BBC Radio 4: In Our Time podcast on “The Fisher King” mythology

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BBC Radio 4 - In Our Time with Melvyn BraggThe BBC Radio 4 program (and podcast) In Our Time is an always reliable source for academic scientific and historical discussions, a recent program on “The Fisher King” will be of much interest to fans of chivalric literature. Here’s the official line:

“In the world of medieval romance there are many weird and wonderful creatures – there are golden dragons and green knights, sinister enchantresses and tragic kings, strange magicians and spears that bleed and talk. And yet, in all this panoply of wonder, few figures are more mysterious than the Fisher King. Entrusted as the keeper of the Holy Grail itself, he resides in a castle made of magic where he lies blighted by a wound that does not heal.

He is a complex and poetic figure and has meant many things to many people. From the age of chivalry to that of psychoanalysis and beyond, he has been Christian and pagan, tragic and enduring, a sinner, a fertility god and a symbol of sexual fear and desire.”

Contributors to the program, Carolyne Larrington (Tutor in Medieval English at St John’s College, Oxford), Stephen Knight (Distinguished Research Professor in English Literature at Cardiff University), Juliette Wood (Associate Lecturer in the Department of Welsh, Cardiff University and Director of the Folklore Society) joined Melvyn Bragg in this fascinating forty minute show. To listen to the archived programme click on the “Listen To This Program In Full” button on this subpage (RealAudio required).

Listeners to the episode have made connections between “The Fisher King” and as disparate works as: Dr No, Apocalypse Now, Heart of Darkness, Discworld (to name a few).

Here’s the podcast feed for In Our Time (which unfortunately doesn’t archive its programs for more than a week):

http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/radio4/iot/rss.xml

Posted by Jesse Willis

Radio Drama Revival: The Salmon Of Blackpool Spawning Greatness

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Radio Drama RevivalRadio Drama Revival, has now completed podcasting another Crazy Dog Audio Theatre program in its entirety. This program aired on RTE Radio back in August.

The absolutely flooring The Salmon Of Blackpool is a four episode tale of a Hollywood screenwriter and his self-destructive subject. It is a magical achievement – on par with Infidel. The artistry and artists that created Salmon worked together to conjure what can only be described as transformative audio. Absent are any trappings of the fantastic – but what the program reveals is an unfettered drama capped by an unrelenting moral horror. Salmon explores that noir interzone between life’s meaning and life itself. In a final irony Salmon turns its own harsh gaze upon itself, there are no laughs, no remittances, no washing away of the melancholy – simply, the tale, and its central figures, grab ahold of what little ethic they can in an uncaring sea of human selfishness. Salmon won’t make you happy, it will instead shatter illusions and drain you and with its honesty. The Salmon Of Blackpool is what makes radio drama truly a great art form.

The Salmon Of Blackpool
By Roger Gregg; Performed by a full cast
4 MP3s -Approx. 100 Minutes [RADIO DRAMA]
Part 1 |MP3| Part 2 |MP3| Part 3 |MP3| Part 4 |MP3|

And be sure to listen for next week’s show, which will include an interview with Roger Gregg.

Subscribe to the Radio Drama Revival feed via this url:

http://feeds.feedburner.com/RadioDramaRevival

Posted by Jesse Willis

StarShip Sofa has a Pat Murphy tale

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Star Ship SofaThe StarShipSofa this week puts out a cracking tale from SF writer Pat Murphy. The story is called Going Through Changes and was first published in the Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction in 1992.

When I asked Pat Murphy if she would allow me to get this story narrated… she agreed straight away, saying she was more than happy to donate a story to the StarShipSofa Audio collection. She also went on to say this was one of her favorite tales and… it’s one of mine.

It is narrated by Summer, a SF podcaster herself over at Slice Of SciFi and what a narration she does – it’s first class. And… what is really nice, Summer has offered to narrate another tale for The Sofa! Can’t get better than that?
All our stories will be delivered free through our feed and will always be available through our Sofa Audio part of the site.

So… kick off your shoes… put you feet up and listen to the best in science fiction audio tales… from your friendly StarShipSofa.

Blast Off!

Subscribe to the podcast via this feed:

www.starshipsofa.com/rss

Posted by Tony C. Smith

2005 Robert Jordan Interview at Dragon Page

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The Dragon Page The Dragon Page  celebrates their 6th Year Anniversary and uploads an interview they had with the late Robert Jordan in 2005.

Get the |MP3| here.

Subscribe to the podcast via feed: http://feeds.feedburner.com/tDp/C2C?format=xml

Posted by Charles Tan

Greg van Eekhout and Tom Williams at Drabblecast

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DrabblecastThere are two short stories up in the latest Drabblecast: Chi by Greg van Eekhout and Headroom by Tom Williams. You can’t download them but you can stream them. |LISTEN|

Subscribe to the podcast via this feed:

http://feeds.feedburner.com/TheDrabblecast

Posted by Charles Tan

Robert J. Sawyer talks Big Ideas

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Big Ideas - A TVO PodcastTV Ontario, the channel that brought us Prisoners Of Gravity is now podcasting the audio track from its terrific lecture show Big Ideas. The most recent broadcast and podcast features SF author Robert J. Sawyer expounding on the virtues of Science Fiction (and the original Star Trek) and the vices of Star Wars. Have a listen |MP3| to his 40 minute lecture and be blown away! RJS’ analysis is solid, and his delivery is absolutely Shatnerian. Also under the microscope are the film of Planet Of The Apes and novelist Michael Crichton. Here’s the official description:

“Author Robert J. Sawyer explains how Hollywood’s approach to science fiction, starting with George Lucas’s Star Wars, has dulled the edge that made science fiction such a pertinent film genre. Sawyer disects the problematic aspects of the original Star Wars film and shows how science fiction books continue to tackle difficult issues while their big screen counterparts take the easy road of big explosions and small ideas.”

Subscribe to the podcast feed:

http://www.tvo.org/TVOspecial3/WebObjects/TVOMedia.woa?bigideasfeed

Posted by Jesse Willis