Grimm Reading

In this story, a psychopathic couple get a schooling from their son when the little boy witnesses the harsh treatment of his grandfather. Things get moralistic this week's as we read the Grimm story, The Old Man And His Grandson. 

After the tale, we explore the world of old men in folktales, specifically three ATU types that deal with old men looking for care in their twilight years - finishing with a harrowing story from the Philipines, or possibly Mexico.

This episode is Certified Grimm and may not be suitable for all listeners. 

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Theme music: Bicycle Waltz by Goodbye Kumiko

Other Music: Brahms' 4 Piano  Pieces, Op. 119 - 2. Intermezzo in E minor  & Sonata in C major Op.1 - III. Scherzo performed by Peter Bradley-Fulgoni 

On his deathbed, a King commands trusty John, his most loyal servant, to protect his son and heir. But when the boy falls in love with a forbidden painting, John's loyalty is pushed to the limit. Will he sacrifice himself for the sake of the boy?

Find out in Faithful John! The Brothers Grimm story responsible for Oscar Wilde's greatest work and your favourite scene in Star Wars. 

After the story, we try to tracy its lineage from West to East, by way of a medieval French romance and the unexpected story of Hercules' run in with a poisoned shirt.

This episode is “Certified Grimm” for adult themes and may not be suitable for all listeners.

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Theme music: Bicycle Waltz by Goodbye Kumiko

Other Music: Dvorak's Romantic Pieces, Op. 75 - 3. Allegro appassionato // Maria Szymanowska's Polonaise No. 3

Welcome to our fifth Christmas party AND our 100th episode! Join us round the fire as we get festive in a bumper episode.

This year we get an American story, The Poor Count's Christmas, featuring a greedy giant, an underhanded fairy, and an aristocrat with a Christmas addiction. That adventure is swiftly followed by the opening few mini chapters of the classic tale The Nutcracker.

But before that, we share the usual gifts, pull a cracker or two, and also take a trip around the world on a culinary tour of global festive food traditions, thanks to an amazing response from our Instagram followers.

Merry Christmas and a happy new year to one and all!

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Theme music: Bicycle Waltz by Goodbye Kumiko

Other Music: Tchaikovsky's "Dance Of The Sugar Plum Fairy" from The Nutcracker Suite from the music.org European Archive // Prokofiev's Lieutenant Kije Suite: Troika performed by the Sao Paulo Symphony Orchestra

In this episode we talk to travel writer Nicholas Jubber about his latest book The Fairy Tellers, which unearths the incredible lives of the people behind famous fairy tales.

The Fairy Tellers introduces us to seven of the most influential story tellers, including Hans Christian Andersen, Dortchten Wild, Gabrielle-Suzanne de Villeneuve, and Hanna Dyab, who between them gave us Hansel and Gretel, Beauty And The Beast, The Snow Queen, and Aladdin, to name a few.

Who were these people? What’s behind the magic of their story telling? And just how good really is Basile? We talk about all this and more, and end with Nick sharing his favourite fairy tale.

Learn more about Nick Jubber at his website. And pick up a copy The Fairy Tellers just in time for Christmas!

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We finally land at the feet of the longest story in the entire collection, The Two Brothers. And this one's got it all. Dragons, witches, heroes, villains, damsels - this may well be the fairy tale story you’ve been waiting for!

When two brothers are banished from home, they gather a retinue of animal disciples and hit the road. Deciding to go their separate ways, the eldest battles a dragon and wins the heart of a princess. But when a tree-climbing witch turns him to stone, it’s up to the younger brother to save the day. But will he stay true when he’s mistaken for his brother?

Join us on an epic adventure that eventually takes us all the way to ancient Egypt and arguably the earliest fairy tale ever recorded...

Link to The History Of Egypt Podcast's episode on The Tale Of The Two Brothers.

This episode is “Certified Grimm” for adult themes and may not be suitable for all listeners.

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Theme music: Bicycle Waltz by Goodbye Kumiko

Other Music: Schmidt's Notre Dame - Intermezzo (performed by

Left alone in heaven, Saint Peter hears a knock at the door; a light-fingered tailor wants in. Against the wishes of the Good Lord, Peter lets the tailor through the pearly gates and into paradise. What will happen when the big chief returns home to find heaven in disorder? And why does everyone love Spanish cavalrymen? Find out in The Tailor In Heaven!

