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(Background noise might make this episode a challenging listen.)
Episode image is a detail from the cover of Kidnapped by Robert Louis Stevenson, published in 1968 by Pan Books; the cover painting by John Raynes, ARCA, MSIA, shows the fugitives David Balfour and Alan Breck hiding from the redcoats in the valley of Glencoe after the murder of the ‘Red Fox’.
Catriona James, theatre-maker and wayfarer, joins Charles Adrian for the last Second Hand Book Factory of 2012. Cat introduces Charles Adrian to Neko Case and Ani DiFranco while he instructs her in feminist history. There is neither tinsel nor mistletoe and not a carol in sight, but listeners can imagine the people of the Wilton Way Café sipping mulled wine as they listen to chilled-out stories and songs.
Another book by Haruki Murakami, What I Talk About When I Talk About Running, is discussed in Page One 11.
Kirsty Young was, at the time of recording this episode, the host of BBC Radio 4’s Desert Island Discs. You can find out more about that programme here.
The friend with whom Charles Adrian sang Wayfaring Stranger at school is Uwern Jong, who is featured in Page One 29.
The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman is also discussed in Page One 138.
Kidnapped by Robert Louis Stevenson is also discussed in Page One 159. Another book by Robert Louis Stevenson, Travels With A Donkey In The Cévennes, is discussed in Page One 118, which features Cat’s sister Isbel James, and Page One 189, which doesn’t.
This episode was recorded at the Wilton Way Café for London Fields Radio.
This episode has been edited to remove music that is no longer covered by licence for this podcast.
A transcript of this episode is below.
Episode released: 18th December, 2012.
Book listing:
Dance, Dance, Dance by Haruki Murakami (trans. Alfred Birnbaum)
The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
Kidnapped by Robert Louis Stevenson
Links:
Episode transcript:
Jingle
You're listening... you're listening to London Fields Radio.
Charles Adrian
Hello and welcome to the 16th edition of Page One on London Fields Radio. I'm Charles Adrian and today I'm talking to Catriona James, who is sitting opposite me. We're... We're going to start with some music, as ever. This is Flanders & Swann singing The Spider.
Music
[The Spider by Flanders & Swann]
Charles Adrian
So that was Flanders & Swann singing The Spider. So there were two reasons why I thought of that. One is that you, of course, have a lovely bath in your house...
Catriona James
[laughs]
Charles Adrian
... and the second is that we spent a very nice afternoon in Penarth once.
Catriona James
We did. We did. [laughs]
Charles Adrian
Watching a slightly disappointing Downhill Derby.
Catriona James
I'm trying to think if anybody in a bath went down the Downhill Derby but I don't think...
Charles Adrian
No. That would have made it...
Catriona James
[speaking over] No. That would have been amazing.
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] That would have... That would have stopped it being at all disappointing.
Cat and Charles Adrian
[laughter]
Charles Adrian
It was a very fu... It was a great event. I was just surprised at how slowly everyone...
Catriona James
Yes. I was expecting everyone...
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] ... made their way down.
Catriona James
... to rocket down.
Charles Adrian
Yeah!
Catriona James
They'd perhaps chosen the wrong hill in Penarth. There is another one that... that's pretty steep. [laughs]
Charles Adrian
Okay. You sound as if you're speaking from experience.
Catriona James
Yes. Because I... This... The show that I was working on recently... I had to cycle into Penarth every day.
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Back... Back in the days when you were in London and able to record a show with London Fields Radio.
Catriona James
[speaking over] Yes. [laughs] I had to cycle to Penarth for rehearsals and go up this very steep hill - which was alright because, you know, I'm in pretty good shape...
Charles Adrian
[laughing] Yeah.
Catriona James
... but actually coming down with the hairy bit, especially on a rainy day, because...
Charles Adrian
Oh horrid!
Catriona James
... this was the sort of hill that you go through brake pads every two days [indistinct].
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Yes...
Catriona James
[laughs]
Charles Adrian
I can imagine. Oh, that's so scary. It's... It's lovely to see you, Cat, I have to say.
Catriona James
[indistinct].
Charles Adrian
We don't see each other very often, do we?
Catriona James
No. No. I feel like I need to come to London more often. Or perhaps...
Charles Adrian
Yeah.
Catriona James
... get people to come to Cardiff more often, I think.
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Yes, it was less difficult than I thought to go to Cardiff.
Catriona James
Yeah. [laughs]
Charles Adrian
[laughs] [indistinct] I don't have much excuse for not going. But I wanted to say that it is lovely to see you. I'm very pleased to have you on the show.
