Showing posts with label Local History. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Local History. Show all posts

Wednesday 13 July 2022

Summer Signings. Devon author, Liz Shakespeare bringing new life to Devon's past.

One Devon author is looking forward to a busy summer. Liz Shakespeare, who specialises in breathing life into true stories from Devon’s past, will be attending a number of events this summer to sign copies of her books and to talk to members of the public.

Liz said, ‘Writing is a solitary activity, so I really look forward to opportunities to meet readers when I give talks or attend book signings throughout Devon.’

She has written six books set in Devon, bringing to life the stories she finds in old newspapers, on gravestones and in parish records. Liz has a long Devon ancestry which she feels has given her a good understanding of the county and its people. Her most recent book The Song of the Skylark tells the true story of a young girl who was sent out as a parish apprentice to work on a remote Devon farm.

‘I am currently working on my seventh book,’ Liz said. ‘Each book takes around three years to research and write, so it will be a while before this one is ready to publish.’

Liz will be signing copies of all six of her books at the following events:

  • Magpie Marquee at the Mid-Devon Show on July 23rd
  • North Devon Show on August 3rd
  • Appledore Food and Craft Market on August 6th
  • Hartland Farmers’ Market on August 7th
  • Okehampton Show on August 11th
  • Chagford Show on August 18th
  • Ashwater Show on August 20th
  • North Molton Country Fair on August 21st
  • Holsworthy Show on August 25th
  • Torridge Art and Craft Market on August 27th
  • Lustleigh Show on August 29th
  • Appledore Food and Craft Market on September 3rd
  • Clovelly Lobster and Crab Feast on September 4th
Liz’s books can also be ordered post-free from her website www.lizshakespeare.co.uk

Eventful Summer for Devon Author, Liz Shakespeare
Author, Liz Shakespeare and her Books from Devon
Devon author, Liz Shakespeare at the Mid-Devon Show 2019.. 
Devon author, Liz Shakespeare at the Mid-Devon Show 2019.

Liz’s books can also be ordered post-free from her website

Devon author, Liz Shakespeare

Monday 12 October 2020

Compelling Storytelling. 'Song of the Skylark', a new Devon book by Liz Shakespeare

Two hundred years ago in North Devon, a young girl stands on a table before an audience of farmers.

‘Mary Mitchell, nine years old. Draws your straws, gentlemen and we’ll see who’s to win this prize.’ The child was a parish apprentice, and this method of selection had died out everywhere else in the country, except North Devon.

Author Liz Shakespeare, who has become well-known for writing books inspired by the history of Devon, has uncovered the true story of one such apprentice.

The Song of the Skylark tells the story of Mary Mitchell, aged nine, and her brother Thomas who are sent to a remote farm, far from their parents and everything that is familiar to them,’ says Liz. ‘Pauper children in North Devon were often apprenticed as farmworkers and had to work long hours without wages. They were not granted their freedom until they reached the age of twenty-one. In effect they were simply used as unpaid servants to their masters.’ In 1843 the editor of the North Devon Journal criticised the practice, referring to it as slavery.

Liz found numerous documents which helped in her research into parish apprentices. ‘Many children would have been treated as part of the family,’ says Liz, ‘but it is clear that some were not. There are reports in the local papers of apprentices being severely whipped, and some ran away from their masters.’ Liz found adverts that had been placed by farmers giving a description of the runaway child, and warning that whoever harbours said apprentice will be prosecuted.

Thomas and Mary Mitchell work on the farm in Buckland Brewer parish for five years. These years become increasingly difficult for them due to a series of failed harvests.

‘It was shocking to realise how hard their lives would have been,’ says Liz. ‘The potato blight which caused the Great Famine in Ireland also hit Devon, and many labourers came close to starvation during the period termed the Hungry Forties.’

However Liz discovered that Thomas and Mary also had some respite from the backbreaking work. ‘One document revealed that they could read, and described them as ‘Thornites’. This was the name given to followers of the Thorne family of Shebbear who, along with William O’Bryan from Cornwall, had founded the Bible Christian movement, an offshoot of Wesleyan Methodism. The centre of the Bible Christian movement was Shebbear where there was a school for training ministers, later Shebbear College.’

Chapels were built wherever a small piece of land could be found, often at a crossroads with no other dwellings in sight; small unpretentious buildings with arched windows, now often converted to dwellings.

