We take you on a merry tour of the magical land of Peckham in South London, courtesy of Muriel Spark and her superb (and remarkably short) novel 'The Ballad of Peckham Rye'.

We start at the address in Camberwell where Muriel Spark lived and wrote the book. We then follow a number of lost - or perhaps completely mythical - pathways down the old Surrey Canal, past a number of long-gone pubs in Peckham & Nunhead, before emerging on to the ancient Rye - where Boadicea may or may not have popped her clogs. Tim gets very excited about the number of pubs you get to visit by following this book - some of them still there and serving pints!

Our mission at the 'CuSpec' Book Club is to road test works of fiction that appear to be curiously specific about dates and locations. We go to the places mentioned and see if descriptions are accurate, journey times credible, dates and days all in order. Along the way, we learn things about the book and its author.

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