Road to Lautrec–a 45-minute play for radio–is broadcast this Thursday 30th November at 2.15pm on BBC Radio 4.
You can also listen on line: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b09gkcsm)
We spent two delightful days earlier in October rehearsing and recording this play under the guidance of one of the Beeb’s most famous radio directors, Jane Morgan.
The cast (l to r): Bronte Tadman, Pierre Elliott, Jane Morgan (Director), Nigel Anthony (wonderful comic relief), me, Emma Cunniffe and Cheryl Campbell.
At the Acton studio recording with Emma Cunniffe, recently seen in the West End in Queen Anne.
It was a joy to work with Cheryl Campbell–winner of both a BAFTA and Olivier Awards.
The village dinner is a high point, and about one thousand visitors and residents attend. The radio crew includes (on the left) Matt Peaty, the sound recordist; (our friend Marc Urquhart); Frank Stirling, the producer on the back right; Jane Morgan, the director and veteran radio director; and Douglas Livingstone, the author who had to come up with a drama about all this!
I meet the village Mascot.
L’ail rose de Lautrec–Pink Garlic from Lautrec–the signature crop of our village and famous throughout France.
The longest strand of Garlic in the world–over 23 meters!
Here is the winning strand being paraded down the road in Lautrec to the village outdoor dinner:
Somehow Douglas made a touching story about all this….Hope you’ll tune in!
Robin Ellis 
Just hearing you and Cheryl Campbell, a longtime favorite, would make it all worthwhile. I’m hoping I can find a way to listen to it here in Michigan. It sounds like something I’d love. Good actors, France, garlic, festival? What’s not to love?
Oh! i do hope it will be available here. Sometimes, I can listen to BBC radio via my laptop, so crossing lots of digits.
And all that garlic! mmmm
Robin,
So nice to hear from you! Lautrec looks lovely! Thanks! I’ve been wondering about your church. Any decisions regarding its future? Poldark is back on Masterpiece. However, you will always be Poldark to me. Best wishes!
Linda
Thanks, Linda.
Will this be available to listen to online after the initial broadcast? Hope so!
Yes it will.
Wonderful – thank you!
Really looking forward to listening to this, what a cast what a treat x
Oh what fun! Will definitely be listening!
Thank you Robin We look forward to hearing this.
Shawdian
Sounds like great fun. Look forward to listening to it.
We will definitely be listening tomorrow. What a wonderful idea! We can picture it already and taste the garlic.
Wonderful to find a report from Lautrec again! I’ve missed your news. Delightful story.
Nancy
Santa Fe, NM
enjoyed the article
Hi, Robin, I have just spent a lovely 45mins in Lautrec. I could feel the warmth of the sun, taste the garlic soup, smell the coffee and with a little bit of fun and romance mixed in. Lovely. A superb cast and now I will raise a glass to you all. You have cheered up a cold winter afternoon. Thank you. Jane
Many thanks for the notice. Excellent play with a superb cast. Very suitable for you, particularly.
Piers
Oh I really enjoyed this gentle drama very much. I was so glad that I had watched Meredith’s video of the festival, it really informed the drama for me. It lifted me out of North Wales where it was softly snowing as I was preparing my Christmas cards, to a beautiful part of France. Well done to all, & thank you.
Meredith thanks you for that, Karen! 🙂
I listened on catch-up and loved the atmosphere of a French village en fete, caught so well here, and so lovely too, to hear you and Cheryl again. It all reminded me so much of my teenage holidays spent in another French village, Lurs, in Haute Provence, which might perhaps not be the ‘prettiest’ village in France, but it’s certainly a close second, with its hilltop site and views to the Alps and Mont Blanc on a very clear day. I learned to speak French with a real Provencal accent, which scandalised my French teacher (who WAS French) at school. I really accentuated it for her until I reverted to ‘normal’ French and she relaxed! I suppose it was like a French person learning English with a Geordie accent! You see, all this has come out because I listened to a charming play about garlic!!
Listened to it here in the Midlands on a cold afternoon. Good that it didn’t go for the predictable ending, really enjoyed it, so much so that I felt compelled to have a nice glass of red at 3 pm. You are a corrupting influence Mr Ellis!
Ah! I felt I was right there,walking the narrow streets, entering the courtyard of the cafe.The sounds and smells,the voices and the bustle,the dreamy story line
and the unexpected ending. Lovely!
Wow, they’re not kidding about that garlic, it really is pink! Love the mascot. I’m in the US so couldn’t enjoy the BBC program, but I bet it was great!
Patty, it’s still up on Radio 4 website (for another 19 days), here you http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b09gkcsm
Hi Robin,
I enjoyed the radio play very much and the pictures of the garlic festival are great! I can almost smell the garlic when I look at them!
Best wishes for a Merry Christmas and a happy and healthy New Year to you and Meredith!
Wow! I just scrolled up and saw the video of the festival! Thank you Meredith!
Sandy
Really enjoyed listening to this and can totally understand why you love living in France.
Hope you had a great birthday Robin. Best wishes, Heidi
Thanks, Heidi–I did.
What a treat — and on a day when I needed a treat! At 6:30 this morning in the US, I was awakened by rain (odd for Michigan in December!) and the basement was flooding. I did what I could and came up, exhausted, took a look at Facebook and saw your post on this today. It was truly the story, smiles, sounds I needed to hear. Marvelous actors all, a delightful script and a real feel of the event. Re-reading your blog on the recording made it all the more “real.” Thanks for this. So much!
Hope your basement and you recover and it has stopped raining!