Catriona James
Yay! [laughs]
Charles Adrian
What book have you brought that you like?
Catriona James
I have brought a book by Haruki Murakami, Dance Dance Dance.
Charles Adrian
[affirmative] Aha.
Catriona James
I mean, I love all books by Haruki Murakami but...
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Right.
Catriona James
... I had to really scan the shelves and think very hard which one to choose.
Charles Adrian
Okay.
Catriona James
This is the one that I've decided to go for.
Charles Adrian
Interesting.
Catriona James
Yeah.
Charles Adrian
[musing] Mmm.
Catriona James
But I suppose, having said, you know, that I really like it, I was then going: “Well why? Why do I... What do I [indistinct]...”
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Aha.
Catriona James
... challenge. Yeah. And I don't know. I mean, I've always... I like various things about his writing style and so on but I suppose this one really stuck with me and images from it really stuck with me and...
Charles Adrian
Okay.
Catriona James
And I have subsequent... in the last few days, sort of, gone back to it and started reading it again and thought: “Okay, now I need to read the whole book again to remind myself.”
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Right.
Catriona James
But it is... Yeah, it's a book... It's quite sad but it stays...
Charles Adrian
Okay.
Catriona James
... it stays in your head. And I think, for me, that's the mark... the mark of a good book, for me, I think.
Charles Adrian
Definitely.
Catriona James
Hmm.
Charles Adrian
Why don't you read us the first page.
Catriona James
I will:
I often dream about the Dolphin Hotel.
In these dreams, I'm there, implicated in some kind of ongoing circumstance. All indications are that I belong to this dream continuity.
The Dolphin Hotel is distorted, much too narrow. It seems more like a long, covered bridge. A bridge stretching endlessly through time. And there I am, in the middle of it. Someone else is there too, crying.
The hotel envelops me. I can feel its pulse, its heat. In dreams, I am part of the hotel.
I wake up, but where? I don't just think this, I actually voice the question to myself: “Where am I?” As if I didn't know: I'm here. In my life. A feature of the world that is my existence. Not that I particularly recall ever having approved these matters, this condition, this state of affairs in which I feature. There might be a woman sleeping next to me. More often, I'm alone. Just me and the expressway that runs right next to my apartment and, bedside, a glass (five millimeters of whiskey still in it) and the malicious - no, make that indifferent - dusty morning light. Sometimes it's raining. If it is, I'll just stay in bed. And if there's...
Charles Adrian
Great. There's... Yeah, there's something so mournful about his: “I'm here in my life.” [laughs]
Catriona James
I know. Yeah.
Charles Adrian
[laughing] That's it. There's no... I think... There's no... There's nothing more.
Catriona James
[laughing] I think I first encountered Murakami through a friend who I met when I was... I'd just entered my twenties and he was in his thirties. And he was just, like... He said: “I am a character in a Murakami novel...
Cat and Charles Adrian
[laughter]
Catriona James
... That's what I've realised.” And, you know, when I read them in my twenties, I was, like: [lighter] “Oh, yeah” and now I'm, sort of...
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Mmm.
Catriona James
... reading them again going: [heavier] “Oh, yeah.” [laughs]
Charles Adrian
Yes. Yes. [laughing] Exactly.
Catriona James
”Oh god!”
Charles Adrian
I forgot to ask you how you would describe yourself. That's a... That's a question I normally ask my guests. In terms of what... you know, how would... you would encapsulate... So your... your... this friend might say, you know, that he is a character [laughing] from a Murakami novel...
Catriona James
[laughing] Yes.
Charles Adrian
If this were... If this were a magazine interview and you had the chance to really define yourself in that space after the comma...
Catriona James
Yeah.
Charles Adrian
Catriona James comma... What kind of things would you say?
Catriona James
Well I quite like the phrase theatre maker...
Charles Adrian
Okay. Yes.
Catriona James
... because I feel like that in... I mean, I'm an actor but I feel like...
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Yes.
Catriona James
... something like theatre maker...
Charles Adrian
Yeah.
Catriona James
... I don't want to sound wanky... but it does, kind of, encapsulate much more for me because I feel like I do more than just act and...
Charles Adrian
Yes.
Catriona James
... you know, I'm quite physical and I do other things. And I'm just interested in interesting creative projects. And that's...
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Yeah.
Catriona James
... kind of, what I chase. So, yeah. But I suppose theatre is at the heart of it. And so... yeah...
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Okay. Good.
