Made in England - Telling Tales

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Telling Tales

Devon is a place rooted in tradition, some superstition and many stories. Telling Tales joined communities with professional writers to uncover new and old stories and bring them to a new audience.

Devon is steeped in stories. The landscapes have been explored by Henry Williamson, Ted Hughes and Agatha Christie. Their words have been inspired by local landscapes and inspired others to write about the land and its scope.

BBC Devon's Made in England project took this written tradition into new writing. By linking four communities with four professional writers, BBC Devon used the landscapes of the past to create new literary landscapes for the present.

In the north, south, east and west of the county, there are stories which have been told over many years. These are local legends, myths and histories which have been created by place and have come to define it.

This project discovered these stories with local people – historians, storytellers and myth-makers – and re-told them. Through a series of local history workshops, journalists worked with local people to discover the deeds and find the facts behind stories dating back over the centuries. These tales, rooted in place, are then told by local people working with storytellers.

Each community unearthed its past, retold its stories and shared these tales with the wider county in four new radio plays. The first play delves deep into Darwin and his adventure in Devon. Then, we will haunt Berry Pomeroy Castle with the story of the white lady. We'll then travel, by grey mare, to Widecombe Fair and retell the story of Devon's oldest folksong.

Broadcast as Telling Tales, this project joined community collaborations with professional wordsmiths creating historical and creative content. It will also ensure that the stories we tell are Devon’s tales, rooted and told in its landscape and literary tradition.

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