It’s getting spooky in the castle as we read Baba Yaga and the Brave Youth. Will our hero escape the clutches of our favourite Slavic witch? Why does Baba Yaga love spoons so much? And has she secretly been a mother all along? Join us round the fire to find out all this and more. Happy Halloween everyone! Linktree Patreon Merch Store Instagram Twitter/X Facebook grimmreadingpodcast@gmail.com Theme music: Bicycle Waltz by Goodbye Kumiko Other Music: Rachmaninoff's Canon in E Minor, performed by L...
Oct 27, 2024•47 min•Season 7Ep. 2
We’re back with a brand new series and a brand new volume of tales... And we begin with The Four Skillful Brothers, a story of masterly thievery, improbable astronomy, dastardly dragons, and a man who sews up eggs. After the story, we explore its origins before doing a deep dive on dragons: including the history of rescuing princesses from dragons in storytelling, and a patriotic stretch where we look into the Welsh red dragon and the story of St. George. We can’t wait to get stuck into Volume 2...
Oct 13, 2024•1 hr 9 min•Season 7Ep. 1
We have our winner! Step on into the castle for a glitzy awards night where we reveal the Grimmbledon champion, as well as the results of the Special Awards. Thank you so much to everyone who's listened and taken part. We're away now for the rest of the summer. Click here to pick up a copy of our special Aladdin episode to see you through the hot (northern) summer days, otherwise we'll meet again round the fire for the Grimms' Volume 2 later in the year! As always, keep it grimm. Twitter Faceboo...
Jul 21, 2024•1 hr 13 min•Season 6Ep. 15
Find out which four stories survived the Semi-Finals and made it to the finals! Voting for the final is live right now. Cast your vote here: https://forms.gle/xkvy8aVEd9EH4qkT9 Or visit www.grimmreading.wordpress.com/final In the episode, we also read out voters' comments with their reasoning for their choices. And we launch a final Special Awards Poll. It's all go here as we ramp up for the final! We'll be back soon to crown a champion. In the meantime, keep it grimm! Twitter Facebook Instagram...
Jun 16, 2024•1 hr 9 min•Season 6Ep. 14
The time has arrived to finish off the Grimms’ Children’s Legends, and in this episode we hear the four remaining stories: The Twelve Apostles, Poverty And Humility Lead to Heaven, The Heavenly Wedding, and The Hazel Branch. We again do our best to parse the piety and manage the misery, and rate them out of 10. Still one day left to vote in Semi-Final 2. Link here: https://forms.gle/TjJnhyuZ3uVKEvrRA Twitter Facebook Instagram Patreon grimmreadingpodcast@gmail.com Theme music: Bicycle Waltz by G...
Jun 02, 2024•49 min•Season 6Ep. 13
It's the second (and last) of the Semi-Finals. Re-discover the sweeping and strange histories of the four competing stories and then cast your vote! Semi-Final 2 voting link: https://forms.gle/TjJnhyuZ3uVKEvrRA Battling it out are the tales: The Two Brothers The Valiant Little Tailor The Fisherman And His Wife The Elves And The Shoemaker The top two tales from the poll will secure themselves a place in the Grand Final. Twitter Facebook Instagram Patreon grimmreadingpodcast@gmail.com Theme music:...
May 19, 2024•57 min•Season 6Ep. 12
It's the first of the two Grimmbledon Semi-Finals, where four of the stories that survived the Group Stage are battling it out for a place in the Grand Final... Semi-Final 1 voting poll link: https://forms.gle/DeeZ9bpmxsMUFDJ86 After recapping the stories in the Group Stage, this episode we delve a little deeper into some background information, ATU types, and related tales, to help inform your decisions. The top two tales from the poll will secure themselves a place in the Grand Final... so vot...