Catriona James
... theatre maker.
Charles Adrian
Theatre maker. It's tricky, isn't it? Because, for people like you - and I would put myself...
Catriona James
[affirmative] Mmm.
Charles Adrian
... in the same category and a couple of other people that I've had on the show - any... a lot of definitions seem to exclude all sorts of other things that you might like to do or be able... perfectly able to do.
Catriona James
[speaking over] Yes, absolutely. Yeah. And I don't like to feel limited in...
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] No.
Catriona James
... any sphere of my life. So. [laughs]
Charles Adrian
No. Good.
Catriona James
Yeah.
Charles Adrian
Okay. So: Catrina James, theatre maker. And also - I would say, because I'm about to play... I'm about to play your first track....
Catriona James
Oh okay.
Charles Adrian
... which is Wayfaring Stranger...
Catriona James
Yes.
Charles Adrian
... that... that there is something of the wayfarer in...
Catriona James
Yes.
Charles Adrian
... Cat James.
Catriona James
Yes, that's true. And I suppose... Well, I suppose that's why I picked that song as well. Yeah.
Charles Adrian
Now, I feel a bit like Kirsty Young when I say that.
Catriona James
[speaking over] [laughing] I know, I [indistinct].
Charles Adrian
But... [laughs] No, I'm really pleased that you... that you chose this. This is a song that I sang when I was at school in a...
Catriona James
Really?
Charles Adrian
Yeah... with a friend of mine who lives somewhere round here - I haven't seen him for years - so I keep expecting him to pop into the Wilton Way Cafe and ask for a coffee...
Catriona James
[gasps] Ah wow.
Charles Adrian
... while I'm here. But we... Yeah, we sang it as a duet.
Catriona James
Yeah.
Charles Adrian
But this is - how do you pronounce this - Neko Case [/niːkəʊ keɪz/]?
Catriona James
Neko Case [/niːkəʊ keɪs/].
Charles Adrian
Neko Case [/niːkəʊ keɪs/] ?
Catriona James
Yeah.
Charles Adrian
Okay. Great. This is Neko Case singing Wayfaring Stranger.
Music
[Wayfaring Stranger by Neko Case]
Charles Adrian
So here we are for the second section of the show. This is the section where I give you a book. And this was a surprise for you, wasn't it Cat?
Catriona James
Yes it was. It was a total surprise. [laughs]
Charles Adrian
I'm sure, at some point in our email exchange about this, I must...
Catriona James
[speaking over] Aha.
Charles Adrian
... have explained the format of the show and the point...
Catriona James
[speaking over] No.
Charles Adrian
the point of the whole...
Catriona James
[speaking over] No. Gmail doesn't lie. So... [laughs] we could go back and check.
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] So you say. So you say. Yeah, Cat just thought she was going to turn up and give me a book for... what... as, sort of, payment for being here?
Catriona James
[speaking over] Yeah. Yeah. Just like a fee. Which made sense, you know... Like, I get to be on the radio.
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Yeah! I mean, everyone wants to pay to be on...
Cat and Charles Adrian
[laughter]
Charles Adrian
... on internet radio, don't they? So I've brought you... This is... This is The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. Have you heard of this?
Catriona James
No.
Charles Adrian
It's quite a... It's quite an important book in feminist circles.
Catriona James
Okay.
Charles Adrian
And it was... So it was written in 1892...
Catriona James
Oh. Right.
Charles Adrian
... and it's, sort of... It's not biographical at all but it's based on... on the author's own experience. She was a very early... feminist is such a loose word...
Catriona James
[affirmative] Mmm.
Charles Adrian
... but she was somebody who very much railed against the idea that... that women were not equal to men.
Catriona James
Okay.
Charles Adrian
I mean, I think the baseline is that.
Catriona James
Yeah.
Charles Adrian
That she didn't understand why they should be treated any differently. Not that she disparaged, you know, cooking or cleaning or looking after children or any of the things that women were... you know, supposed to do...
Catriona James
[affirmative] Mmm.
Charles Adrian
... but that she didn't understand why that was the only thing that women were supposed...
Catriona James
[affirmative] Mmm hmm.
Charles Adrian
... to do. And this is the story of a woman who is made ill by... by being confined to bed, more or less. She starts off ill and the advice...
Catriona James
[affirmative] Mmm.
Charles Adrian
... of her husband, who is a doctor, is: don't do anything. And she keeps saying...
Catriona James
[speaking over] And it just makes it worse.
Charles Adrian
It just makes her worse and worse.
