Orkneyology Podcast

December 15, 2024 - On this midwinter full moon we're joined from across the sea by Gerald Charles Dickens, who talks with us about our favorite story - his great-great grandfather's classic Christmas ghost story, A Christmas Carol. Join us to find out all about Gerald Dickens' childhood memories of A Christmas Carol, its origins and its sly sleight of hand.What is it about A Christmas Carol that it remains such a classic and a powerful story?In defence of Scrooge the businessman - not a complete villain?Charles Dickens' early childhood with a father in debtor's prison, child labor, humiliation, lonliness and parental abandonmentThe importance of books and stories in Dickens childhoodThe Man who Invented ChristmasDickens' writings and his marvelous descriptions of food, celebration and togethernessThe tradition of ghost stories for Christmas, and Dickens' love of ghost storiesThe haunting tale of TheSignalman, and its real-life, deadly inspirationDickens' terrible PTSD related to rail travelGerald Dickens' favorite A Christmas Carol filmsGerald's American tour of his one-man show of A Christmas Carol and how he got started working as an actor with his grandfather's writings; the eucatastrophe of forgetting his notes!How Charles Dickens' stories lend themselves to actors' interpretationsFavorite lines from A Christmas CarolWas Marley Scrooge's only friend?Noticing something new in A Christmas Carol every time we read itDickens' influence on our now-traditional celebrations of ChristmasGerald Dickens talks about his own books, including his experiences over 30 years of touring with A Christmas Carol - Gerald Dickens: My Life on the Road with A Christmas CarolWhat it's like to stand on the same stages as his great-great grandfatherAnother book by Gerald Dickens, Dickens and Staplehurst: A Biography of a Rail Crash - the real life traumatic incident that led to the writing of The SignalmanMentioned in the podcast: On the Road with Gerald Dickens blog - https://geralddickens.wordpress.com/Gerald Dickens' website, videos and books - https://www.geralddickens.org/Charles Dickens' books read as audiobooks by Gerald Dickens: https://www.audible.co.uk/search?searchNarrator=Gerald+DickensDenholm Elliott in The Signalman - I couldn't find it on Youtube at the moment, but Tom and I were able to watch it here: https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x6c73c3Tom's stories recorded during lockdown, Tales for Troubled Times: https://www.orkneyology.com/tales-from-tom.html

We're bringing you a brilliant conversation on with this full moon night, with visiting friends R. Carlos Nakai, of Navajo and Ute heritage - and the world's premier performer with the Native American flute - and Will Clipman, passionate world percussionist, poet and performing artist. (Please pardon the scratchy voices and coughing in this epsode. We'd been having a lovely time together roaming around Orkney together with RC and Will and their wives, Pam and Sherry, for several days before we recorded this. Unfortunately, along with the stories, music and breaking bread we also passed around a pretty bad cold.)We're so pleased to bring you this far-reaching and musical conversation among friends. Join us to hear about these and many other things:R. Carlos Nakai speaks of ancient tribal history from his early home in ArizonaAbout ceremony, culture, storytellers and gathering knowledge from the eldersWill's early beginnings with drumming; being born to a musical family in Philidelphia; What's in the "boom boom room"?The musical marriage of RC's Native flute and Will's passionate percussionThe Native "culture of women" - life creatorsRC: Learning how we belong - "Who are you?"; philosophies and stories of all of our clans all over the worldWill: finding his Swedish Sámi roots; the Sami Pathfinder and the ceremonial drumSinging the songs of humanity, and the ancestors' residing in the musicWe all have one human storyThe magic of music, improvisation and what the listener brings to the musicAnthropologists as listenersShapeshifter and the wallaby danceWorking with children: mythic creation, mask-making and storytelling; the power of saying, "Yes!"A musical treat, and a bit about how RC and Will approach performing togetherSinging to the sea; praying to the waterDrumming inside the Dwarfie StaneWill tells a Sami raven tale, and other stories from RC and Will's Indigenous culturesThe freedom of poetry and making musicElders in many cultures; the knowledge within usWebsite for R. Carlos Nakai: https://rcarlosnakai.com/Website for Will Clipman: https://www.willclipman.com/

