Folklore, Food and Fairytales

In which we discover that its amazing what you can fit under a rosemary bush, that you should never forbid people opening chests without explaining why and that fathers can be very unreasonable. We also learn that wind can be helpful as well as mischievous and that rosemary is frankly, completely underrated. We also examine the fascinating role of Rosemary in history, medicine, folklore and magic...

In these fractured times l wanted to look at how stories from different voices can overcome the the distance between people and highlight our shared experiences. I interviewed five amazing storytellers and asked them all about breaking down barriers through stories and food and  these are the results. The storyteller in this episode is the wonderful Sita Brand and you can find her on her Twit...

In  these fractured times l wanted to look at how stories from different voices can overcome the the distance between people and highlight our  shared experiences.  I interviewed five amazing storytellers and asked  them all about breaking down barriers through stories and food and these  are the results. The storyteller in this episode is the wonderful Clare Murphy and yo...

In these fractured times l wanted to look at how stories from different voices can overcome the the distance between people and highlight our shared experiences.  I interviewed five amazing storytellers and asked them all about breaking down barriers through stories and food and these are the results. The storyteller in this episode is the wonderful Amy Douglas and you can find her on her web...

In which we discover the fascinating truth of how 1001 Nights, brave yet mischievous Sicilian maidens, the patriachy, apple dumpling and Lucrezia Borgia are all connected. This episode also contains revelations about the startling effects of pear varyenky and the surprising divination abilities of pel'meni. The stories in this episode are The 13 Bandits, adapted from The Collected Sicilian Folk an...

Folklore, Food and Fairytales is has reached its first podcast birthday! This is a short announcement about bonus episodes every week from 31 August to 28 September in addition to the normal bi-weekly content. Listen in to find out more about The Vernacular Voices of the Storyteller, a series of interviews about breaking down barriers with stories and food with 5 different storytellers starting wi...

In which we discover that if you have a magic cane your gourmet desires will always come true, if you have a gold donkey your financial problems will be at an end even if in a slightly disgusting fashion and finally if you have magic stick and a magic hat even the king won't bother you again.  This story from Laura Gonzenbach's Great Treasury of Sicilian Folk and Fairy Tales tells the tale of...

In which we discover that tales can have familiar titles but different endings, depriving an ogress of free olive oil is never a good idea and balls of wool are deadly in the right hands. We also find out that Rapunzel is not the only one with tower length hair and that a wine fountain is a possibility. The episode story is Snow White Fire Red, an Italian fairy tale collected by Thomas Frederick C...

A slightly different episode with a story and interview about A Gothic Cookbook instead of our normal format. Pintosmalto is the story of a strong -minded, brave and resourceful woman, her sweetheart (literally) and his abduction by a distant queen.  Our heroine triumphs due to her cleverness, the generosity of a wise-woman and her beloved's instinct for theft. The interview is with Alessandr...

In which we discover golden apples are never in convenient places, it takes persistence to overcome the odds and that turning up with a large army is a very effective rescue strategy.  We also find yet again that brothers can be jealous, that kindness & courtesy never go amiss and that chopping things with swords can have surprising results. The episode story is the King of England and Hi...

In which we discover that some millers are extremely unobservant, nixies are both powerful and patient, love can overcome many obstacles and it  takes a supernatural incident to keep a hunter away from his Jägerschitzel. This is a really interesting story and has a lovely ending which as we know is not always guaranteed. This version is taken from the Grimm tale and Hans Christian Andersen ha...

In which we discover that a Tartalo can actually be grateful, that every time you save a princess you need a new horse, a new outfit and a new sword and that you should always dispose of any dragon's heads responsibly. Additionally, we learn that you can know nothing about gardening and still grow beautiful vegetables and that it can take up to three days to kill a dragon. The story for this episo...

In which we discover that a cautionary tale can be sometimes ineffective, that lots of cheese actually can be too much of a good thing and that  you should never follow fairies anywhere. There is also excessive dancing, fairies, towers of cheese and many tiny sparkling lights. The story for this episode is The Boy Who Wanted More Cheese as told in Dutch Fairy Tales for Young Folks (1918) Will...