May 12, 2024•53 min•Season 6Ep. 11
Twenty Grimm stories have fought it out in the Group Stages, but only eight have made it through to the Semi-Finals... Find out which tales got the most public votes and secured their spot! Twitter Facebook Instagram Patreon grimmreadingpodcast@gmail.com Theme music: Bicycle Waltz by Goodbye Kumiko Other Music: Beethoven's Sonata No. 8 in C Minor Pathétique, Op. 13 - III. Rondo - Allegro 1...
Apr 28, 2024•56 min•Season 6Ep. 10
This time we take on the Grimms’ Children’s Legends, including the stories: The Three Green Twigs, God’s Food, The Aged Woman, and The Rose. We do our best to make sense of the misery and rate them out of 10. Still one day left to vote in Group D. Link here: https://forms.gle/BJSvF6SVVkYGdHcF8 Twitter Facebook Instagram Patreon grimmreadingpodcast@gmail.com Theme music: Bicycle Waltz by Goodbye Kumiko Other Music: Brahms' Piano Sonata no. 3 in Fm, Op. 5 - I. Allegro maestoso, performed by Luis S...
Apr 14, 2024•42 min•Season 6Ep. 9
The initial Group Stage of the tournament concludes with Group D. Group D voting poll link: https://forms.gle/BJSvF6SVVkYGdHcF8 We’re pitting our highest-scoring Brothers Grimm tales against each other to decide their ultimate story. We open the episode with a recap of the five Grimm stories in the group: The Valiant Little Tailor Rapunzel Gambling Hansel Sweetheart Roland The Girl Without Hands And we also launch a special award poll for the “Best Ending” award. Twitter Facebook Instagram Patre...
Mar 31, 2024•1 hr 15 min•Season 6Ep. 8
The tournament continues with Group C. Group C voting poll link: https://forms.gle/gv5os8j1gEdaNd7L7 We’re pitting our highest-scoring Brothers Grimm tales against each other to decide their ultimate story. We open the episode with a recap of the five Grimm stories in the group: Cinderella The Two Brothers The Juniper Tree The Wishing-Table, The Gold-Ass, And The Cudgel In The Sack Thumbling And we also launch a special award poll for the “Best Catchphrase” award. Twitter Facebook Instagram Patr...
Mar 24, 2024•1 hr 24 min•Season 6Ep. 7
The tournament continues! We’re pitting our highest-scoring Brothers Grimm tales against each other to decide their ultimate story. This episode: Group B. Group B voting poll link: https://forms.gle/cZwGF7YTY4UDi31eA We open the episode with a recap of the five Grimm stories in the group: Little Red Riding Hood The Three Little Men In The Wood Sleeping Beauty The Elves And The Shoemaker The Story Of The Youth Who Went Forth To Learn What Fear Was Then we launch a special award poll for the “Best...
Mar 10, 2024•1 hr 25 min•Season 6Ep. 6
The tournament begins! We’re pitting our highest-scoring Brothers Grimm tales against each other to decide their ultimate story. First up, we have Group A. Group A voting poll link: https://forms.gle/JVeBVQaomVTNToXx7 We open the episode with a recap of the five Grimm stories in the group: Puss In Boots Hansel And Gretel The Fisherman And His Wife Clever Gretel Godfather Death Then we launch a special award poll for the “Most Iconic Piece Of Clothing” award. And, finally, we read the Children’s ...
Mar 03, 2024•1 hr 12 min•Season 6Ep. 5
Welcome to Grimmbledon! We've finished Volume 1 of the Grimms' fairy tales and it's time to decide once and for all which was the best story we read. 20 tales will be battling it out to earn the crown of the best story. In this episode, we announce the contenders and put them into 5 different groups by drawing lots. Twitter Facebook Instagram Patreon grimmreadingpodcast@gmail.com Theme music: Bicycle Waltz by Goodbye Kumiko...
