Hans Christian Andersen
Great Lives
BBC
4.2 • 1.3K Ratings
🗓️ 3 August 2021
⏱️ 28 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Hans Christian Andersen was 'a very strange orchid,' says Michael Booth. He was born in 1806 in Denmark, and today is still famous for so many stories that every child knows, 156 in total. His own life is almost as odd as the tales he told. A neurotic hypochondriac, he escaped a terrible childhood and travelled to Copenhagen to make his name. Helping to tell the story of his life is Michael Rosen, the author of many books for children including 'We're Going on a Bear Hunt'. Michael Booth is the author of The Almost Nearly Perfect People: Behind the Myth of the Scandinavian Utopia. And Hans Christian Andersen is the author of The Little Mermaid and The Emperor's New Clothes
The presenter is Matthew Parris, the producer for BBC Audio in Bristol is Miles Warde
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Before you listen to this BBC podcast, I'd like to tell you why I love podcasting. |
| 0:04.5 | I'm Sasha Johansson, I'm an Assistant Commissioner for the BBC and I work on making podcasts. |
| 0:11.1 | My real passion is discovering unbelievable on her stories and working with the biggest |
| 0:16.9 | stars who can really bring those stories to life. |
| 0:20.1 | I love the whole process of making podcasts from the spark of an idea to hearing the final |
| 0:26.0 | edit. |
| 0:27.0 | There's nothing like it. |
| 0:28.0 | What makes BBC podcast special is that we're working for you, so whatever we commission |
| 0:32.6 | has to reflect the things that you care about and love, wherever you are in the UK. |
| 0:37.0 | So if you like this BBC podcast, there's so much more to discover. |
| 0:40.6 | Have a listen on BBC Sounds. |
| 0:42.1 | BBC Sounds, Music, Radio, Podcasts. |
| 0:48.4 | In New York Central Park, there's a statue of a man reading from a book. |
| 0:53.9 | At his feet, a small duck, a clue to the identity of today's life. |
| 0:59.4 | His tales are embedded in nearly all our childhoods, mind certainly. |
| 1:04.7 | Hans Christian Anderson, author of The Emperor's New Clothes, The Princess and The P, The |
| 1:10.7 | Snow Queen, The Little Mermaid, 156 tales in total. |
| 1:15.3 | Here's a quick taste. |
| 1:18.9 | Once there were 25 ten soldiers. |
| 1:22.6 | They were all made out of the same ten kitchen spoon and were all alike, except for one. |
| 1:29.2 | This soldier had only one leg. |
| 1:32.9 | He was the last to be moulded and there had not been enough tin to give him too. |
... |
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