This full moon October night, we're having a Halloween-appropriate visit with Hjörleifur Helgi Stefánsson: Icelander, author of Icelandic Folk Tales, fabulous traditional storyteller ... and Tom Muir's pet Viking.No Picts were harmed during the making of this podcast.A peedie warning: Not surprisingly, some of the conversation is a bit dark for the very sensitive, or bairns. See topics below and proceed informed.Join us for a blether between two storytelling northmen, mildly spooky at times as is suitable for the Halloween season, where you'll hear about:Storytelling traditions old and new in Iceland"Destination Sagalands" (EU project) - friends made in the Nordic lands, and fun personal storiesFinding a unique voice for stories and storytellingHjörleifur's book, Icelandic Folk TalesStorytellers like being admired!Hjörleifur's family stories traditionLife in an Icelandic turf houseHjörleifur tells the story, The Merman Laughs (and eating rotten shark!)The dark details of making of a supernatural slave to steal neighbors' milk from the cow; the primal fear of the people living in turf housesHow to make necropantsRaising the deadAbout Icelandic rímur, and samplings of rímur, "sung with gusto" by a man with a golden voiceIceland and her trollsA troll folktaleAn Orkney ghost story from TomA comparison of Orkney and Icelandic talesAnnouncing a new book-in-the-making with Hjorleifur and Orkneyology Press!Hidden People talesAlso mentioned:Cape Clear festival website https://capeclearstorytelling.com/ and Rhonda's personal Cape Clear video https://youtu.be/mEInv4Miz3A?si=CpvVk6pbwc1-VXK_Hjörleifur's Icelandic Folk Tales book link: https://thehistorypress.co.uk/publication/icelandic-folk-tales/Heather Yule, storyteller: https://www.heatheryulepapertales.co.uk/my-storyLiz Weir: https://www.lizweir.org/Terry Gunnell's Hidden People book: https://www.goodreads.com/author/list/1687155.Terry_Gunnell

On this full moon night we had a visit from a young Scottish-Dutch storytelling friend, who is also a great grandneice of Orkney's beloved poet, George Mackay Brown. Please enjoy our blether with stories.In this episode you'll hear about:Ailsa's experience of learning about her heritage from TomOrkney stories and their historiesletting folk stories continue to grow in our own timeencouraging new storytellersthe delights of spontaneity in storytellinga wee tale from Aberdeenshire - Fittie's Portion"young" storytellers, and how not to be defined by age or other labelsAilsa's School of Storycraft for kidstelling stories about things you care about; defeating apathy and reconnecting emotionallylocal history storytellingstories about kindness; "heart stories"Ailsa tells her heart story, Kate Crackernuts, which is not - as is commonly misunderstood - an English tale, but was collected in the Orkney Islandsfinding earlier versions of folktalesGaelic waulking songs... and a bonus story, which Ailsa first heard from her granddad, Fraser Dixon: The Story of Tam Bichan - from Dingieshowe, Orkneycontact Ailsa Dixon here: https://tracscotland.org/storytellers/ailsa-dixon/

