help, and to work their…
Community – Defibrillator
Apr 24, 2026
“It’s not clear who thought up the defibrillator”On today’s episode, we’re talking about community. We’ll play one of Stuart’s opening scripts, about an inspiring community project that we learned…
Cat show - Jim and Molly the Cat
Apr 17, 2026
"Galway began flushing the toilet again in the autumn…"For all you cat lovers out there, today is your day. Today on the show we’re all about our feline friends, with two hilarious stories about the…
Feedback Episode - Odd Jobs & The Turlingtons’ Dog
Apr 10, 2026
“It would work so much better if we could plug the toaster in at the table”Two of your most-requested Vinyl Cafe stories on this week’s show. Some vintage Stuart McLean, at your service! Ad-free…
More Postcards from Canada – Tofino & Halifax
Apr 03, 2026
You asked, we listened! So, this week on the pod, we’ve got two more of Stuart’s love letters to this country, what we call his Postcards from Canada.Ad-free listening is here! Listen to the pod…
Fun on Wheels - Cat in the Car & Dave and the Bike
Mar 27, 2026
"He looked like a kid on a roller coaster. But not one of the happy ones.”On today’s episode, two stories about transportation—and what happens when it takes on a life of its own (with a little help…
Je Ne Sais Quoi - Petit Lac Noir & Montreal
Mar 20, 2026
“Bonjour,” he said. “Je m’appelle Dave.”Stuart loved Quebec and was proud to have grown up there. That influence is apparent in so many of his stories. We’ll play one of them today. Plus one of his…
