The Court Jester

The second part of the story is an almost hour-long episode that has everything. Oaths that sound right but aren't, deception, more deception, lover's vows, and an unhappy ending. The old poets tell this for lovers and so do I. I hope you'll like it as much as I do. Follow on socials for more medieval stories and for medieval folklore wisdom straight from The Distaff Gospels. 🎵 Title music: “Cele...

Many people know the names. Not many people have heard the story from beginning to end. It's a story about love and loyalty colliding. it has everything: desire, devotion, beauty, loyalty, drama. It's one of those who taught Europe how to imagine romance. It is the quintessential medieval love story. So I did my best to tell it, and like the author who put it on paper, I am telling it "for lovers...

Two exhausted peasants bed down for the night and one wakes up starving. His friend sneaks off to fetch leftover gruel, takes a wrong turn in the dark and makes a series of disastrous assumptions. I give you Gautier le Leu’s De deus vilains , a medieval fabliau packed with mistakes, toilet humour, and the usual fabliau flair. Follow The Court Jester on socials for more medieval stories and for med...

A priest, a magistrate and a gamekeeper decide they can get what they want by squeezing a household and weaponising everything they have. What follows is a story about leverage, revenge, and the sheer tactical value of a maid who can run messages like a menace. Follow on socials for more medieval stories and for medieval folklore wisdom straight from The Distaff Gospels. 📜 Text: Translation by Na...

A knight ruined by his own kindness. A king who has forgotten him. One impossible Christmas gift that might change everything. In this festive episode of The Court Jester, I bring you the story of Sir Cleges, a medieval knight whose reckless generosity collides bad gatekeepers and a Christmas miracle. A Middle English Christmas tale with feasting, cherries, and a payoff that is far more satisfying...

Happy Halloween, friends of the Jester. This year’s special comes from deep in the shadowed corners of the Balkans — a 9th-century ballad known in Greece as The Song of the Dead Brother , with haunting cousins in Serbia and Bulgaria. Nothing sets the Halloween mood quite like Balkan folklore — mournful, gothic, and just a little too close to the bone. It isn’t funny. It isn’t light. It’s a tale ab...

And we're back to naughty priest territory! In this fabliau from the banks of the Sèvres, a fat goose becomes the prize in a battle of wits, appetites, and shameless audacity. Expect blasphemous pranks, roasted birds, and a reminder that medieval comedy loved nothing more than making the clergy look foolish. 📜 Text: Translation by Nathaniel E. Dubin 🎵 Title music: “Celebration” by Alexander Naka...

What happens when a medieval peddler entrusts his horse to God and the local lord? And what happens if said horse goes missing? You take God to court. I give you the Poor peddler , a fabliau full of divine debts, violent threats, and a monk who really should’ve stayed in the cloister. 📜 Text: Translation by Nathaniel E. Dubin 🎵 Title music: “Celebration” by Alexander Nakarada 📲 Updates & mi...

A sly minstrel tries to ruin a clueless groom’s wedding night...but he didn't account for the bride. What follows is a night of escalating revenge, as the bride takes charge, the groom gets creative, and the prankster finds himself in a very literal mess. Content note: This episode contains medieval toilet humour in all its glory — plus sexual innuendo, crude jokes, and more filth than dignity. 📜...

In this fabliau by Enguerrant d’Oisy, we meet a miller who tries to seduce a girl, only to end up sued over livestock. Based on Le maunier d'Aleus, this is a story of bed swaps and a perfect courtroom ending. Justice never tasted so porky. 📜 Text: Translation by Nathaniel E. Dubin 🎵 Title music: “Celebration” by Alexander Nakarada 📲 Updates & mischief: @kpethainou.bsky.social | @thecourtjes...

Or, How to Spy on Your Wife and End Up in a Ditch. A merchant thinks he’s outwitting his wife. She’s five steps ahead. This fabliau has it all: deception, seduction and medieval sass.  Apologies for the sound quality, and for my utter inability to contain the cat - you will hear him mewing early in the episode. 📜 Text: Translation by Nathaniel E. Dubin 🎵 Title music: “Celebration” by A...

Meet Boivin, a trickster who walks into a brothel,  cons everyone and causes a riot so messy they called the magistrate. Which was, of course, his ticket to fame.  📜 Text: Translation by Nathaniel E. Dubin 🎵 Title music: “Celebration” by Alexander Nakarada 📲 Updates & mischief: @kpethainou.bsky.social | @thecourtjesterpodcast on Facebook 🃏 Bonus content: patreon.com/CourtJesterPo...

Put your hands together for medievalist, actor and writer Debbie Cannon, who brings the tale of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight to life in a special guest performance. Debbie shares an excerpt from her celebrated one-woman show Green Knight , a bold and lyrical retelling that’s been captivating audiences for nearly a decade. We talk knighthood, decapitation, and the challenges of telling medieval...