Catriona James
Yeah.
Charles Adrian
It's very short - you can see it's only a few pages - and so you should be able to finish that before your bus leaves tomorrow...
Catriona James
[laughs]
Charles Adrian
[laughing] [indistinct] while you're waiting at Victoria, or wherever. And then it's got a very interesting afterword written in the seventies.
Catriona James
Which is longer than the story itself...
Charles Adrian
Which is lo... exactly.
Cat and Charles Adrian
[laughter]
Catriona James
... dear listeners.
Cat and Charles Adrian
[laughter]
Catriona James
Five millimeters versus... [laughter]
Charles Adrian
There you go. That just, sort of, gives you an idea of how much the feminists had to say in the late nineteenth century...
Catriona James
Yeah.
Charles Adrian
... compared to how much they had to say in the 1970s. And I think... I think the battle is not over in any sense at all.
Catriona James
Not even close.
Charles Adrian
So I... Yes. I thought you would... I thought you would enjoy this.
It is very seldom that mere ordinary people like John and myself secure ancestral halls for the summer.
A colonial mansion, a hereditary estate, I would say a haunted house, and reach the height of romantic felicity - but that would be asking too much of fate!
Still I will proudly declare that there is something queer about it.
Else, why should it be let so cheaply? And why have stood so long untenanted?
John laughs at me, of course, but one expects that in marriage.
John is practical in the extreme. He has no patience with faith, an intense horror of superstition, and he scoffs openly at any talk of things not to be felt and seen and put down in figures.
John is a physician, and PERHAPS - (I would not say it to...
So that doesn't give you very much idea of what is going to happen.
Catriona James
No, but I'm intrigued....
Charles Adrian
There you go.
Catriona James
... and I want to read more. [laughs]
Charles Adrian
That's... That's the... It has a beautifully... I'm not quite sure why it has a picture of a naked woman on the front.
Catriona James
[musing] Yeah.
Charles Adrian
But there it is. You... So you can enjoy the cleft of her buttocks while you're...
Catriona James
Well thank you very much. I look forward to reading that.
Charles Adrian
My pleasure. My pleasure.
Catriona James
Yeah.
Charles Adrian
Shall we... Shall we listen to some more music?
Catriona James
Yes.
Charles Adrian
This is by Ani DiFranco. This is...
Catriona James
Yes.
Charles Adrian
This was was your other choice. Now, I don't know Ani DiFranco's music at all.
Catriona James
Oh, really?
Charles Adrian
No. I know her name but I don't know her music.
Catriona James
She is... oh, I don't know how to describe her... a punk folk singer...
Charles Adrian
Okay.
Catriona James
... from the US. I mean... And again, it was a bit like choosing a Murakami novel. I just love so many of her songs and, for me, it's about the poetry. And...
Charles Adrian
Right.
Catriona James
... if I needed to pick something that... that has helped... you know, the things that have helped guide me as a woman...
Charles Adrian
Okay.
Catriona James
... through my life, definitely the poetry of her songs has been a big part of that. So.
Charles Adrian
Interesting.
Catriona James
So yes. I had to choose... I had to choose just one and it was tough, but...
Charles Adrian
And it's If He Tries Anything.
Catriona James
If He Tries Anything, yeah.
Charles Adrian
[laughing] Which...
Catriona James
[laughs]
Charles Adrian
Which I think works quite well at this point of the show.
Catriona James
[laughing] Yes.
Charles Adrian
So here we are. If He Tries Anything by Ani DiFranco.
Music
[If He Tries Anything by Ani DiFranco]
Jingle
London Fields Radio... it's London Fields Radio.
Charles Adrian
So there we go. That was Ani DiFranco...
[sound of banging]
Charles Adrian
... and that's Chris just emptying the... the coffee beans.
Chris
[distant] Sorry Adrian!
Cat and Charles Adrian
[laughter]
Charles Adrian
So, yeah, we were just talking about your year. You've had one of those amazingly, sort of, interesting and...
Catriona James
Yeah. Massively busy. Hopefully not once-a-decade [laughs] sort of year.
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Yeah, that's right. It's a, kind of, freelancers dream of life.
Catriona James
[speaking over] I know. Hopefully this is it. This is the turning point. It's all just gonna take off...
Cat and Charles Adrian
[laughter]
Catriona James
... from here. [indistinct]
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] I want to know more about your running around in the woods in the summer.
Catriona James
[speaking over] My running around in the woods. Yes. That was amazing. Yeah. That really, sort of, kicked... That kicked off my year because I got cast in that back in January. So it was in a National Theatre Of Wales show called...