Feb 18, 2024•36 min•Season 6Ep. 4
We're proud to present The Princess And The Pea by the Brothers Grimm for the first time ever in the English language! Hidden in the Grimms' 5th edition of fairy tales, their version was never translated into English - until now! A crack team of translators has helped us to bring this episode to life, we can't thank you enough. After the story, we explore what it's trying to tell us before heading into the past, where we trace its origins beyond Hans Christian Andersen to medieval Kashmir. Twitt...
Jan 21, 2024•1 hr 2 min•Season 6Ep. 3
We present our Christmas Livestream in audio form! Expect a quiz, a cake, crackers, listener chats, and a very unusual story. You can watch the full event on YouTube here: https://www.youtube.com/live/Np24YiGQG0U?si=bK-Kvdvzxa8Fhj4H
Dec 31, 2023•2 hr 5 min•Season 6Ep. 2
We're back! And back in style. Welcome to our sixth annual Christmas party! Join us round the fire as we get festive in yet another bumper episode. We kick the party off by pulling some Christmas crackers, exchanging presents, and indulging in some festive snacks and beverages to get into the Christmas spirit. It's then story time, starting with a short tale called "The Christmas Fairy Of Strasburg" which features a cheeky robbery with a surprising outcome... And then it's time for the second in...
Dec 17, 2023•1 hr 44 min•Season 6Ep. 1
We made it to five years! In April we hosted a livestream event to celebrate the milestone - and here it is in audio form. Thanks to everyone who joined and helped make it such a special occasion. For the full experience, you can watch the whole event on YouTube here: https://www.youtube.com/live/6Leycit-_jQ?feature=share
Jul 16, 2023•2 hr 34 min•Season 5Ep. 13
It's the end of the series and the end of volume one for us here at Grimm Castle! So join us as we reveal the winners and losers of series 5 of Grimm Reading and indulge in some classic story stats. We then share some clips from our latest special episodes (The Little Mermaid and Sinbad The Sailor), and finally resurrect story stats as we reveal the top and bottom stories of the entire five years of the podcast. Links: 5 Year Grimmversary YouTube Livestream The Little Mermaid Payhip Sinbad The S...
Jun 11, 2023•1 hr 7 min•Season 5Ep. 12
In part two, discover the origins and history of cinderella as we embark on “The Story Of The Story”. First up, we follow the trail of Cinderella from ancient Greece through Basile, Perrault, and the Grimms, by way of medieval France, as we trace her literary origins. We then attempt to work out where Cinderella really came from, and seek help from some expert friends as we define the tale and explore what exactly it's trying to tell us. Enjoy the final installment of this gripping two-parter wh...
Apr 16, 2023•1 hr 3 min•Season 5Ep. 11
A plucky young heroine, an avian stylist, and an axe-wielding dad make for a special season 5 ending - join us round the fire for some comically extreme violence as we read the Cinderella (aka Aschenputtel). Think you know Cinderella? Well, think again! Yes, we've got the lost slipper, we've got the evil step sisters, we've got the fateful ball - but there's plenty Disney unforgivably left out. It's a momentous occasion at Castle Grimm: it's all at once the series 5 finale, the last famous Grimm...
Apr 09, 2023•48 min•Season 5Ep. 10
In this story, a psychopathic couple get a schooling from their son when the little boy witnesses the harsh treatment of his grandfather. Things get moralistic this week's as we read the Grimm story, The Old Man And His Grandson. After the tale, we explore the world of old men in folktales, specifically three ATU types that deal with old men looking for care in their twilight years - finishing with a harrowing story from the Philipines, or possibly Mexico. This episode is Certified Grimm and may...
Mar 12, 2023•49 min•Season 5Ep. 9
On his deathbed, a King commands trusty John, his most loyal servant, to protect his son and heir. But when the boy falls in love with a forbidden painting, John's loyalty is pushed to the limit. Will he sacrifice himself for the sake of the boy? Find out in Faithful John! The Brothers Grimm story responsible for Oscar Wilde's greatest work and your favourite scene in Star Wars. After the story, we try to tracy its lineage from West to East, by way of a medieval French romance and the unexpected...
