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Title
1

A Ghostly Nun in Villette; the Mardi Bells; and The Essence of Loneliness

2

The Deaths of St Gregory and St Augustine; The Hopelessness of Charles II; and the Achievements of John Fisher

3

Two Chapters in a Noisy Garden: Villette and Barchester

4

Bryon’s Pathless Woods; Mr Quiverful’s Poverty; Judith’s Arc; and Pepys’ Head

5

Judith; the Peculiar case of Canada; Sprinkling of Saints; et Encore Villette

6

Villette: Charlotte Brontë’s Enchanting Weaving of Words

7

A Walk to the Sea, White Pebbles, and Villette

8

A Saxon Affrighted Ram at St Osmund’s; No Venture within Mrs Hardy’s; and Barchester Towers

9

Strictly Villette: Chapter XXVIII. Monsieur Paul and Lucy Snowe

10

Riverside Stroll, Hever Castle, and a Saxon Lament

11

A Long Chapter by Trollope and then Exeter’s Past, cut short by an inept Gretel

12

Hardy transports us to Egdon Heath; the Birth of Chartism; and Riverside Witterings

13

Simply Villette; and Eeyore’s wistfulness at being mistaken for Tigger

14

Bruton Bell; Housework Shmousework; Early Church Chronicles; and Barchester Towers

15

Strictly Literature: Tennyson, Trollope and C Brontë

16

John Colet of St Paul’s; Pepys’ love of ‘Discourse’; and Lucy Snowe watches and sees all

17

Sir Robert Peel in Parliament; the Founding of Peterborough; Pepys is Joyful; and Lucy Snowe has a Visitresse

18

Belgian Buns, Saint Barnabas, John Clare and Charlotte Brontë’s Villette

19

Early Christianity in England; Tuesday Bells 🔔; Saints and Chronicles; et Villette

20

Bonus Episode: Living with Grief and Tragedy, a Chat with a Friend

21

Simply Villette 🕯️ (and a little abbey-loitering)

22

A Saturday Salad 🥗: Roman Exeter, Lord Brougham, Pepys, Saint Norbert, and (merci Oxford) the Bare Necessities 🐻

23

Short & Petite: We Close Charlotte Brontë’s chapter on Hope

24

A Literary Late: Trollope, Hardy and C Brontë

25

Teenagers, Trust and Trickiness; Samuel Pepys’ Diary; and Barchester Towers

26

Victoria becomes Queen; Gretel Witters; and Saxon Deor

27

Sunday Couplets: Augustine and Gregory; Slope and Archbishop; Graham and Lucy

28

Literary Friday: Charlotte Brontë, Anthony Trollope and The Venerable Bede

29

Matrimony in St Genny’s; Difficult Times; A Secret Brook

30

Strictly Villette: Chapters XVIII and XIX

31

‘That in the dreariest places peace will be a dweller and a joy’ John Clare

32

Gentle Bonus Episode pour Vous: Pepys, Saints and Charlotte Brontë

33

An Episode of Two Halves: birds, hedgehogs, puppies and silences; and then exquisite Villette

34

Lucy Snowe Awakes; Puppy Eats Microphone; Saints are Remembered

35

Saxon poem Andreas; Shelley’s Halcyon Morn; and Blackbird Sings 🐦‍⬛

36

Simply Villette: Chapter XV ‘The Long Vacation’ 🌒

37

Gretel absorbs William Shakespeare’s Stratford-Upon-Avon and chats with Sir Richard Eyre 🎭

38

Strictly Literature: dear John Clare; Anthony Trollope; and Charlotte Brontë

39

Gretel visits Oxford: a mooch about a beautiful city.

40

Dr Eleanor Parker, author of Winters in the World, chats to Gretel in Brasenose College, Oxford

41

Strictly Books: Anthony Trollope; Samuel Pepys and Charlotte Brontë

42

Saxon Saturday: The Seafarer; Saxon Churches; and Anglo-Saxon England 🗡️

43

Strictly Books; Villette by Charlotte Brontë 🥀

44

Bonus Episode: St Augustine wins over the King of Kent while Gretel visits Sherborne Abbey

45

Pepys enjoys his Sliding Rule; Lucy Snowe enjoys a Thunderstorm; and Madame Neroni enjoys needling a Bishop’s wife

46

The Hollow Tree by John Clare; Lucy Snowe is watchful, in Villette; and St Gregory’s Greatness

47

St Gennys, Samuel Pepys and an Old Saxon Lament; historian Tom Holland becomes our Honorary Patron

48

Strictly Literature: Charlotte Brontë, Anthony Trollope, and Cup of Exquisite Poetry

49

Charlotte Brontë’s Villette, Hungry Hedgehogs; and Chatter

50

Gretel Ponders her Past; Pepys is Up Betimes; A Brace of Saints; and Chapter 8 of Villette

51

Saxon Saturday: The Departing Soul’s Address to The Body; Egbert, Anselm & The Chronicle.

52

Strictly Books: Villette and Essay on Nature by R Jefferies

53

Lucy’s heart awakens by St Paul’s in Villette; Monsieur Robin; and Barchester Chronicles

54

Fruit of Three Segments: SWIRE Exhibition; Lacock Abbey; and Books (Pepys, Trollope & Brontë)

55

Gretel and Aerial Photographer Hedley Thorne visit Wayland Smithy

56

The White Church of Woolstone; A Jamboree of Jackdaws; Wordsworth; and Villette

57

Bonus Friday Episode: Secret Old Buildings; Trollope; and a Gothic Glossary

58

Villette by Charlotte Brontë: Chapter Three - The Art of Minute Observation

59

A Walk about St Peter’s Church, Purse Caundle; and we meet Madeline in Barchester Towers

60

Strictly Books: Trollope, Brontë, Pepys and The Chronicles

61

A Woodland Walk with Puppy; Pepys has a Sore Testicle; and Mr Harding hopes to be Warden again

62

A Saxon Church with a Remarkable Rood; and Chapter One of Villette, by Charlotte Brontë

63

A Return to Sandhurst; Preface to Charles Dickens’ Barnaby Rudge; and the Start of Something New (York) 🦢

64

Strictly Dickens: Barnaby Rudge comes to a Close

65

Let no man turn aside, ever so slightly, from the broad path of honour.