Join Tom and Rhonda as we continue our discussion around old Orkney customs and traditions. This time you'll hear some quite surprising and amusing details of marriage and death customs in Orkney.A few things you'll find out in this Ower wi' the Moon podcast:Signs and dangers around the Orkney wedding celebration: good luck, bad luck and how to evade the trowiesThe costs of speerin' night, when the prospective groom asks the bride's father for her hand; warning: don't show up empty handed!The exact nuances of arranging the marriage banns in Orkney and its surrounding legalitiesAbout the Westray "dons" of the Spanish Armada, and what allegedly happened if they married "outside" the donsWhat did the moon, the tide and the "airt" of the wind have to do with the fortunes of an Orkney marriage?Old-style wedding invitations ... and drams (naturally)All about the Orkney foot-washing ritual, and the general hilarity that ensuedWithershins - "going against the sun"The dangers of bodily bits as relating to curses; and what's this got to do with the king's poop?A wedding story from Noltland Castle in the island of WestrayHow to make your hogboon part of the wedding celebration, and why it's important to do so!The wedding walk - much longer than a walk down the aisle; hijinks along the way; and the importance of wiping out your tracksThe origins of pre-wedding blackenings in OrkneyThe mesterhousel, the hansel wife, the bride's cog and other Orkney wedding celebration ritualsOrkney wedding games, bog cotton (Loki's oo) stockings and feminine divination mysteriesBaking. brewing, eating, drinking and dancing!Different kinds of Orkney cogsCurses, ill omens and selkie abductions: dangers to watch out for during weddingsThe tragic story of Henry Graham and his loveOrkney death customs, traditions and beliefsOmens of death: rainbows, ravens and angels' musicWailing vardens and ganfers in OrkneyThe story of the Bokie Hound of the BalfoursForebodings of death in dreamsThe leekwak, touching the corpse and of ladies losing their sensesThe danger of grieving too muchSupernatural Orkney death customs: good luck and bad, and getting the biggest blessingWhat did you do with a drowned sailor?The posh end of the cemeteryUnbaptized infant stories... and many more interesting Orkney traditions.Encourage us in our heritage preservation work on Ko-fi

On this full moon night, Tom speaks with one of our authors, Ian Scott - otherwise known as Ian o' Antabreck - lifelong resident of Orkney's most northerly island, North Ronaldsay. Ian has recently gathered together for publication his first decade of A Letter from North Ronaldsay, which he's written for The Orcadian newspaper for over thirty years. Tom and Rhonda have very proudly produced this first volume of Ian's Letters through our Orkneyology Press, which is now available for purchase through our website. We hope you enjoy this blether among friends. Join us to find out ...About North Ronaldsay toonships ... and what's a toonship anyway?Hogmanay traditions; North Ron as compared to Sanday (and other Orkney) traditions, where half of Tom's folk come from; where was the whisky, and what finally stopped the auld Hogmanay traditions?On home brew Old milling and brewing practices, which Ian observed in his miller-father's life and workThe old and new North Ronaldsay standing stone Hogmanay traditions, and what's it all got to do with the full moon?The reluctant uptake of the Gregorian calendar in OrkneyCold evenings in warm places: visiting and playing games with folk in the mill ... and other warm placesOrkney schooldays in earlier times: What was it like boarding in the hostel for school in Kirkwall Grammar School (and a year in Holm) as a bairn the old days, when they only returned home on rare occasions? Powdered milk, snowball fights, freezing "digs" and unmarried teachers.And what about those hair-raising postboat rides before the ferries and planes were available?Crops and old-style thrashingWhat it was like studying at Gray's School of Art, AberdeenOrkney's thriving arts communityIan's paintings and sculptures, including his favorite sculpture: the Longhope Lifeboat Memorial Ian's lobster fishing daysThe North Ronaldsay praam, how it came about and why it's such a good boat design for Orkney sea conditionsIan's artistic study trips in Shetland, Iceland and FaroesAbout sculpting and Ian's most well-known public works, including the Longhope Lifeboat Memorial, the statue of Arctic explorer John Rae in Stromness, the George Mackay Brown busts and the Stanley Cursitor portrait, all of which can be seen in Orkney.Sylvia Wishart, Ola Gorie and other Orkney artistsThe story of North Ronaldsay's Old Memorial HallMentioned: A Letter from North Ronaldsay - buy it direct from the publishers, Orkneyology Press (if you'd like to purchase the book in the way that best rewards the author and publishers) :https://rebrand.ly/2e9qpufIan Scott's author page on Orkneyology: https://www.orkneyology.com/ian-scott-orkneyology-press.htmlDon't Tell Bab! - Annie Harcus (Annie Rousay)The Longhope Lifeboat Memorial - https://hoyorkney.com/attractions/hoy-history/lifeboat