Based on Du Con de la Ringue (Three women who found a ring) , this episode features the kind of antics that only medieval literature could get away with. The moral? Trust no one, and especially not your spouse. 📜 Text: Translation by Nathaniel E. Dubin 🎵 Title music: “Celebration” by Alexander Nakarada 📲 Updates & mischief: @kpethainou.bsky.social | @thecourtjesterpodcast on Facebook 🃏 Bon...

Guest storyteller Maber Slattery brings the house down, medieval-style. Join us as we discover the misadventures of Dane Hew, the monk who was "hanged once and four times slain"! And join us over on Patreon for the second half, where we talk about medieval humour, storytelling medieval stories, and we throw in a couple of real medieval tales (straight from the archives) for good measure. Find Mabe...

This fabliau has it all: trickery, fine dining, and a wildly escalating prank that ends with gospel readings, public humiliation, and a very confused innkeeper. I give you Cortebarbe’s Li trois avugles de Compiègne (The three blind men of Compiègne) . Content note: includes period-typical ableism. 📜 Text: Translation by Nathaniel E. Dubin 🎵 Title music: “Celebration” by Alexander Nakarada 📲 Upd...

This Easter Sunday, the Court Jester has a special treat usually reserved for Patreon supporters—a full bonus episode, free for all listeners! Join me and the brilliant Peter Konieczny of Medievalists.net as we dive into the witty, sharp, and delightfully clever world of the Maqamat al-Hariri, one of the greatest collections of medieval Arabic trickster tales. Peter is brining one of these clever...

Three girls. One magical cosmetic powder. A high-stakes prep session before a big tournament. What could possibly go wrong? In the fabliau of Les .iii. meschines ( The Three Girls ), you decide should pay for the lost powder! 📜 Text: Translation by Nathaniel E. Dubin 🎵 Title music: “Celebration” by Alexander Nakarada 📲 Updates & mischief: @kpethainou.bsky.social | @thecourtjesterpodcast on...

Ever wondered what medieval students got up to? In this episode, we follow two broke university lads who find themselves lodging with a peasant named Gombert. From sneaky bed swaps to stolen cookware, this tale has everything: deception, seduction, and a host who r eally should have locked his doors. Listen now for a lesson in why letting students stay at your house has never been a good idea.&nbs...

Give a warm welcome to The Court Jester's first guest storyteller! Anne Lister, medievalist, storyteller, musician and overall expert in everything there is to know about the Tale of Jaufre , joins us today and shares with us an episode from the Tale. I sat down with Anne for a very interesting interview afterwards, and you can find that on Patreon later this month. If you want to hear Anne's adap...

A wild story of deception, wit and wicker baskets, Le prestre et la dame proves once more that some women know exactly how to get what they want. 📜 Text: Translation by Nathaniel E. Dubin 🎵 Title music: “Celebration” by Alexander Nakarada 📲 Updates & mischief: @kpethainou.bsky.social | @thecourtjesterpodcast on Facebook 🃏 Bonus content: patreon.com/CourtJesterPodcast ☕Buy me a coffee http...

The Court Jester was selected by FeedSpot as one of the Top 20 Medieval History Podcasts on the web! What an absolute surprise! And what excellent motivation for me to tell you a story of a medieval married man and his unlikely affliction. Ladies and gentlemen, this is Le vilain de Bailleul ( The peasant of Bailleul ) . Warning: not suitable for actual relationships or souls with dignity. 📜 Text:...

A knight so dim he didn’t know where to put it. A mother-in-law who steps in to help. Two houseguests who suffer... a lot. And one red-hot awl that should’ve stayed in the drawer. Le sot chevalier ( The stupid knight) is a fabliau about sex, stupidity, and why medieval hospitality was a high-risk activity. 📜 Text: Translation by Nathaniel E. Dubin 🎵 Title music: “Celebration” by Alexander Nakara...

A mother wants more respect. A bishop wants to help. A random priest ends up financially and emotionally responsible for a complete stranger. This is Le prestre qui ot mere malgré sien (The priest who had a mother foisted on him) — a fabliau about guilt, identity fraud, and the medieval art of forced family. 📜 Text: Translation by Nathaniel E. Dubin 🎵 Title music: “Celebration” by Alexander Naka...

It’s Good Friday, the church is packed, and the priest has lost the Passion — so naturally, he just starts yelling things until someone stops him. “Barrabam!” echoes off the walls. “Crucifige eum!” sends peasants into breast-beating despair. And the clerk? He’s had enough. Enter Le prestre qui dist la passion (How the priest read the passion story) , a fabliau of liturgical nonsense, holy shouting...