66

Anthony Trollope’s Barchester Towers; and Charles Dickens’ Barnaby Rudge

67

Hedgehogs🦔, Blackbirds 🐦‍⬛, and Garden Joy; A Brave Letter from Pepys; & The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle

68

Strictly Dickens: Chapter LXXV. Darth Vader is spoken to by Obi-Wan Kenobi

69

Bonus Episode: Chatterings with Daughter on the United States; Garden Ponderings; and Barchester Towers

70

Maundy Thursday Literary Litany: Fuller’s History; Sage Saints; Dicken’s America and Rudge; and Pepys’ Progress

71

A Happy Scamper ‘Round Sherborne Museum; Barnaby Rudge; and a Saxon Wanderer

72

Barnaby Rudge; Thomas Hardy; 19th Century Halifax NS; and Nonsense from Gretel in Sunshiney England 🌞

73

Strictly Dickens: Chapters LXX and LXXI

74

Thomas Hardy in Grief; Mr Slope’s Slippery Sermon; and Naked Wanderings in Wales

75

Poor Barnaby Rudge misses his dogs in Chapter LXIX; the horrors of late-night travel; and a return to Sherborne

76

Philippa Langley chats to Gretel about her Life, King Richard and Following the Evidence

77

An Expensive Goat and no Winter Coat; Dario talks Whisky; Barnaby Rudge comes to Edinburgh [Ch LXVIII]

78

Cometh the Hour, Cometh the Man: Strictly Dickens

79

The Apparition of The Rood; Gnomic Verses; Playground Chants; Trollope; and Dickens

80

Strictly Dickens: Chapters LXIV & LXV

81

Sunday sunshine with Miss Miggs, the Wren, the Blackbird and Daisy Tangents

82

Barnaby Rudge Chapter LXII; and we continue Hunt’s History of the English Church

83

Haredale seeks Justice in B Rudge Ch LXI; Too much Gretel Wittering; and Mr Slope makes Enemies in Barchester Towers

84

Sunshine arrives in Sherborne; and the Rioters Reorg at Fleet Market in Ch LX

85

Sprinkling of Saints; Tuesday Bells; and Vile Villains in Barnaby Rudge (Ch LIX)

86

A Soldier’s Kindness in Barnaby Rudge; The Ruin: then and now; and Pepys Adopts the Periwig

87

A Second Sunday Episode: Barnaby Rudge Chapter LVII

88

Solomon Daisy has a Tough Day in Chapter LVI of Barnaby Rudge, by Charles Dickens

89

Dorchester in the Spring Sunshine; and Dickens’ words on Americans,

90

Charles Dickens’ opinion of 19th century Americans; and a Terrifying Ch LV, of B Rudge

91

Puppy Chaos; Sibling Sadness; Poor Maypole John in Chapter LIV of Barnaby Rudge

92

‘Her Day-dreams Truth, and Truth a Dream’ (Sir Walter Scott); ‘A Moral Plague Ran Through the City’ (Charles Dickens)

93

The Black Death; Abbey Bells; Puppy Mischief; and Chapter LII of B. Rudge

94

Simon Tappertit shames himself in Barnaby Rudge; as does Samuel Pepys in his Diaries 🫣

95

Barnaby Rudge Chapter L: the Sheep are Led Astray; and Church Architecture

96

Dear Barnaby Rudge (Chs XLVIII/IX) and the Gordon Riots; A Gentle Poetic Counterpoint

97

Puppy Patience; New York in the 1840s; and Marvellous Grip in Barnaby Rudge as the Plot breaks into a Canter

98

Barnaby Rudge Chapters XLV and XLVI; Sympathy for the Devil

99

Barnaby Rudge Chapter XLIV; Trollope describes a Spongy Nose; Dickens in America; and New Puppy Chaos

100

With St David and Charles Dickens we celebrate the first of the Spring Months 🌞

101

Sunday Part 1: Barnaby Rudge Ch XLII; And Mr Katt grumbles about The New Puppy

102

A Visit to Castle Cary; King Ethelbert’s Feast; and Barnaby Rudge Ch. XLI

103

B.Rudge Chapters XXXIX/XL: things hot up in London; Sherborne Abbey’s Bell Practice; and the Birds help keep Grief at bay. 🕯️

104

Barnaby Rudge Chapter XXXViii; Spring comes to Sherborne; The Dream of the Rood 🌳

105

Gretel in conversation with wonderful Angela Tilby

106

Barnaby Rudge Chs XXXV/VI; Saints; and Scott’s Rokeby. Hollow Hearts and Malevolent Minds

107

Mr Katt argues his point; Rokeby by Sir Walter Scott; Pepys’ Progress; and Wulfric’s Feast Day

108

Shakespeare’s Sonnet; Acca’s Feast; Pepys’ Precision; and Dickens’ Genius [B Rudge Ch XXXV]

109

Tuesday Part II: Pink Bears; Friendship; London Chaos; Theatre 🎭; Hardy; and Barnaby Rudge (Ch XXXIV)

110

Barnaby Rudge Ch XXXIII: the Cosy Maypole Inn; and an Explanation of Gothic Architecture

111

Barnaby Rudge Ch XXXII; The Battle of Malden; and Bishop Proudie settles in

112

Bonus Episode: History of the English Church; Towsing in Restoration London; John Clare; and a Barchester Baby

113

A Poem for Wolsey; and Chapters XXX & XXXI of Barnaby Rudge: our hearts pang for poor Joe

114

Barnaby Rudge Ch XXIX; Beautiful words on the Venerable Bede; and Barchester Botherings

115

The Episode of Gremlins! B Rudge Ch XXVIII; Pepys; and a visit to the source of the River Yeo

116

Sunday Episode the First: Chs XXVI/VII in B Rudge: Mr Chester is on the offensive; a little Pepys; a Cardinal’s post-script; and an Orange 🍊

117

Late Episode for Night Owls: B.Rudge Ch.XXV; The Nightingale’s Nest 🪺; and Hardy’s wisdom

118

Barnaby Rudge Ch.XXIV; Breathtaking Beowulf; and Magnificent Maya Angelou.

119

Wolsey; Clare; Saints; Bells; Blackbird; and Barnaby (Rudge Chs XXII & XXIII) 🐦‍⬛

120

Old English Poetry, starring Widsith; Slipping through my Fingers; a Midnight Moon; and Trollope

121

Saint Brigid; Pepys; Barchester Towers; and Chs XX & XXI of Barnaby Rudge

122

Longer days; Daffodils; Aquinas; Gildas; Wolsey; and AA Milne’s The Sailor ⚓️

123

Barnaby Rudge Special Episode: Chapters XVII, XVIII and IX

124

The Decline of Wolsey (poison in the hair shirt?); and Gretel visits a Saxon Church

125

A return to beautiful Bury St Edmunds; Wolsey’s Progress of Gloom; and Chapter XVI of B Rudge

126

Barnaby Rudge, Chapters XIV & XV: Sons and Fathers; and the Arrest of a Weeping Cardinal Wolsey

127

Saturday Bonus Episode: Wolsey; Saints; Pepys and Introducing Henry James;

128

We visit a Dorset Church; Meet Puppies; and B.Rudge Ch.XIII (bit of overlap);