For Thomas and Mary, whose days are filled with unremitting labour and who are far from their family, joining a welcoming community at chapel and being told wonderful stories of the Promised Land brings very welcome relief.

‘The Bible Christians were particularly interesting’ said Liz, ‘because right from the start, in the early 1820’s, they used women ministers. One such was Mary O’Bryan Thorne. She was an extraordinary woman; highly educated, an inspirational preacher despite suffering terribly from nerves before speaking, mother to thirteen children, she also ran a busy farm household at Shebbear with the help of only one servant. She is an important character in my story.’

After five years on the farm, Thomas and Mary eventually take daring action in an effort to change the course of their lives. Their attempt ultimately wins them their freedom, but not before they are brought face-to-face with the heartless judicial system of early Victorian England.

‘I found it a compelling and sometimes difficult story to write,’ says Liz, ‘’but it has a happy ending!’

Liz is launching The Song of the Skylark on Friday 16th October with talks on Zoom at 2.30 and 7.30 describing how she came to write it and the research she carried out; there will be time for questions afterwards. Tickets are just £3 each with all proceeds being donated to The Plough Arts Centre in Torrington. You can book tickets at www.lizshakespeare.co.uk.

Signed copies of The Song of the Skylark can also be ordered from the website for £9.99 and will be sent post-free, or cheques made payable to Letterbox Books can be sent to The Old Post Office, Littleham, Bideford, EX39 5HW. The book is also available on Kindle.

'Song of the Skylark' - A new Devon book by Liz Shakespeare

'Song of the Skylark' - A new Devon book by Liz Shakespeare

'Ran Away' Public Notice (North Devon Journal) 29th January 1840
'Ran Away' Public Notice (North Devon Journal) 29th January 1840
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The Song of the Skylark Launch 
Friday 16th October with talks on Zoom at 2.30 and 7.30 
 You can book tickets at www.lizshakespeare.co.uk - proceeds being donated to The Plough Arts Centre in Torrington. 

Saturday 28 March 2020

What a gift - 'Postman Poet' author sends books set in Devon by post, without leaving home

At this difficult time when most of the shops are shut, one Devon author is offering to post copies of her books to readers – without leaving her home!

Liz Shakespeare says ‘I have a post box in my front garden, so I can post a book to you or to one of your friends or relatives, while obeying the Stay At Home order!’

Liz lives at The Old Post Office in Littleham. Although there is no longer a post office in her front room, the Royal Mail post box is still there.

She says, ‘If you need to send a birthday present, a get well present, or just want to escape into another world for a while, choose a book set in Devon from my website www.lizshakespeare.co.uk or give me a ring on 01237 471165.’

Liz Shakespeare has become well known throughout the south-west for the five books she has written, all of which are set in Devon. Liz says ‘My inspiration is the people, the history and the landscapes of Devon. The most topical of my books is Fever: A Story from a Devon Churchyard which tells the true story of a Devon village struggling to cope during an epidemic 150 years ago.’

Also available is The Turning of the Tide, a novel based on the true story of a young Clovelly mother confined in Bideford Workhouse, The Postman Poet which tells the story of Devon man Edward Capern, The Memory Be Green: An Oral History of a Devon Village and All Around The Year, a book of short stories set in Devon.
Postage is free - Liz can sign books and inscribe them for a special present on request. '
Contact Liz through her website for book titles and prices www.lizshakespeare.co.uk 
Tel: 01237 471165

Tuesday 15 January 2019

"A Sigh for Devon" - Bicentenary of Edward Capern’s birth.


It was two hundred years ago, on 21st January 1819, that Edward Capern, Devon’s Postman Poet, was born into a poor, working-class family in Tiverton. His father, a baker, could not afford to educate his son and would never have dreamt that he would become nationally renowned as a poet, winning plaudits from the Prime Minister and support from the biggest literary names of the day.

The bicentenary of his birth would, perhaps, have gone unnoticed if his extraordinary story had not been brought back to public attention by Devon author Liz Shakespeare. She has written The Postman Poet, a novel based on the life of Capern, and has published 34 of his 600 poems in The Poems of Edward Capern. While writing the novel, Liz drew on historical research and details in the poems to tell the astonishing story through Edward’s eyes as he struggles to support his family, capturing the opportunities and inequalities of Victorian North Devon.

