The Ravens by James Dyer - Episode 5

The Ravens is a children's book about the first Roman invasion in 55 B.C. set around Hertfordshire and particularly the hillfort now known as Ravensburgh Castle. It was written by the excavator himself, James Dyer, who was also a schoolteacher. My guest, Francis Pryor, dug with the late James Dyer on this very site and joins me to share his memories of this early dig and his subsequent experience of digging up roundhouses, among other things.

Links

• The Ravens by James Dyer
• Francis Pryor's Blog

Contact

Kim Biddulph: @kimbiddulph and @schprehistory

Francis Pryor on Twitter: @pryorfrancis

Music provided by Nigel Shaw. The track is "Yew" from Dartmoor Roundhouse by Seventh Wave Music at http://www.seventhwavemusic.co.uk/.

Kim Biddulph Director, Schools Prehistory, www.schoolsprehistory.co.uk

The Gathering Night - Episode 4

The Gathering Night, by Margaret Elphinstone

I go back to the Mesolithic in earnest in this episode and talk to Caroline Wickham-Jones and Spencer Carter about a wonderful tale that is part prehistorical fiction, part family saga, part whodunnit, the Gathering Night by Margaret Elphinstone. We also talk about the relative impact of natural disasters in prehistory.

Links

• The Gathering Night
• Caroline Wickham-Jones' website
• Spencer Carter's Website
• Spencer Carter's Twitter: @microburin

Contact

Kim Biddulph: @kimbiddulph and @schprehistory

Music provided by Nigel Shaw. The track is "Yew" from Dartmoor Roundhouse by Seventh Wave Music at http://www.seventhwavemusic.co.uk/.

Kim Biddulph Director, Schools Prehistory, www.schoolsprehistory.co.uk

Clan of the Cave Bear by Jean M Auel - Episode 3

Clan of the Cave Bear by Jean M Auel

What you need when discussing Clan of the Cave Bear are two Neanderthal experts, which is what I got – Rebecca Wragg Sykes of Bordeaux University and Matthew Pope of UCL, London. The fascinating subject of Neanderthal/Homo sapiens relations occupied us at length, when we weren't being diverted by thoughts of an American mini-series of the book produced by Ron Howard.

Book Details

Clan of the Cave Bear by Jean M Auel, published in 1980 by Crown Publishing Group.

http://www.jeanauel.com/books.php

Contact details

Rebecca Wragg Sykes - @lemoustier on Twitter and blog at therocksremain.org

Matthew Pope – matt.pope@ucl.ac.uk and on Twitter at @matthewpope

Wolf Brother by Michelle Paver - Episode 2

My guests are Matt Ritchie, Forestry Commission Scotland's archaeologist, Donald Henson, studying for a PhD in Public Perceptions of the Mesolithic at York University, and James Dilley of Ancient Craft and about to embark on a PhD as well. matt quickly disabuses me of the notion that Wolf Brother is set in the Scottish Mesolithic (which is the only reason I had him on in the first place) and then we chat about the wondrous period of hunter-gatherers, wildwoods, and magic in the forest.

Book Details

• Wolf Brother by Michelle Paver, published in 2005 by Orion Books.
• Mezolith by Ben Haggarty, published in 2010 by Random House.

Click on the photo! (http://owlscotland.org/resources/resource-library/wolf_brothers_wildwoods)

Click on the photo! (http://owlscotland.org/resources/resource-library/wolf_brothers_wildwoods)

Guest Contact Details

• Donald Henson: dh625@york.ac.uk
• James Dilley: Twitter - @ancientcraftUK
• Matthew Ritchie: matthew.ritchie@forestry.gsi.gov.uk

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Stories and Prehistory: An Introduction to the Podcast - Episode 1

I talk to Tristan Boyle, host of the Anarchaeologist Podcast and the instigator of my podcasting career, and get him to care about stories in archaeology. The sage words of Game of Thrones author, George R. R. Martin are invoked, and, we inquire quite why Ug: Boy Genius of the Stone Age, is the only one to think of having soft trousers. Plus a bit of Aesop's Fables thrown in for good measure.

Book Details:

• Ug: Boy Genius of the Stone Age by Raymond Briggs, published in 2001 by Red Fox.
• The Orchard Book of Aesop's Fables by Michael Morpurgo and Emma Chichester Clark, published in 2004 by Orchard Books.

Guest Contacts:

• Tristan Boyle: @anarchaeologist on Twitter

Be sure to rate and subscribe here or on iTunes! Ratings help the podcast get noticed so more can enjoy. Thanks!