129

Hedgehogs 🦔; Ivanhoe, Saint Agnes; Tudor children confirmed by Wolsey; and Ch XIII B Rudge

130

Pepys hears Suffolk lasses are prettiest; Saint Canute; and Haredale meets Chester in B. Rudge Ch. XII

131

Durham III: A Cosy Pub chat with David and Tom; Poor Peter enters the Cranford narrative; and Drama at The Maypole (Barnaby Rudge Ch XI)

132

Durham II: An Hour with writer David Willem; and Barnaby Rudge Chapter X

133

Durham Cathedral part one: from Sherborne to the Cathedral in time for Evensong

134

B Rudge Chapter IX; a Comedy of Umbrellas

135

Barnaby Rudge Chapters VII and VIII where we meet some Ne'er-do-wells

136

A Potter around Cornish Churches

137

Barnaby Rudge Chapters V and VI; a Storm Rages outside while the Cornish Darts League play on

138

A visit to St Denis, Otterham; Pondering modern freedoms; and John Clare’s ‘Beans in Blossom’

139

Barnaby Rudge V: introducing Dolly as we head to North Cornwall

140

Barnaby Rudge IV: Youthful rebellion, a simple soul, and a tender heart.

141

Beautiful Bloated Moon; Pepys Confesses his Jealousy; and Saint Genevieve

142

Pepys contends with Jealousie; Out-of-date Historicising; and Mr Friendly from Bury St Edmunds

143

Barnaby Rudge Third Day: we meet dear Gabriel Varden 🦉

144

The Second Episode of Charles Dickens’ Barnaby Rudge: Solomon tells his story;

145

We begin Barnaby Rudge; and are reminded by John Clare ‘O thus while musing wild, I’m doubly blest//My woes unheeding and my heart at rest

146

A Christmas Day; a Wedding Day; A Story Concludes

147

Penultimate Under the Greenwood and a Happy Christmas Eve 🎄

148

Poems; Pell Mell; and The Spell

149

Fancy is helped by a Woodland Witch; Wolsey gives his Necklace to Harry Norris; and Mr Katt makes a Vocal appearance

150

Nutting, beekeeping and folly in Melstock; Wolsey avoids the Tower and kisses the earth; and a visit to The Farmer’s Dog

151

Will you join the dance? Said a Whiting to a Snail 🐌; Dick Dewy Fumes

152

Under the Greenwood tree 🌳 as Gretel sleeps under a Cotswolds sky

153

The Jabberwocky; the Tide has Turned for Wolsey; and Dick Dewy contends with a Flight of Fancy

154

Christmas Shenanigans in Sherborne Abbey; and Dick asks Fancy the Question ☺️

155

Fancy Day tells Dick Dewy she loves him ‘a little’; a Dunnock; and Emily Dickinson

156

The Tranter has the measure of Fancy Day; Gretel Ponders her childhood Christmas; and we Grieve in Cranford

157

Do you have an honest soul? Hands that Touch; A Handful of Saints; and King Henry VIII holds all power in his Hands

158

Bellowing Boys and Bells

159

‘I never had no head, sir’ said Leaf, Under the Greenwood Tree; Pepys’ Progress; and Kindness in Cranford. 🌳

160

John Clare’s Invitation to his Love; and poor Leaf’s Grief

161

The Splendour of Sherborne House; the Dolour of Division; and the Duke of Suffolk Raptly Rebuked;

162

We celebrate Ambrose, the influential Bishop of Milan; and Dick Dewey returns a lady’s handkerchief

163

Robert Frost and John Clare; Flu en Famille; A Cardinal’s Point; and Dick dances away with Miss Day

164

Pepys and the Buffleheaded Mayor; Dick Dewey’s Pains of Jealousy; and George Eliot’s Exquisite Observations

165

Sherborne Abbey Porch provides shelter; Dick Dewey is Smitten; and Gretel lights Candles

166

Hardy: The Insult Lies in the Nothingness of the Deed; Ode to Nanny; Pepys; Saints; and Queen Catherine rocks

167

A Daughter in Les Misérables; A Full Super Moon; and Under the Greenwood Tree forces Gretel into song

168

A Bunion is Given Consideration by Mellstock’s Shoemaker

169

Sir Simon Jenkins, talks of his twin passions for politics and architecture; and Gretel lets herself and all Dorset folk down on day two of Under the Greenwood Tree

170

‘To Dwellers in a Wood almost every Species of Tree has its Voice as well as its Feature’

171

Picts Gathering Like Swarms of Ants 🐜; Norman English Architecture; a Tidbit of Thomas Hardy; and France Woos Wolsey

172

Pepys Leaps his Garden Fence; Mr Oldinport Squeezes his Tenants; and a Mother’s Dead Hand

173

Meet Grimy and Dirty Dame Fripp; and Watch as Splendid Cardinal Wolsey Weeps in Canterbury

174

A Quiet Evening of Readings, from the Poignant, through Baffling, to Scholarly

175

We visit a 12th Century Somerset Church; Rev Amos Barton buries his Wife; and we celebrate the Life of Congar

176

Anne Boleyn is Denied Marriage to Lord Percy; The Stair Where You Sit; Saint Catherine of Alexandria

177

We visit Tess of the D’Urbevilles’ village, church and baby’s ’grave’

178

In Praise of The Rest is History and The History of England podcasts; The Blackmore Vale; and Cardinal Wolsey’s Banquet

179

The Dream of the Rood; Samuel Pepys’ Fury; and the mighty Columbanus

180

King Eadmund chooses Martyrdom; Hurrah for Nanny; and Wilfrid masterminds a Moment in Time at Ripon

181

Edgar Allan Poe delights; Rev Barton angers; Mrs Pepys fret; and Gretel delves too densely into medieval ecclesiastical conflict.

182

The Almoner rises to Henry VIII’s favourite; 1663 begins; and time is stilled by Emily Dickinson

183

Cavendish begins his Life of Cardinal Wolsey; the Rev Bartons receive a surprise Guest; and John Clare takes us to the bountiful Hedgerows

184

Samuel Pepys ends 1662 contentedly; and a Scattering of Ponderings by the Meadow

185

American Civil War; Chad steals Wilfrid’s See; and Christianity as shared currency

186

St Edwold’s Church; and George Eliot’s Genius

187

Galsworthy’s Little John Sleeps at Last, with John Clare Floating Us to a Gentle Place

188

Gretel drinks from the Well of Loquaciousness in Sherborne Abbey’s Nooks and her Memories’ Military Crannies; Saint Wilfrid and Other Saints; An Anglo-Saxon Poem; and a Lithping George Eliot

189

John Galsworthy: he was filled to the brim of his soul with restlessness and the want of something - not a tree, not a gun - something soft.

