Happy Current Rainy Season, all! Brother Bernard has not been exactly dormant throughout the year-plus of silence from the Tales of Britain blog, though he has been known to hibernate for a generation or three. It's true that the arrival of Nephew Neddy has slowed the output of fresh folktales, or legendary site visits*, but…
THE TRUE HISTORY OF THE BLACK ADDER STRIKES BACK!
The sound of hooves is coming back over the glen… Oh yes, the Blackadder 40th anniversary may be in evidence on Channel Davy Gold and suchlike, in the Royal Mail stamps and Sir Tony's new Cunningcast thing, but some of us have been building up to the 40th anniversary of the greatest sitcom in (and…
Bath Plug Award 2022: Sandi Toksvig
https://youtu.be/iLXS_zig8q8 After losing Neil Innes, and then having two years of pandemic hiatus, to be honest, I thought that after a short run, The Bath Plug Award had had its day. We had tried, over the years: from Terry Jones in 2015 to Arthur Smith in 2019, but the original plan to have guests interviewed…
Clue at 50: I’m Sorry I Haven’t a Present!
Half a century ago this evening, the only partially suspecting Radio 4 audience were first treated to 'the sound of time wasting', the all-new quiz show spin-off from the most ribald and funky comedy show of the 1960's, I'm Sorry I'll Read That Again. Admittedly, the very first pilot had been recorded the previous November…
BARRY CRYER: “That’s it!”
Baz has gone, then. I'm Sorry, it's happened again. You don't ask for selfies when you're out the back of the pub having a fag and a natter, so this is one of the few photos of me and Barry – with Bath Comedy Festival boss Nick Steel and comedy music legend Ronnie Golden, just…
TALES OF BRITAIN: Not Quite Autumn 2021
Far away, in the top left-hand corner of Wales… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fUodJgbfIhk As that crazy little thing called Mabon encroaches, I surely have to apologise for getting a little 'What-I-Did-On-Me-Holidays', but a honeymoon with my beloved in the folklore-steeped hills of Snowdonia, coinciding with the long-gestated second volume of TALES OF BRITAIN ON AUDIBLE, has meant a…
TALES OF BRITAIN: Only Just Summer 2021
Only days from Mabon and the autumnal equinox, after so long in the wilderness for Brother Bernard (besides one return to Tintagel, see above and below*), we have an exciting Folklore Thursday announcement! After months of graft (it was designed as a spring/summer release – thanks, Audible) TALES OF BRITAIN VOLUME 2 IS FINALLY UP…
TALES OF BRITAIN: Autumn 2020
Thursday, 29 October 2020 Samhain Announcement: TOB on Audible! FREE AUDIOBOOK GIVEAWAY BELOW! This blog was originally posted before Hallowe'en, in time for TALES OF BRITAIN VOLUME 1 to be available on Audible. The whole idea was, rather than putting up the entire book, we'd do small volumes of themed tales, seasonally released throughout a…
FAB FOOLS 5: THEY’VE ARRIVED…
... And to prove it, they're here! PREVIOUSLY, ON FAB FOOLS: 1 – 2 – 3 – 4! Happy Fab Fools Friday, lovely nits! Here's just a little mini-mini online author event to thank everyone who made this book finally a reality! https://youtu.be/LcnMmUV8-bo As I say in the vid, the books won't be hitting shops until the spring, but it only…
TALES OF BRITAIN: Spring 2020
Wednesday, 17 June 2020 The Three Little Pigs: Huffing & Puffing https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JCmfJw84HhM A very WARM Folklore Thursday this week – and the last of our weekly lockdown stories! This all began because of the lovely feedback from home-schoolers about our second such tale – The Three Bears! And so it only seems right to come…
Jem Roberts 