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Mmm hmm.
Catriona James
... Branches: The Nature Of Crisis and...
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Right.
Catriona James
... it was, very frighteningly, back in January, a dance edition and...
Charles Adrian
[laughs]
Catriona James
... while I'm quite physical and quite fit, I'm not a trained dancer by any means...
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Right.
Catriona James
... and... and the audition almost killed me. [laughs] Co...
Charles Adrian
What did you have to do during the audition?
Catriona James
Well, it was... We, kind of, learned a little bit of choreography, basically. Just, like, a little...
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Okay.
Catriona James
She, sort of, lead us through... Constanza Macras is the... was the director and runs a dance theatre company in Berlin called Dorky Park. She, sort of, led us through a little bit of what I would call choreography, I suppose...
Charles Adrian
Okay.
Catriona James
... for about an hour. And then... And then she said that: “Now you're really tired, you're all going to sing.”
Cat and Charles Adrian
[laughter]
Charles Adrian
Amazing!
Catriona James
So we had to sing, which was good. I sang Wayfaring Stranger.
Charles Adrian
Okay.
Catriona James
That's my fallback song.
Charles Adrian
Right.
Catriona James
Yeah, and we told... had to tell a story as well... or do anything, I think is what we were told. You know, if you... if you are a singer, you could sing. Or you could...
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] I see. Do the thing you do.
Catriona James
Yeah, you could play a piece of music and I...
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Mmm.
Catriona James
... I decided to tell a story. She brought over dancers from Berlin...
Charles Adrian
Oh right. Yeah.
Catriona James
... and brought over five dancers and...
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Okay.
Catriona James
... a couple of musicians and hired six people from Wales and... a mix of dancers and actors.
Charles Adrian
I see.
Catriona James
And I had to get over my 'Oh, I'm not a dancer' thing fairly quickly. I mean...
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Yeah.
Catriona James
... just because you have to and...
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Yes.
Catriona James
... and also, it just helps to, sort of, realise that even within the trained dancers, everybody has different ability levels and things that they can do.
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Yeah.
Catriona James
I mean, there was one from Berlin... there was a breakdancer, you know, and he could do amazing things that...
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Right.
Catriona James
... some of the other dancers couldn't do...
Charles Adrian
Yes, of course.
Catriona James
[speaking over] ... just because you're differently trained, and you've got different...
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Yes.
Catriona James
... fields of expertise and so on.
Charles Adrian
Yes.
Catriona James
So... But it was... it was really good to be differently challenged...
Charles Adrian
Right.
Catriona James
... and...
Charles Adrian
What was it like being outside to perform?
Catriona James
[speaking over] Oh that was amazing. I mean, that was... that... I mean, that was part of the draw...
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Was it... Was it...? Right.
Catriona James
... of the job...
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Mmm.
Catriona James
... for me... was knowing that it was going to be outdoors in the woods...
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Yes.
Catriona James
... in North Wales in September, you know...
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Yes.
Catriona James
... so you're just, sort of, like: “Well, we could just be swimming...
Cat and Charles Adrian
[laughter]
Charles Adrian
Yes absolutely!
Catriona James
[speaking over] ... the whole time”. And actually, we were really lucky with the weather. But it was lovely. And the woods were so beautiful. It was Wepre Park...
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Aw...
Catriona James
... which is near a place called Shotton. Or Connahs Quay...
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Okay.
Catriona James
... as well. North Wales. The most beautiful woods. Just majestic. And... and I was lucky every day to just go out there and... yeah. And I, sort of, likened the show itself to... a bit like an Ironwoman competition, you know?
Cat and Charles Adrian
[laughter]
Catriona James
Because, like... Waded across a river twice and...
Charles Adrian
[laughing] Right.
Catriona James
... sprinted up hills and... you know...
Charles Adrian
[laughs]
Catriona James
And there was a castle! There was a thirteenth century castle in the woods as well. I mean, so really it was like a dream woods.
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Amazing!
Catriona James
Yeah. And I just... I... You know, I realised that working in a theatre would never be the same again [laughs] after being in such beautiful surroundings.
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] No. That's it now. You [indistinct]
Catriona James
It was good.
Charles Adrian
Great. Now... So all of that conversation was really just to put off the point tha... of the show that I like the most, which is when I get a present from you.
Catriona James
[speaking over] Oh, yes.
Charles Adrian
Now. What... What are you going to give me?
Catriona James
I have got Kidnapped by Robert Louis Stevenson.
