Hannah Fox, Story Researcher
Did you catch us telling tales across the county this summer? Across June, July and August, we took our Tale Telt story gathering project on the road to communities and events around Cumbria.
We wanted to take our stories beyond our gallery 2 exhibition and share them with the communities that contributed to and inspired our exhibition. Once we’d prepared an intriguing story playing sound system in a travelling trunk and packed up copies of our very own Tale Telt Telegraph, we set off to share our wares at local festivals around Cumbria.
7th June: Keswick Museum Summer Fair
We began our summer on our doorstep in Keswick over the road at Cafe HNW in Fitz Park. Whilst the weather was quintessentially Cumbrian on the day (truly miserable), many of you persevered, gathered around, listened to and shared some stories under the cosy canopy of the Woodland Stage.
22nd June: Stealing Thunder Festival (Bowland Bridge)
We were delighted to be invited to tell our tales at the Stealing Thunder Festival, where storytellers from around the UK and Europe get together for an annual celebration of stories and storytelling. Having a good selection of Cumbrian tales added local flavour to the weekend-long family event.
10-12 July: Eskfest (Eskdale Valley)
At this weekend music festival the crowds were younger and were curious about the Tale Telt project, particularly about the role of Folk tales today. The Tale Telt Telegraph went like hot cakes, as many festival goers took their copies away to read back at camp.
25-27 July: Cumberlandia (West Cumbria, Cockermouth)
Cumberlandia is a newly formed folk music and arts festival in North West Cumbria. We set up our gazebo on a main thoroughfare and had the pleasure of meeting many visitors over the weekend who took time to listen to stories, read the newspaper and share their own tales.
25th August: Keswick Show
Steve and I worked together to bring Tale Telt on the road to this popular and busy agricultural show well attended by locals and tourists alike. We had many conversations with visitors about the project as well as Keswick Museum. The newspaper was a popular giveaway – we handed out over 100!
About the Tale Telt project
Cumbria’s famous authors and poets are renowned the world over, and yet these figures are only a small part of the picture. Keswick Museum has been seeking out and capturing the cultural heritage of storytelling in Cumbria. We’ve been on the hunt for both traditional and adapted tales, the narratives shared amongst communities and through families, that say something about the mythical and magical nature of this county.
Hannah Fox, Story Researcher, has been out and about across Cumbria to identify and record local storytellers and their tales- listening to the stories and looking for those who have told, and are still, telling them.
We are exploring their origins, how they have developed and what forms they now take. The gathered tales are being shared and celebrated in our new exhibition in gallery 2.
Click here to learn more about the project and to listen to clips of some of our favourite stories from our travels around the county.
