Ian Jelf's ABCs

In today's longer than usual episode we take a look at a lovely South Somerset stone town with a history going back 1,300 years and then move on to the reasons for and people involved with one of the most tragic and bloody episodes in the county's past, the Monmouth Rebellion.

So get a cuppa or a glass of wine and head back to the "Summer County".

In today's longer than usual episode we take a look at a lovely South Somerset stone town with a history going back 1,300 years and then move on to the reasons for and people involved with one of the most tragic and bloody episodes in the county's past, the Monmouth Rebellion.

So get a cuppa or a glass of wine and head back to the "Summer County".

One of the most famous towns in Somerset and one of its least known grab our attention today in a story that ranges from early Christianity to an industrial estate, by way of King Arthur and a vanished railway.......

From the historic Somerset Levels to a hilly town on the Wiltshire border, Ian manages to weave in cakes, cheese, grain, coal.......and beans on toast!

A little bit of Somerset that's known all over the world and a fairytale castle and village are our subjects today as we look at places beginning with the letters C and D.

So my thrid series of ABCs moves us to Somerset for a look at an overlooked ancient town and a surprising coastal village.

Look out in the coming days as my third series of "ABC Podcasts are published.......

Battles, soft drinks, malt, crusaders and one of Birmingham's true surviving villages are just some of the subjects covered in this the final episode of season 2 of Ian's A-Z podcasts.

A verutable melange of traitors, Belorussians and Jews make their way on to Birmingham's street signs today.......

Today Birmingham's street names give us an excuse to hear about the BBC, mediaeval monuments, a legendary outlaw and digging holes.......