We discuss tailors in fairy tales, Odin’s special seat, a Swiss party town, and finally hear another folk tale of crafty tailors cheating their way into heaven.

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Theme music: Bicycle Waltz by Goodbye Kumiko

Other Music: Franz Schubert's Piano Sonata in A major D. 664 - III. Allegro (performed by Paul Pitman) // Franz Schubert's Piano Sonata no. 16 in A minor, D. 845 (performed by Paul Pitman) // Franz Schubert's Piano Sonata no. 18 in G major, D.894 (performed by Paul Pitman)

Welcome to our first ever Halloween special! Join us round the fire as we read the famous Russian fairy tale Vasilisa The Beautiful. We then have a full Baba Yaga takeover where we do a deep dive on the intriguing witch of slavic folklore. 

Creepy pork-eating dolls, evil step mothers, colourful horesmen - things get spooky in the castle with this curious story, a mix of Cinderella and Hansel And Gretel with added Baba Yaga, what’s not to love?

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Theme music: Bicycle Waltz by Goodbye Kumiko

Other Music: Aram Khachaturian's Masquerade Waltz // Bach's Toccata and Fugue in D Minor (performed by Paul Pitman) // Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet - Dance of the Knights

Things are going well for a newly married couple until a dog steals a sausage. Before you know it the house is a wreck and some thieves have stolen all their gold. 

So Frederick and Catherine set out to track down the thieves and mayhem ensues as we enjoy a generous helping of hilarious misunderstandings, before it all ends with a pastor running for his life. 

After the story, we try to make sense of this bizarre little story, a close cousin of an old Grimm Reading classic Clever Elsie. And finally we talk about idiocy in fairy tales (and how surprisingly common it is) before battling to find an appropriate score.

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Theme music: Bicycle Waltz by Goodbye Kumiko

Other Music: Rimsky-Korsakov's Flight Of The Bumblebee (performed by US Army Band) // Schubert's Piano Sonata no. 20 in A major, D. 959 - III.  (European Archive) // Brahms' Sixteen Waltzes, Op. 39 (performed by Martha Goldstein)

Welcome to series 5 of Grimm Reading! We kick things off with The Valiant Little Tailor, story number 20 in the Grimms’ Fairy Tales.

When a little tailor takes down a swarm of flies ruining his jam on toast, he can’t believe his own bravery. His studio is now too small for a man like him, so he embroiders a commemorative girdle and sets off into the world to make his name.

Several vanquished giants, dehorned unicorns, pious boars, redundant soldiers and squeezed cheeses later, the tailor is set to marry a princess. But she has other ideas… Will this humble, cocky little tailor make it to the top or will he face defeat? Find out in this huge adventure, The Brave Little Tailor!

After the story, we discuss how it compares to other stories and how it breaks fairy tales rules, before looking into the development of the tale and how the Grimms shaped it in strange ways. Finally we reveal the results of our season 5 story poll and the order we’ll be reading the remaining stories. 

Thanks so much for hanging around for us, looking forward to sharing a new Grimm season with you. 

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Theme music: Bicycle Waltz by Goodbye Kumiko

Other Music: Schumann's Fantasy Pieces, Op. 73: III. Rasch und mit Feuer (Gabriel Schwabe, cello; Nicholas Rimmer, piano) // Chopin's Polonaise No. 3 (performed by Maria Szymanowska) // Brahms' Waltz Op 39 No 15 (performed by Paul Cantrell)

We tie a bow on the latest series as we reveal the winning and losing Grimm stories from the season. Who gave out the most points? How many 9s did we give? What does it take to become the worst ever story? Discover all in 'Story Stats', where we please everyone by bringing out the spreadsheets and crunching some numbers.

After that, we share a piece of 'Bonus Audio' from Little Red Riding Hood - in the main episode we learnt about the development of the story, but what does it mean? Matt shares four theories about the meaning of the story in a clip scooped up from the cutting room floor.

We then share some listener messages before finally unveiling our plans for the next season of Grimm Reading. 

Here's the link to the Series 4 Spotify Soundtrack. 

And do check out Battle Royale podcast and/or God Vs. God podcast.

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Theme music: Bicycle Waltz by Goodbye Kumiko

Other Music: Dvořák's Humoresque Op.101 No. 7 // Camille Saint-Saëns' Danse Macabre, Op. 40, performed by Malmö Symphony Orchestra.