190

John Galsworthy’s Awakening; The Howards; Saint Wilfrid becomes Bishop; and Clerical Fuss and Nonsense with George Eliot

191

17th Century Marital Strife; Rev Barton’s Wife Warms his Slippers; and Shakespeare Ponders the Brave Day sunk in Hideous Night

192

To Discern and Love Sincerity of Purpose; and an Anglo-Saxon Seafarer

193

Sincerity of Purpose in Shepperton; Athelhampton; and Wilfred’s X-Factor

194

This thou perceiv’st, which makes thy love more strong,  To love that well which thou must leave ere long.

195

Dorset Churches; Remembrance Bells; and Sherborne School

196

A happy marriage in the Pepys household; The Seafarer; and Saint Willibrord

197

The Swollen Moon; Templecombe Church; and The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle

198

Wherefore no man grows wise without he have his share of winters

199

Sir Walter Scott; A Brace of Saints; and Good Samuel Pepys

200

Beowulf, Bede and a Glaswegian Cabbie

201

Widsith, Alfred and Gratitude

202

A Line in the Sand ↗️

203

Anglo-Saxon Mood Music with Chastisement and Ruin

204

The Evolution of Church Architecture; Saint Frideswide and Gretel climbs a Bell Tower 🔔

205

A Somerset church and wonderful May; Goats, cows, sheep abound; and Pepys whips his poor boy until he own up to his lies

206

The Hedgehogs are Awake still; Philippa Langley; Pepys collects the Portuguese Queen’s Dowry; and there is an Embarrassment of Ponderations 🥴

207

Three Men (and a 🐕) out of their Boat; a Medley of Saints; accompanied by Jackdaws and Robins

208

Buckfast Abbey; John Clare and Saints Bruno and Foy.

209

An Unexpected Chat with Genius Composer Matthew Coleridge; and the beautiful sounds within Sherborne Abbey

210

Autumnal Interlude 🍁🍂🦔

211

A Murmuration of Ponderings; Pepys visits Portsmouth & Southampton; A Note on Medieval Church Monuments; and The Great War Blights Families, Communities and the Minds of the Returning Men

212

A Teeny Witter or Interlude

213

The George and Dragon at Wargrave; Montmorency burns his Snout; and Gretel heads for Essex

214

Montmorency Retreats from The Cat; Pepys is Revolted by a Floating Corpse; and Elgar ends our Ponder 🌝

215

Montmorency does not like Cats 🐈‍⬛; The Knave of Knaresborough; and Exmoor is depicted to Perfection

216

The Wind is finally in the Boat’s Favour; A meandering Ponder in the Garden; and we celebrate Maurice and Matthew

217

Pepys Sings Gaze Not Upon Swans 🦢; Three Men and Their Boat; and we ponder the ancient Washing of Feet and Hands 🙌🏻

218

A Cut-short mini episode with Mr Katt and a Delightful lady in Dunster Museum

219

Pomp & Circumstance; From Trenches to Moon’s Dug-out; and Romeo & Juliet’s terrible First Performance

220

Elgar, Wordsworth, Tracks, Midweek Music and Saints

221

Philip Mould OBE, Art Historian and Lovely Chap, chats to Gretel about Art

222

Gretel aborts a launch into Egyptian Monasticism; and goes down a Sutton Hoo rabbit-hole

223

Three Men and their Boat get to Walton; We ponder St Gregory’s Mission in Kent; and Mr Robin barks at the Magpies

224

A few gentle ponders and reads from a Dorset garden. The swifts are gone but the crows 🐦‍⬛ are filling the vacuum 🌳

225

Poor Harris attempts his ‘Comic Song’; and Bede tells of Cuthbert’s shutting himself away, all in the delightful Dorset Drizzle 🌧️

226

Tiny Episode visiting St Andrews, Trent.

227

Hampton Court Maze baffles Harris; You mustn’t argue with an English Person’s comment on the Weather; and we Feast Saint Aidan

228

New Technology turns Gretel Professional 🤓; a Return to Milborne Port in a Thunderstorm; and Delicious Readings

229

English Rules of Conversation; and how Cuthbert ruled his monks at Lindesfarne

230

Episode Two: English Pub Etiquette, and Three Men climb aboard their Boat

231

The first of Two Episodes today: a Visit to St John the Evangelist, Milborne Port

232

A Monkish Fraud Exposed; Good Bishop Wilfred; and Three Men Prepare to go ABoating

233

A visit to the 14th Century Fiddleford Manor; while we continue accompanying Pepys and Jerome on their Progress

234

Join me as we read by the beautiful Somerset church of Corton Denham; then proceed to Sherborne Abbey to catch up with Three Men and are encouraged to throw out life’s lumber!

235

Three Men Prepare to go A-boating; The French and Spanish Ambassadors Fight over Precedence; and a Ponder over Tricky Familial Relationships

236

Montmorency isn’t keen on The Idea 🚤 🐕; B Omrani ponders the effect of Christianity on the English landscape 🪦; and Gretel is finding a Positive Path through Grief

237

The Saxon Shore Fort and Monastery of Reculver; and Pepys eats Grapes and Melons (millons) for the first time

238

Wuthering Heights, seasoned with a little Pepys 🤓

239

Gentle routine resumes with our readings: Bede, Pepys, The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle and the Book of Saints, closing with some Bijan Omrani

240

Bad People created by Good Intentions; Heathcliff and Cathy; and a History of the Salt Combe

241

Exploring the Wuthering and Extraordinary Heights; and Pondering the Problem with Ropes with Jerome K Jerome

242

Bus, Dock and Hotel are locations for tonight’s episode where we Gaze into the 15th Century

243

Who thus define it, say they more or less // Than this, that happiness is happiness

244

Salcombe Hubub; Exhausting Parenting; and Heathcliffe begs Cathy to come home

245

The Waters Lap at my Feet while Pondering the Decorated phase of Gothic Architecture; and then we are Overcome by the Wiley Windy Moors

246

How the Wind Blows around the Dreaded Matter of Class; and Thomas Hardy, by an admirer in 1940

247

Sweet Cyder is a Great Thing, writes T Hardy; Pepys remarks on King Charles II Ordinary Mien; and we Learn how to Diagnose the Birth of Gothic Architecture

248

The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle; Fever breaks out in London in Summer 1661; and we Ponder the Pre-Reformation English Church

249

Live at the Oval for Day 4 of the England/India Test; followed by Further Ponderings on the Cerne Giant

250

Norman/Romanesque Architecture; Cricket and Sidwell’s Feast Day

251

A Pile of Books with Tea, a cat 🐈, a bat 🦇 and a hedgehog 🦔 in a Dorset Garden 📚🤓

252

A stroll through an Enchanted Graveyard, where a loving Cat appeared to soothe my heart; and poor Pepys has Broken Brains

253

We go in on a little Pilgrimage to the Holy Well in Cerne Abbas. Come and touch the waters created [one understands 😬] by the Staff of St Augustine