Feb 26, 2023•1 hr 2 min•Season 5Ep. 8
Welcome to our fifth Christmas party AND our 100th episode! Join us round the fire as we get festive in a bumper episode. This year we get an American story, The Poor Count's Christmas, featuring a greedy giant, an underhanded fairy, and an aristocrat with a Christmas addiction. That adventure is swiftly followed by the opening few mini chapters of the classic tale The Nutcracker. But before that, we share the usual gifts, pull a cracker or two, and also take a trip around the world on a culinar...
Dec 18, 2022•1 hr 52 min•Season 5Ep. 9
In this episode we talk to travel writer Nicholas Jubber about his latest book The Fairy Tellers, which unearths the incredible lives of the people behind famous fairy tales. The Fairy Tellers introduces us to seven of the most influential story tellers, including Hans Christian Andersen, Dortchten Wild, Gabrielle-Suzanne de Villeneuve, and Hanna Dyab, who between them gave us Hansel and Gretel, Beauty And The Beast, The Snow Queen, and Aladdin, to name a few. Who were these people? What’s behin...
Dec 11, 2022•1 hr•Season 5Ep. 6
We finally land at the feet of the longest story in the entire collection, The Two Brothers. And this one's got it all. Dragons, witches, heroes, villains, damsels - this may well be the fairy tale story you’ve been waiting for! When two brothers are banished from home, they gather a retinue of animal disciples and hit the road. Deciding to go their separate ways, the eldest battles a dragon and wins the heart of a princess. But when a tree-climbing witch turns him to stone, it’s up to the young...
Nov 27, 2022•1 hr 48 min•Season 5Ep. 5
Left alone in heaven, Saint Peter hears a knock at the door; a light-fingered tailor wants in. Against the wishes of the Good Lord, Peter lets the tailor through the pearly gates and into paradise. What will happen when the big chief returns home to find heaven in disorder? And why does everyone love Spanish cavalrymen? Find out in The Tailor In Heaven! We discuss tailors in fairy tales, Odin’s special seat, a Swiss party town, and finally hear another folk tale of crafty tailors cheating their ...
Nov 13, 2022•50 min•Season 5Ep. 4
Welcome to our first ever Halloween special! Join us round the fire as we read the famous Russian fairy tale Vasilisa The Beautiful. We then have a full Baba Yaga takeover where we do a deep dive on the intriguing witch of slavic folklore. Creepy pork-eating dolls, evil step mothers, colourful horesmen - things get spooky in the castle with this curious story, a mix of Cinderella and Hansel And Gretel with added Baba Yaga, what’s not to love? Twitter Facebook Instagram Patreon grimmreadingpodcas...
Oct 30, 2022•1 hr 20 min•Season 5Ep. 3
Things are going well for a newly married couple until a dog steals a sausage. Before you know it the house is a wreck and some thieves have stolen all their gold. So Frederick and Catherine set out to track down the thieves and mayhem ensues as we enjoy a generous helping of hilarious misunderstandings, before it all ends with a pastor running for his life. After the story, we try to make sense of this bizarre little story, a close cousin of an old Grimm Reading classic Clever Elsie. And finall...
Oct 16, 2022•54 min•Season 5Ep. 2
Welcome to series 5 of Grimm Reading! We kick things off with The Valiant Little Tailor, story number 20 in the Grimms’ Fairy Tales. When a little tailor takes down a swarm of flies ruining his jam on toast, he can’t believe his own bravery. His studio is now too small for a man like him, so he embroiders a commemorative girdle and sets off into the world to make his name. Several vanquished giants, dehorned unicorns, pious boars, redundant soldiers and squeezed cheeses later, the tailor is set ...
Oct 02, 2022•1 hr 10 min•Season 5Ep. 1