On this full moon night, Tom and Rhonda discuss some of the main rituals and customs necessary to safeguard important life events, from pregnancy through birth and baptisms, and onward to concerns and superstitions around courtship. Tom will tell us a few stories related to these customs and give a bit of history to help folk understand the very sensible reasons for these early Orkney practices.Join us to find out ...Why you should avoid insulting a witch when you're about to go sailing (which has nothing to do with our topic, but is interesting and perhaps valuable information nonetheless)Natural signs of an upcoming birth; precautions taken to avoid trouble during the precarious time of pregnancy and the earlierst months of life; how to avoid attracting the evil eye; keeping the trows from kidnapping mother or childAll about the howdie wife - an important and respected woman who takes folk into the world and helps them out of itThe Orkney meaning of "wifie"The story of the bairn of Langalour Different strengths of home brew, their names and when to drink themChristening storiesWhy Orcadians never let the hearthfire dieDivining customs for discerning the identity of one's future spouseWhy one of the Stones of Stenness has holes in itTales from the Odin Stone, and the unbreakable Odin Oath (with a handy escape clause)The pathetic story of Pirate Gow and the Odin OathMentioned in this episode: The story of the Hudson's Bay Company man who was a woman: https://www.orkneyology.com/isobel-gunn.htmlIn Part 2 of Orkney Customs: Hatch, Match, Dispatch Tom will tell us more about "match" customs - courtship and marriage - and also Orkney death customs. See you on the next full moon!

Tonight, Tom and Rhonda Muir of Scotland's Orkney Islands have a moonlight visitor - our very dear friend, author, researcher and storyteller Dr Erin Farley of Dundee. Those who love stories and Scotland will find much of interest, among these:   Erin's abiding passion for worms: giant worms causing creation and destruction, the The Muckle Mester Stoorworm; Jörmungandr the world serpent, Ragnarök ... and a bonus: a charm against the worm in your tooth (toothache)!   Looking at the landscape from a seafaring position   Researching and preserving oral history in Scotland Stories of the old lighthouse keepers, including our mutual friend, Lawrence Tulloch of Shetland The Grey (bearded) Lady; and deep storytelling   Sir Walter Scott in Orkney   Acedemic writing as energy vampire vs. stories of the people   Dundee roots: slavery; sufferagettes; carving out a place through poetry; William McGonagall; and stories around the Tay Bridge disaster  Storytelling and the pressure to achieve; the rewards of taking things slowly  A telling of the story of Jockie Barefoot from Erin's book, Angus Folktales - a tragic Angus tale of an evil lanlord  The Twins of Edzel as performed by Tania Allan - A BSL interpretation of a Scottish folklore tale. Inspired by ‘Angus Folk Tales’ by Erin Farley. The Twins of Edzell is the story of a dedicated mother of deaf twin brothers and the hearing world that is unable to accept them. Filmed on location at Balvaird Castle, Perthshire. https://sfdh.org.uk/project/the-twins-of-edzell/So come thee wiz, pour yourself a dram and settle in for a good old-fashioned blether among friends.Orkneyology website: https://www.orkneyology.comPodcast theme music courtesy of Fionn McArthur."Ower wi' the moon" artwork created by Jenny Steer

Tonight Tom and Rhonda Muir have a moonlit blether from their home in Scotland's Orkney Islands inspired by the publication of Tom's latest collection of folk tales: Scottish Folk Tales of Coast and Sea. We muse about life lessons embedded in all good stories, look at some differences in stories originating from inland areas as compared to tales told by those whose lives are constantly endangered and controlled by the sea, how Orkney differs from Shetland and how folktales in this area of the world were influenced by the Vikings. And Tom tells a really fun story from the book at the end! So pull up a chair, pour yourself a dram and settle in for a good, old-fashioned blether among friends. Be sure to drop by on the NEXT full moon, when we'll be having a blether with Scottish storyteller, researcher and author of Angus Folk Tales, Dr Erin Farley of Dundee. Show notes: https://www.orkneyology.com/orkneyology-podcast.html Podcast theme music courtesy of Fionn McArthur. "Ower wi' the moon" artwork created by Jenny Steer