254

Saint Olaf becomes Sain Tooley Street; Bells ring out for Tuesday practice; and Cuthbert prays in the Suffolk sea

255

Lynmouth and the 1952 Great Flood Disaster; Saint Christopher; and a passage from The Woodlanders

256

Medieval Cerne Abbas; A Merry Trio of Trollope, Bede & Pepys; and infiltration by Rooks, Gulls & Mozart 🤓

257

Good Aelfric teaches at Cerne Abbas and a worldly son coverts episcopal power in Trollope’s Barchester

258

Cuthbert, Pepys and the beginnings of Cerne’s Abbey

259

We dwell for a moment with heart-sore Giles Winterborne in Hardy’s The Woodlanders; We Spy a Roaming Hedgehog; and Celebrate the life of Bridget of Sweden

260

Hardy’s Woodlanders are out of sorts; Pepys’ life blossoms; and Swifts and Gulls whirl about Gretel’s garden

261

Boisil welcomes the boy Cuthbert; What’s the Point? And George Eliot ponders the delights of Cream, straight from the Udder

262

George Eliot’s Scenes of Clerical Life; Pepys learns that Britain is part of the European continent; and stubborn Cuthbert finds food

263

The Preservation of Churches; A visit to South Cadbury’s Parish Church; and St Cuthbert watches Aidan’s soul rise to Heaven

264

The Life of Cuthbert

265

Bells and Swifts; Hardy and Bede; Mozart and Pepys 😊

266

We visit St Michael’s Over Compton on the Dorset / Somerset Border and discover a wonderful local tradition rooted in village divisions at the time of the Civil War

267

We join Pepys for Charles II’s Coronation, with a drunken end to the day; and enfin Bede is our guest, beginning his history of Cuthbert’s life.

268

A Happy Monday with England winning the Third Test; Pepys wears velvet to watch the pre-Coronation procession; and Bede is our guest once again 🤓

269

‘The Physiognomy of a Deserted Highway’; Inappropriate Pepys; and a Leaping Dog

270

We ponder English cottages and The Rule of Benedict in hot Dorset garden

271

Grace visits Sherton (Sherborne) in Hardy’s The Woodlanders, to follow her heart; accompanied by seagulls and Mr Katt

272

We visit Sherborne’s 12th Century Old Castle 🏰

273

The English Village and the Sherborne Conduit

274

Kent becomes Christian once more; Choral Music soothes; and Pepys judges Charles II and his brother quite ordinary.

275

Pepys’ thoughts on the King; Childhood Music; and the Debate continues

276

Horace Walpole counters Thomas More in The Great Debate; and we Ponder Early Christianity in Cornwall

277

Murder of Princes; Time to Stop and Stare; the Cornish Sea and Sore Hearts

278

A Lost Episode; Thomas More speaks the apparent final concerned words of Edward IV; and we look forward to time by the Cornish Coast

279

Covid Returns; Dunstan’s early life in Glastonbury; and poor Oliver Plunkett

280

A return to a Dorset garden where Thomas More tells of Richard III’s pitiless cruelty; Samuel Pepys turns 28; and we ponder Saint Peter

281

A hot June day, out and about in Bury St Edmunds

282

We’re back in beautiful Bury St Edmund’s; Visit the resting place of Martha’s Vineyard’s Marthas; & ponder the origins and development of Peterborough 🌟

283

The Dastardly Richard III, by Thomas More; and the Slaughter of the Fowls on a Sultry Saturday

284

St Wulfsige and Dunstan; Cyril of Alexander; and Mrs Bat 🦇

285

A Gold Ring Found; Cromwell’s Head in the eaves of Westminster Hall; and Bede tells of Cuthbert’s childhood as Gretel watches the sunrise 🌅

286

Bede uses the phrase ‘hair-splitting’; dead Cromwell is hanged at Tyburn; and we ponder the Royal Bones in Sherborne Abbey

287

The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, Dunstan, Pepys and Bede

288

Charles Dickens writes of New Year’s Eve; Saint Etheldreda and Ponderings on Grief

289

The Boisterous Royal Ascot, Pepys and young Dunstan

290

An Introduction to the Great Dunstan on a Warm Solstice Eve

291

The bells ring and we ponder English Houses with Betjeman

292

Poor Henchard contemplates the River below; and we ponder London with a woeful extract from John Betjeman

293

John Betjeman on Churchyards; we close the year 1660; and remember St Alban

294

Blue Peter in 1971; the resetting of Canterbury Cathedral’s East End and a Wistful John Clare

295

Pepys, St Vitus and Medieval Power Play in Canterbury

296

We visit Thomas Hardy’s childhood church, St Michael’s Stinsford, and catch a little of the King’s Birthday Parade. 🇬🇧

297

Pepys eats Neat’s Tongue; we celebrate Leo III and Anthony of Padua; and ponder Canterbury Cathedral’s Crypt

298

Evolution of Canterbury Cathedral; Pepys wants to inspect his Mother’s Kidney Stone; and we ponder the Perpendicular

299

Pepys Prospers; we ponder the Decorated Gothic Period and T Hardy lulls with his gentle Poetry

300

Canterbury Part III

301

Canterbury Part II

302

Canterbury Part I

303

Early English Churches; Early Cornish and Irish Christianity; and Archbishop Mellitus

304

Norbert’s Day; Pepys has Diaper Napkins; and Pevsner describe Sherborne Old Castle

305

A Wessex Poem; Poor Boniface is Murdered as an Old Man; and Pepys falls out with his Wife

306

Hardy’s poignant poetry; and Pepys hears Organ music in Westminster for the first time.

307

Saxon Crosses; Hardy’s education; and a Rainy Tuesday

308

We discover Iona was called Hii; dear Walter Scott woos our hearts; and Pepys ruefully clocks the severed limbs of ‘traytors’

309

Pepys watches the death of a Regicide; we ponder Egdon Heath and celebrate a clutch of Saints

310

Pepys is taken aback by grand Clerical Vestments; we commemorate poor Jeanne D’Arc; and we visit Thomas Hardy in his home

311

Possible Ghost of Emma Gifford sings in her old Church St Juliot’s; Witchery in Boscastle; and Bloodlines

312

Pepys drinks his first Cupp of Tea 🫖 while we take a walk among grasses and graves.

313

Cornish sounds; Hengist and Horsa; and an evening visit to a cliff-top Church

314

The Venerable Bede: a Celebration

315

Origins of Oratorios; Saint Augustine’s Feast Day; and Pepys discusses whether True Argument is at the Heart of a good Tragedie

316

Saints, Celtic Christians, a thieving Servant, and we make a start on the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle

317

We remember David of Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿; Celebrate France 🇫🇷; Ponder human nature; and eagerly anticipate tonight’s episode where we begin…

318

A tour inside a 1533 Chancel that’s lost its Nave; Why the Lord Chancellor sits atop a Bale of Wool; and we hear Swallows, Warblers and Long-Tailed Tits

319

A Litter of Puppies for Pepys; The Abingdon Manuscript; and good William of Rochester.