Charles Adrian
Ha ha! Interesting.
Catriona James
[speaking over] And... I wandered into the... the Oxfam Bookshop on Cardiff High Street going: “I'm going to find a book.” And I thought: “I'll let the spirit move me and see what I find.”
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Yes.
Catriona James
And the reason why I chose Kidnapped is because my name, Catriona, is the name of the lesser-known sequel to Kidnapped.
Charles Adrian
[laughing] Is that right?
Catriona James
[laughing] Yes! But, um, Kidnapped was my dad's favorite book when he was young. And...
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Ah. Right.
Catriona James
... when he was older, he saw a film version of it and realised there were bits in it that weren't in the book itself.
Charles Adrian
[intrigued] Aha.
Catriona James
So he went and looked it up and realised that there was a sequel to it. And that's where this...
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] I see. I see.
Catriona James
... had been taken from. And that sequel is called Catriona. So this is, kind of, in... in lieu of Catriona.
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] I understand. But once...
Catriona James
Yeah.
Charles Adrian
Obviously, if I'm going to read Catriona, I need to read this one first. So this is a sort of...
Catriona James
[speaking over] Yes, you need to read this one first. So it's... Yeah.
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] This is easing in.
Catriona James
So, I will read the first page:
I WILL begin the story of my adventures with a certain morning early in the month of June, in the year of grace 1751, when I took the key for the last time out of the door of my father's house. The sun began to shine upon the summit of the hills as I went down the road; and by the time I had come as far as the manse, the blackbirds were whistling in the garden lilacs, and the mist that hung around the valley in the time of the dawn was beginning to arise and die away.
Mr Campbell, the Minister of Essendean, was waiting for me by the garden gate, good man! He asked me if I had breaksfasted; and hearing that I lacked for nothing. he took my hand in both of his and clapped it kindly under his arm.
‘Well, Davie, lad,’ said he, ‘I will go with you as far as the ford, to set you on your way.’
And we began to walk forward in silence.
‘Are ye sorry to leave Essendean?’ he said [sic] after a while.
‘Why, sir,’ said I. ‘If I knew where I was going, or what was likely to become of me, I would tell you candidly. Essendean is a good place indeed and I have been very happy there; but then I have never been anywhere else. My father and mother, since they are both dead, I shall be no nearer to in Essendean than in the Kingdom of Hungary; and, to speak truth, if I thought I had a chance to better myself where I was going, I would go with a good will.’
‘Ay?’ said Mr Campbell. ‘Very well, Davie. Then it behoves me to tell you your fortune; or so far as I may. When your mother was gone, and your father (the worthy Christian man) began to sicken for his end, he gave me in charge a certain letter, which he said was your inheritance. “So...”’
Charles Adrian
What a brilliant beginning.
Catriona James
It's a really good beginning and I've just realised...
Charles Adrian
[speaking over] Hmmm.
Catriona James
... it's about people setting off on journies and...
Charles Adrian
Yeah.
Catriona James
... being a wayfaring stranger.
Charles Adrian
That's right.
Catriona James
[laughs]
Charles Adrian
Sadly - I don't know about you - when I've... whenever I've set off on a journey, no one has come along and said...
Catriona James
Yeah.
Charles Adrian
I happen to have a letter in my pocket which I have never given you...
Catriona James
[speaking over] [laughing] I know.
Charles Adrian
... which is from... yeah...
Cat and Charles Adrian
[laughter]
Charles Adrian
That's wonderful. Oh, it's got a map at the beginning as well.
Catriona James
[laughing] Yeah.
Charles Adrian
Amazing. Oh, I'm looking forward to reading that. That's going to be a lot of fun. So, thank you so much Cat. Thank you for coming in and being my guest.
Catriona James
Thank you for having me on your show.
Charles Adrian
So it's nearly Christmas now. This... This... This show goes up on or around the 18th of December. It's the last...
Catriona James
[speaking over] Christmas is just around the corner.
Charles Adrian
It is just around...
Catriona James
[laughs]
Charles Adrian
Can you hear the bells are ringing? This is the... This is going to be the last show before the 8th of January. There's a massive hiatus now.
Catriona James
[musing] Mmm.
Charles Adrian
Given that it is nearly Christmas, I'm going to play you a Christmas song. This is... This is Prince with Another Lonely Christmas. We're going to listen to that. And thank you very much, Cat.
Catriona James
Thank you.
Music
[Another Lonely Christmas by Prince]
[Initial transcription by https://otter.ai]