BBC Sounds Music Radio Podcasts

Hello and welcome to your Dead To Me from Radio 4,

a comedy podcast that takes history seriously. My name is Greg Jenner,

I'm a public historian, author and broadcaster and I'm the Chief Nerd on the funny kid show

horrible histories from the BBC. Today we are packing our magic mirrors and poison

efforts as we travel back to learn all about the history of European fairy tales and word of

warning. This is a little darker than the average Disney movie. And joining me is we journey

into the deep dark woods are two very special guests. In History Corner she is the John L.

Loeb professor of Germanic languages and literatures at Harvard University.

She's written an astonishing number of books on fairy tales including a new one out this year

called The Heroin with a Thousand and One Faces. And she is a world renowned expert on German

romanticism, folklore and children's literature. It's professor Maria Tata. Hello Maria, how are you?

I'm great alive and well, professorial and pedantic and delighted to be here.

That's the best way to be. And in Comedy Corner she is an iconic queen of comedy,

definitely not an evil queen. Little bit. A little bit evil, but darker than I see.

Okay, she's a slightly evil queen and an award-winning actor, writer, sketch comedian and

presenter. You'll know her from so much stuff. I can't even begin to list it, but some of my

faves include Smack the Pony, Miranda, Green Wing, Taskmaster, Imala Partridge, Veeb and the

Bridgichon's franchise. It's only blooming Sally Phillips. Hello Sally, welcome to the show.

Hello Greg, I am very happy to be here with you talking about fairy tales. We are delighted to

have you here. Anyone who's seen you on Taskmaster knows you have a extraordinary brain in a slightly

left field way. Yeah, a maverick brain. I've got a fairy tale brain. I think I'm I feel much more

...