320

The Winchester Chronicle, The Court of Pleas and Pepys buys Lobster 🦞

321

A Deep Ponder on Universal Trials of Life

322

Hares, Saints and Rain

323

The early 19th Century Microcosm of London by Pugin and Rawlinson; Mr Wren accompanies Pepy’s Diaries

324

The Restoration was about restoring Parliament’s Sovereignty, says W Churchill, brilliantly; and we reflect on the great St Dunstan

325

The Sherborne Abbey Fire of 1437: Townsman against Monk; A Fateful Font Fight

326

Grief; Saint Madron; Birdsong and a fretful Pepys

327

Brendan the Navigator, Carantoc, Peregrine of Auxerre and Simon Stock; meanwhile Churchill discusses pre-Restoration power-play; and dear Pepys’ wench takes abed

328

Early English Gothic; the Psychiatric Innovations of Gheel; and Pepys returns to his Wife’s warm bed.

329

Emily Dickinson; Matthias the Apostle; and poor Pepys awakes Bed-Wetted and missing his beloved Wife

330

King Charles II arrives at Dover; his long trials at an end. General Monke and Charles play these Restoration days exquisitely.

331

Winston Churchill tells of the build-up the The Anarchy after an Old King loses his beloved teenage son; We ponder the possible suppression by Lanfranc of unorthodox Celtic Saints; and Pepys discovers beautiful Delft

332

Pepys organises the painting of the new King’s Arms

333

Fascinating Irish Saints and a happy May Day in 1660 London

334

Tom Holland talks Podcasts, Donald Trump, and the joys of cricket

335

Cerne Abbas, spilt wine and Pepys plays ninepins

336

Pepys’ Progress and a Blackbird 🐦‍⬛

337

A Sombre Wednesday; Painting for the first time as an Adult; and Pepys commemorates his Stone Operation

338

National Treasure and priest Angela Tilbury chats about grief and her new book; and author Andrew Heavens discusses his fascinating book The Prince and the Plunder

339

An Interview with Author Bijan Omrani who discusses his book God is an Englishman: Christianity and the Creation of England

340

An introduction to the author Bijan Omrani and Pepys worries for his Wife in preparing for his Sea Voyage

341

Dear Samuel Pepys tells that all London doth now toast the health of King Charles

342

Pepys toasts the King, as the Restoration appears inevitable; and we touch on dear Bede once more, to explore his early Influence

343

Welcome to Friday evening’s progress with Pepys, the Saints, with a bit of live Bach. And - huge joy - the swifts have returned!

344

All of London joyfully watches and applauds every step of General Monke.

345

Pepys talks of wine, General Monke, unpaid soldiers and huge buttocks in today’s episode; To pick up the ashes or not?

346

Garden birds, Saint Catherine of Siena and we finish Pepys’ first month

347

Pepys takes us into his world where it is a cold and frosty January and no-one knows how the country will be governed.

348

The Diary (wonderful, fascinating and joyful) of Samuel Pepys. Day One: let’s go 🤗🤓

349

A Visit to Thomas Hardy’s cottage; and a Tender Farewell to Bede in his own Words

350

Saint Mark is remembered; Eustacia is rebuked and we hear of Bede’s death from Saint Cuthbert

351

We come to the end! A tender close to Bede’s Ecclesiastical History

352

Saint George’s Day! 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Witches 🧙 of Dorset; a piece of perfection from Thomas Hardy

353

An evening Ponder; history of St Edmundsbury; a trio of Saints and the Tonsure Matter

354

Spooky Easter Evening Wanderings in Bury St Edmund’s; Caedwalla and other Saints; and finally we understand Easter dating 😊

355

An impromptu chat Revd Canon Mark Haworth after Evensong in St Edmundsbury Cathedral in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk; a family visit for Easter Sunday

356

The magnificent achievements of the Scriptoriums. And more dense ‘explanation’ of the Easter problem. 🤓

357

Good Friday! Mozart and Easter.

358

Sunshine in Dorset as we learn of Bernadette of Lourdes; We ponder most people are seeking to be kind; and King of the Picts shows us how Dilpmacy is done.

359

Norman the Photographer; an Arundel Church and Bede’s Progress

360

An art exhibition at the National Gallery; Downing Street Preacher; Grievous Tears and Obscure Celtish Saints

361

A Blackbird, Tudor houses and Abbey Music

362

We visit Arundel Castle and climb the Norman Keep; Two April Saints and the death of Wilfrid

363

A trip to Arundel; more tales of Wilfred’s life

364

The Count of Mortain’s Cornish land; a Great Tit; Wilfred’s early life and Ponderings on Church and State

365

Some Solitude from May Sarton, the Norman Arch and our own Aldhelm

366

A trip to see Hamilton with a happy daughter; and Parakeets in St James’s Park

367

Green grass and blue skies in England are the beautiful backdrop to this evening’s ponderings 🌻

368

Organ music from Evensong; a Salad of Saints and a Marvellous description of pre-Crusade Jerusalem and Bethlehem

369

The Great Gatsby’s prescient diagnosis of America; a very persistent Wren; Abbey bells a-calling; and the founding of Shaftesbury.

370

Ponderings on Melancholia; More strange Saints and yet another Tale of Alarm from our Pious Friend of Yore

371

Murder in medieval Cornwall; St Ambrose and our Venerable Bede 🤓

372

Origins St Gennys Church in North Cornwall; Today’s two Saints; and a warm Hello 👋

373

Dorset Smugglers; Naked Welsh Saints and the sound of the Atlantic Ocean. Welcome to Cornwall 🤗

374

The Alchemy of Poetry; More on Roman Roads; and Bede conjures up devilish imaginings

375

Evidence for Roman Roads into Cornwall; and Bede tells of testimony of a man who rose from death.

376

Commemorating today’s Saints; Early English architecture and our Gentle Bede

377

River sounds; Crying a river; Poorly Doggo and Marvellous Alfred.

378

Come to Thomas Hardy’s land of birth, passing a Roman Road; and then let’s hear of a double murder

379

Alfred the Great, master strategist, creates currency from oaths.

380

A spring visit to a pretty Dorset church; and King Alfred burns the cakes.

381

Live violin 🎻 magic from Dorset Fiddlers; and pondering that Wonder and Beauty often springs from cracks and imperfections.

382

A Grandson on losing his Grandma; and a return home to routine and restful reality.

383

The dreadfulness of crematoriums. What a forlorn end to a wonderful life. And so we read about Gothic architecture to clear the mind and cleanse the palette.