Edward Capern became a postman following the introduction of the Penny Post, walking the 13 mile round trip between Bideford and Buckland Brewer 364 days a year. He would jot down poems while he was walking and he often wrote on the envelopes he was about to deliver: “He had to ask the recipients if he could keep the envelopes because he’d written poems on them,” said Liz Shakespeare, whose own cottage was on Capern’s round.

He was entirely self-taught but he had a local benefactor, William Frederick Rock from Barnstaple, who saw Capern’s early poems in the North Devon Journal in the 1850s and supported the publication of the first volume of poems. The book was a national success, winning the support of Charles Dickens, Alfred Lord Tennyson and Rowland Hill, the inventor of the Penny Post, as well as considerable local fame. Many people used to visit North Devon to see the Postman Poet set off on his round, at the same time as visiting the scenes made famous by Charles Kingsley’s book ‘Westward Ho!’ after which the seaside resort was named. Edward Capern was awarded a Civil List Pension by the Prime Minister for his services to literature and went on to write three further books of poems.

During her research, Liz found that some of his poems were intended to be sung, so collaborated with Devon musicians Nick Wyke and Becki Driscoll who set them to music for their CD, The Songs of Edward Capern.

Most of his poems are happy and extol the beauties of the North Devon countryside, but he was also very aware of the darker side of life. Although he was careful not to upset the aristocracy who bought his work, Capern was keen to use his pen to champion the cause of the poor and he managed to slip in many reminders, amongst his happier verses, that the poor should not be forgotten, and that labourers should be paid fair wages.

One poem Nick and Becki have set to music is The Dinner Bell, a tale of the haves and have-nots in which Capern laments the plight of families who could hear the sound of distant dinner bells but had no food themselves.

In recognition of Capern’s commitment to social justice, £1 from each copy of the poetry collection sold is being donated to the Northern Devon Food Bank, and more than £500 has been raised so far.

Together, Liz Shakespeare, Nick Wyke and Becki Driscoll have appeared at music festivals and book festivals to tell the story of Edward Capern through words and song.

On Monday 21st January Liz will be placing flowers on Edward Capern’s grave in Heanton Punchardon to commemorate the birth of Devon’s Postman Poet two hundred years ago. 

A Sigh for Devon
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Bright haunt of the daffodil, myrtle, and rose,
Of solitude sweet, and of pleasant repose,
Where a welcome waits all with a heart in its hand,
My Devon! dear Devon! my beautiful land!
Blest region of valley, hill, woodland, and river,
I love thee, dear land, and shall love thee for ever.
Edward Capern
Edward Capern portrait - Photo copyright Burton Art Gallery (All Rights Reserved)
Portrait of Edward Capern - Photo copyright Burton Art Gallery (All Rights Reserved)
Devon author, Liz Shakespeare with musicians Nick Wyke and Becki Driscoll
Devon Author, Liz Shakespeare with musicians Nick Wyke and Becki Driscoll
The "Postman Poet" Edward Capern's Gravestone
Here lies The "Postman Poet" Edward Capern

Monday 9 July 2018

Summer Signings. Meet the author, Liz Shakespeare at a host of Devon Festivals and Events.

Readers who enjoy local books will have the opportunity to meet author Liz Shakespeare this summer.
 
Liz has become well-known as an author who brings to life the people, history and landscapes of Devon, and she has a busy summer ahead visiting many South-West events.
 
Liz said ‘Writing is a very solitary occupation so I enjoy these opportunities to go out and meet my readers.’
 
Liz has a long Devon ancestry which she feels has given her a good understanding of Devon and its people. Her most recent book is The Postman Poet, a novel which captures the opportunities and inequalities of Victorian North Devon. The Postman Poet has been long-listed for the DLF Hall and Woodhouse prize and will be featured at the Sidmouth Folk Festival on August 7th when Liz will be joining with musicians Nick Wyke and Becki Driscoll to celebrate the life and songs of Devon’s Postman Poet Edward Capern.

Historical research was also the inspiration for her previous books, The Turning of the Tide, a true story of a young Clovelly mother confined in Bideford Workhouse, Fever: A Story from a Devon Churchyard, and The Memory Be Green: An Oral History of a Devon Village. All Around The Year, is a collection of twelve poignant stories, deeply rooted in the Devon countryside, and each linked to a month of the year from January through to December.
 
