Speechification

Elegiac, pre-dawn listening from my favourite provider of… er… elegiac pre-dawn listening: Lionel Kellaway. This edition of The Living World comes from an ancient rookery in Norfolk - nighttime home (since at least the Norman invasion) to tens of thousands of rooks. I feel almost certain that if there is a heaven (which, obviously, there isn’t) it’ll be people like Kellaway who provide the soundtrack (MP3).

Pic by John Haslam.

Britain (long before it was called Britain, obviously. I think it was called ‘Ugghh’) used to be joined to continental Europe (’Hagghh’). The land between the two long ago sank below the waves but down there, on the bottom of the ocean, is a pristine archaeological site. Not a narrow ’causeway’ as people used to think but thousands of square kilometres of settlements, paths, riverbeds and burial grounds. From speechification’s collection of ’scientists who can’t contain their excitement’ here’s a 2005 show about the exploration of this mysterious and inaccessible domain, only recently uncovered with the help of oil industry seismic data. Fascinating (MP3).

I went outside earlier on and, blimey, it was Spring! I kid you not: crocuses, twittering birds, the works. So here’s a Spring programme from a couple of years ago. A really lovely half hour about bumble bees from Lionel Kelleway and The Living World. The show went out in April 2005 and you don’t even need this MP3 because the switched-on people in Radio 4’s nature department keep a proper archive so here’s a working Real stream.

Steve has raved about Chris Watson before. Maybe a couple of time actually. So I suspect he’s going to be a speechification staple, his recordings are just brilliant. And the way he layers them together, edits and moulds them. I know it’s a cliche, but it makes you listen to the world properly again. What’s extra special about this programme is also hearing from Mr Watson himself, explaining what excites him about this stuff. MP3 here.

I was just thinking how I’d love to hear this sensibility applied to the city when I noticed on Mr Watson’s website, that he’s leading a ‘Field Recording in the City’ workshop at the Museum of Garden History on January 28th. Must go to that.

I must be an auditory learner. I can soak this stuff up indefinitely: mesmerising, layered natural sound recorded in and around a ruined castle on the Northumberland coast by Chris Watson (who’s made more than one appearance here since we got started). I guess the excellent presenter could be producer Sarah Blunt but she doesn’t get a credit anywhere at bbc.co.uk, which is a pity (MP3).