384

Histories of Four Saints and Throwing Control to the Four Winds; the Serenity to accept the Things we Cannot Change is Hard to Harness

385

We learn about popular Saint Patrick, for whom many Guinnesses will have been drunk today. Melancholy as a quiet, tidal emotion.

386

A Happy Sunday with Family and Sunshine; Wise words from a Young Girl; and Gentle Bede

387

A Few Quiet Readings.

388

Ponderings on the some of the consequences of the Norman Conquest; and Bede tells of yet another miracle

389

Churchill tells of early Celtic Christianity; and we progress with Bede as Doggo dreams fitfully ☺️

390

Leaning into the wind, with a few new books at my elbow; and Bede’s Fifth Book begun on Farne Island.

391

Winchester Cathedral offers balm to the soul after holding my mother’s hand for the last time.

392

Glorious, Delicious Southwark; a Forlorn return to Chelsea; and we close Bede’s 4th Book 🤓

393

The Making of the Thames and the Middlesex Saucer; Quiet Bede accompanied by the practising Choir of Sherborne Abbey

394

Do you know your ‘Wics’? Gretel goes deep into Middlesex; Poor Bede can’t let Cuthbert go; but he’s not like Binker

395

Grief is Tough; a Robin visits; the Irish Famine and the death of Cuthbert

396

Filial bell-ringing; Queen Victoria rejects anti-semitism; a word on Diocletian; and Cuthbert enthrals his fellows.

397

Calm readings with cat on lap, candles lit and tea by my side. In history we find comfort for it right-sizes the present times.

398

More Adventures in Stratford-upon-Avon, in the Guild Chapel, the Swan Theatre, and with actor Enzo Cilenti in the Dirty Duck pub.

399

A trip to Stratford-upon-Avon with Bede

400

Taking the Somerset air and contemplating a forthcoming exhibition Siena: The Rise of Painting 1300-1350; Roman roads and more chatterings from Bede

401

A second time in two weeks to lie next to a human in love and protection.

402

A Wessex Wander and Progress with Churchill and Bede’s histories. Aching for my mother. 😔

403

Darkness and Light after Death; and Tom Holland brings some Comfort 🌷

404

Oh Let us have Valiant Hearts; Gratitude for Kindness; and the Legacy of Hilde

405

The Church of Lady St Mary, Wareham; and Hilde of Whitby.

406

Ponderings on Grief, a little Mozart, and Venerable Bede tells of a Veritable Samson

407

Elgar’s Enigma Variations; Sea-Swimming and Gentle Bede

408

Exploring Wareham; the Romans look back to the Danube; and we prepare for Bede’s hymn to the Virgin Queen 😬🫖

409

A trip to Wareham to visit the Saxon church of St Martin; and Bede talks of bones, virgins and eels 🤓

410

Not Waving but Drowning; the Birds bring Joy; as do Books 📚

411

Boy, this is tough! Grief overwhelms; Suetonius finally overwhelms the Britons; and monks flock to hear chanting superstar John

412

A Candle lit in the Abbey; Early Roof Construction in Churches; and Dark Deals regarding the Isle of Wight are recounted by Bede

413

The Beginning of The Rest of My Life; Let’s Read about Chelsea

414

A Cold Day of Calm after the Storm;

415

Home for Respite after a terrible morning; Churchill tells us of Boudicca

416

Warrior Mother; Carlyle’s Truth-Forged approach to writing about the French Revolution 🇫🇷; and Venerable, gentle Bede.

417

By my bed stay awhile, and read of Thomas Carlyle

418

Episode 131, February 13th 🫖

419

Not ready! A foolish lament. Pubs as cosy cocoons; and Bede tries to get heard over the London punters. Wednesday oft is weaved of woe. 🫖

420

One Day at a Time, and Finding Peace within. With the help of gentle readings.

421

Good evening let’s ponder about London, hospitals and losing track in Bede’s narrative

422

A Dash from Dorset to London

423

Hallelujah, it’s time for Saturday histories.

424

Mr Katt battles for the lap as he’s told stories of Caesar and long-dead Nuns

425

February is Spring's Promise; A visit to a hidden Dorset hamlet ; and Caesar is surprised by the turning tides

426

A peek into Sherborne Abbey; Norman Churches; and the Iron Age

427

A Windy Bridge-Crossing and Historical Musings

428

High hopes and Gratitude are our Sword and Shield; Julius Caesar sniffs the English shores; and Bede records some sensible Synodical Decisions

429

Another visit to Mr Robin and the Church at Corton Denham; we finish Winston Churchill’s marvellous Preface to his History

430

Sadness; Sherborne’s Conduit; and Remembering Chad

431

Les oiseaux, Churchill’s History and Chad’s last hours; our first garden pot of tea 🫖

432

Sherborne Bells strike Twelve; Spring Birds Gladden the Heart; Churchill's Preface to his History; and Bede

433

Hallelujah for Handel; London Dining in 1915 and Catholicism blooms in England

434

Bell-ringing, AA Milne poetry and Book Four begun

435

The streets of London; listening in to Choir Practice (and weeping); A message of love to dear America 🇺🇸 and we close Book Three with Bede

436

Epiphany Service at Chelsea Old Church, Finding Peace in beautiful old Buildings, and Bede

437

A London Mooch About with Bede in my Back-Pocket

438

Rural society in the 1840s; the Ubiquity of Social Division; and our dear Bede

439

Seagulls swirl over Sherborne Abbey; their Freedom contrasting with the poor condemned of Newgate Gaol. Charles Dickens at his descriptive best.

440

A Visit, by Charles Dickens, to Newgate Gaol; and Bede tells of the Goodness of the Northumbrian Clergy

441

A Gentle Zooming in on Thomas Hardy’s Under The Greenwood Tree

442

Hope is the Thing with Feathers; a Walk in the Meadow; and Easter is settled

443

An introduction to Thomas Hardy from 1940 and more Easter arguments

444

Sunday is Music Day 😀; Saxon Costume; The Arguments about Easter rumble on

445

Housewives’ tips from the Abbey bench; Saxon clothing; and Bede frets again about Easter

446

Home Sweet Home with special guest Mr Katt as we read about the American Civil War before our friend Bede

447

Podcasting from a Battersea Care Home, Chelsea History, a Choir Practice and a Saxon Princess offered to God

448

An explanation for Episode 100 and a Bede tells of a boy’s survival

449

Tony Slattery’s best friend Erica talks to the podcast of her sadness

450

Noisy bird-fellows by the Thames; Friendship; Tea and Gentle Bede

451

A Full Moon in Vibrant London; in the company of our Venerable friend

452

Sunday remembrances of Flodden Field and the power of Iona

453

Hello let’s look at January’s sparkling 🌔 and wonder about life 🤗

454

Friday poems and readings: a gentle end to the week.