In which we discover that princesses aren't always heroines, that gardener's boys can be heroes and that being buried in flowers isn't necessarily a good thing. There are also fantastic forests of jewels, fairies, miraculous laurel trees, enchanted princes and the sheer joy to  be found in dancing. This tale for this episode is The Slippers of Twelve Princesses , it's a Romanian tale with som...

In which we discover that life can be interesting if you accept the unusual, that a collop can be many things and that sometimes acquiring a prince can be a lot of effort. This tale also involves an amazing shoe collection, ice lakes, glass mountains, a prince who sleeps soundly, a bull with unlimited food and drink in his ears, magical fruit and incredible jewelry. This tale for this episode is T...

In which we discover that without soup there would be no restaurants, that sharing can be joyful and that meeting a friend from the circus in an underground cask beer bar is one of the few things worth leaving a  Finnish meal for. We also find out that we were making soup long before we had invented pots to cook it in and when recipe books made the move from potage to soup. This tale for this...

In which we discover that castles can move, unicorns can be vicious, trolls aren't cautious and that you should always be prepared to give away a sandwich. A tale of stolen princesses, moving castles of precious metals, trolls, ravens, jealous brothers, waters of life & death, dragons, a unicorn, a lindworm, wild creatures and a golden ball. Episode Tale - The Golden Castle That Hung in The Ai...

In which we discover that betrayal is occasionally inevitable, sometimes  all you need is a magical new frock & a talking fish and that apricots can be the key to overcoming misfortune. A tale of magical  fruit, horror, betrayal, disguise, posh frocks and a King who is not  easily fooled but fairly easily persuaded. Episode Recipe - Apricot Crème Brulée If you want to know more...

In which we discover that you shouldn’t ask questions if you don’t want the answer, a shared love of food is an excellent foundation for a  relationship, figs can definitely surprise you and you can fit quite a lot in a candlestick. The story in this episode is 'Dear as Salt', an Italian folktale with a vain and arrogant king, 3 princesses, 1 prince, 2 clever queens, an inheritance battle and...

In which we discover that you can’t have a mortar without a pestle  especially if it’s gold, that kings make mistakes, the importance of clever queens and that even a capon can be symbolic. This is the glorious story of how a clever peasant girl attracts a prince, loses a prince, gains a king, loses a king and then outwits him.  It's an Italian folk tale but has variants all over the wor...

In which we discover that fairies have some scary punishments, kings can have strange priorities and that you can be queen and still make excellent cream cheese. We also explore the world's smallest kingdom, find out what happens when fairies go bad and why you should always reward any household helpers even if you don't know who they are. The story in this episode is both whimsical and bizarre in...

In which we discover what happens if you don’t share your pizzas, that  singing ducks make excellent messengers and how perfect parsnips can  keep memories alive. This is another fantastic story from Giambattista Basile’s Tale of  Tales. I have already explored the history of these volumes in my Cat Cinderella episode but here is a quick recap for anyone who missed it.  This bo...

This  is a compilation episode of just the stories from the podcast.  We travel to the enchanting lands of Persia and Armenia in these stories based around two very clever women who manage to save the day for themselves and their families even though they are not the ones who caused the problems in the first place.   There are also exciting adventures, stomach turning horrors and je...

This is a compilation episode of just the stories from the podcast.  The stories in this compilation are based around heroic girls from three different story traditions! They all triumph either through bravery, magic, cleverness or loyalty or all three. These are not your traditional stories between them they contain a talking, magical doll, a princess with a sheep’s head, fairies who can sto...

This is a compilation episode of just the stories from the podcast.  The stories in this compilation are based around Jack Tales even though actually only one of the stories has a hero called Jack! The other two have heroes who bear a lot of resemblances.  There is cleverness, trickery and a touch of humour and that's not just from the heroes.   The stories in this episode are The C...