455

Welcome to Thursday night’s gentle pondering and readings

456

Love, not embarrassment, for one’s roots; Dick Dewy and Fancy Day get ready for their pretty marriage; and more wisdom from Ireland

457

A Joyful Tuesday of literature, children, birds and Bede

458

An Owl, Family Pressures and The Candle of the North 🕯️

459

The Three Kings Carol live from Sherborne Abbey and Aidan Protects Bamburgh from the Flames 🔥

460

The Still Small Voice of Wisdom; the Shape of Trees and Aidan’s Miracles

461

Frosty Friday the third; time to right-size and humble Aidan

462

A Winter’s Visit to a Secret Church, Self-Pity and Oswiu

463

A quiet start to 2025 with Pepys and Bede

464

A Happy New Year from Baedeker and Bede

465

A night in Oxford and a visit to the Ashmolean Museum

466

Syrian monasticism, Somerset Ham Stone and Miracles after the death of Oswald

467

Early Holy Land Monasticism; Charles II is visited by Russians and Oswald is killed in Battle

468

Twixt Yule and Year End 🕯️😊

469

Double Bede for Boxing Day

470

Christmas Day ⭐️

471

Music, Carols and Early Irish Christians ⭐️

472

Canadian wolves and bears; and St Columba is given Iona

473

Under the Greenwood Tree and the history of Oswald

474

The Sun Stands Still, and the wind curls round Gretel in Castleton

475

A Christmas Carol and King Oswald

476

A Thursday evening Robin and Bede takes us to Book Three

477

Achingly beautiful words by Walter Scott from 1806

478

Tuesday gratitude and the death of poor Edwin

479

Monday magic Moon and a reading by the Abbey

480

Completing Charles II Coronation Day and Bede

481

Organ Music, Tears, A Coronation and a Clever Pope

482

We march onwards with Bede

483

A day of bustle in festive Londres with Fabritius, the Christmas Tree and David Tennant

484

Rowdy London, Serene Leanda de Lisle and a 12th Century Church

485

Gretel takes you to a river and inside an Abbey for some quiet ponderings. 🎄😀

486

Old and New Sherborne Castles

487

Thomas Hardy’s Under the Greenwood Tree on Christmas morning; and King Edwin receives a holy visitor.

488

Sherborne, Betjeman and Bede. Welcome!

489

A Graveyard, an Apology, Pepys and a Wily Pope

490

Fifth day in December, by a Dorset river and listening to the extraordinary words of Pope Boniface to a long-dead British king ✨

491

Thomas Hardy and Pepys join Bede for todays episode with peaceful Gretel

492

Come inside an old Bishops Caundle Church 🤓

493

Fear, Families from the Past, Abbey Bells and a Pallium given

494

Winter and Advent Cometh 😊🔔

495

Must be Santa, Advent Eve, Cnut and Mellitus. 🔔

496

The Darkling Thrush, the Nightingale and the death of Aethelberht

497

Thursday shenanigans with Gretel 🥳

498

Gentle midweek pondering by river and readings in the darkening garden.

499

Hurrah for Home! And the return of our Venerable Bede.

500

Monday dash to London, leaving Bede in Dorset. Germany’s history to the rescue 🇩🇪

501

Thomas Hardy, John Clare and a stormy Sunday; while Augustine bullies the Britons

502

A windy walk to Sherborne Abbey, a look inside, and a famous passage from Bede’s history.

503

Pope Gregory dies and we look back on his life.

504

Thomas of Canterbury on a snowy Thursday, and a new book in Bede’s histories

505

Having courage of mind, English hedges, and our Venerable companion closes Book 1.

506

Dissonance, the marvellous Weekend Book and Pope Gregory charms King Aethelberht 🌳

507

The greatest treason: to do the right deed for the wrong reason

508

Sunday ponderings about Hampstead Heath, Byron and Pope Gregory's pragmatic view on pagan shrines

509

A Bleak Saturday dash to London

510

Country soundscapes, church crawling and Bede

511

Saxon Churches and Bede on a Thursday evening

512

Malmesbury ahoy! And Bede discusses the sin of night-time ‘illusions’.

513

Tuesday with Dunstan, Aldhelm and Bede

514

St Augustine asks his boss awkward questions about women, sex and menstruation

515

Remembrance; Bedlam Hospital and Bede.

516

Shelley, Sherborne, Scriptoriums and St Augustine 🍂

517

Overcoming dread, old Wessex and St Augustine give us a gentle time to pause

518

Gretel takes you inside a very old church in the Somerset Hills before our progress with St Augustine

519

Join me for a gentle twenty minutes of historical readings and a few ponderings.

520

A wearisome day, put to bed with our usual peaceful readings.

521

Cosy candle-lit readings and ponderings on a Monday afternoon 🤓

522

A drizzle, damp Sunday, with seagulls, history books and the wind for company

523

London churches and Bede

524

A new month of life and loss with Gretel and the ecclesiastical history of England with Bede 🤓

525

Halloween Thursday with Gretel and Bede. Families can be tricky

526

Please do join me as we continue with Bede’s progress 🤓

527

A quiet Tuesday in the new Anglo-Saxon Englannd

528

Quiet Monday at Rotten Row with our Venerable friend

529

Sunday with Mr Katt, Hyde Park and marauding Saxons 🤓

530

Gretel makes a mistake while the birds chirrup merrily and Bede tells of incoming Anglo-Saxons

531

Bede takes centre stage as we return to England 🌅

532

Thursday in Paris. A balmy day at the Louvre 🇫🇷

533

Bonjour! C’est Mercredi. Holiday ponderings and chaotic times told by Monsieur Vénérable 🤓🇫🇷

534

Bonsoir mes amis. 🌞 Paris, the National Anthem and Monsieur Bede

535

Monday good cheer and Bede

536

Welcome to Sunday rain, The Cheshire Cheese and Bede

537

A jittery Saturday from Bede to Tyburn Gallows

538

An eleventh day of short musings with Gretel, Bede and a bit of Baedeker’s Primrose Hill.

539

Shine on Harvest Moon with autumn 🍂 sunshine, Gretel and Bede

540

Please join me on day nine for nine quiet minutes. 🌳

541

Eleanor Farjeon and Bede share a platform on this eighth day of podpondering with Gretel 🙋‍♀️🌳

542

A Monday muse with Gretel, the dog and Bede. Come join us. 🤓

543

A potter with Bede around Corton Denham

544

A candlelight muse with Bede on a fifth day.

545

Gretel goes forth with Bede on day four. Wishing everyone a restful Friday evening.

546

The Birds and the Bede. Come join me for day three, walking in the Dorset woods.

547

Grief and Bede. Come join me in the library for day two.