Liz will be signing copies of all her books at the following events:

  • Clovelly Maritime Festival on July 14th 
  • Launceston Show on July 26th
  • In the Magpie Marquee at the Mid-Devon Show on July 28th
  • Woolsery Show on July 30th
  • In the Crafts and Gifts Marquee at the North Devon Show on August 1st
  • Okehampton Show on August 9th
  • Dartmoor Folk Festival on August 11th and 12th
  • Chagford Show on August 16th
  • Holsworthy Show on August 23rd
  • Lustleigh Village Show on August 27th
  • Clovelly Crab and Lobster Festival on September 2nd

Meet the Author Liz Shakespeare around Devon this Summer
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Further details of Liz’s books can be found on her website www.lizshakespeare.co.uk
Follow Liz 

Saturday 25 February 2017

Novelist and folk duo deliver a new audience for forgotten ‘Postman Poet’.

He was a humble postman whose poems, written while walking the rural lanes of North Devon on his daily round in the mid-19th century, won plaudits from the Prime Minister and the support of the biggest literary names of the day. He was to become known nationally as the Postman Poet and was referred to as ‘the Devonian Burns’.

Yet today, two years short of the 200th anniversary of Edward Capern’s birth, many of his fellow Devonians are unlikely to have heard of his remarkable story, let alone people from further afield.
But that could be about to change. Recognition could again come knocking for Capern (1819-1894), thanks to collaboration between Bideford author Liz Shakespeare and folk musicians and songwriters Nick Wyke and Becki Driscoll, also from Bideford – the town where Tiverton-born Capern resided for most of his life.

Liz has written The Postman Poet, a novel based on the life of Capern, and at the same time is publishing 34 of his 600 poems in The Poems of Edward Capern. During her research, Liz found that some of his poems were intended to be sung and Nick and Becki have spent the past 12 months choosing which ones to set to music for their CD, The Songs of Edward Capern.

The book and CD launch takes place with an evening of reading and songs at the Royal Hotel in Bideford on 25th March, two days before they officially go on sale.

Capern was from a poor family and as a boy only went to school for four months. He was entirely self-taught but he had a local benefactor, William Frederick Rock from Barnstaple, who saw his early poems in a local newspaper and was behind the publication of Capern’s first volume of poems. Its subscribers included the Prime Minister Lord Palmerston, Lord Tennyson and Charles Dickens. He was also admired by Poet Laureate, Alfred Austen.

“It was a remarkable achievement for a working-class man to become nationally known and I think he deserves a larger audience today,” said Liz. While writing the novel, Liz drew on historical research and details in the poems to tell the extraordinary story through Edward’s eyes as he struggles to support his family, a story that captures the opportunities and inequalities of Victorian North Devon.

Capern would jot down poems while he was walking and he often wrote on the envelopes he was about to deliver: “He had to ask the recipients if he could keep the envelopes because he’d written poems on them,” said Liz, whose own cottage in Littleham just outside Bideford was on Capern’s round.

It was during his daily two-hour break on the Bideford to Buckland Brewer route that most of his poems were written. It seems that one day he was invited into a cottage to sit in the warmth of the kitchen while the women of the house went about their daily chores. It was an invitation he was to accept every day after that.

While carrying out her research, Liz discovered that, quite by coincidence, the cottage is now owned by a good friend, local historian and genealogist Janet Few: “When you’re in the kitchen you can imagine Edward sitting there writing up a poem about the nature he’d seen and the people he’d met that morning,” said Liz.

When it came to Nick and Becki setting Capern’s work to music, they found that the poems had a particular rhythm to them: “You could tell he’d written them while walking,” said Nick, “because there is a walking feel to the rhythm of the lines.”

This “walking feel” was used when they composed the music, as Becki explained: “The feel informed the rhythm and we then created the melody to ‘fit’ what the words were saying. And the melody informed the choice of instruments.”
“The songs are certainly folk-influenced because that’s our background and it’s probably the music Capern would sing. But it’s not traditional folk music. It’s a much more contemporary sound.”
Nick and Becki initially sifted through Capern’s collection of poems that he’d written for music in his volume, The Devonshire Melodist, only to discover his words had been disastrously misinterpreted by composer Thomas Murby. His piano arrangements were clearly intended for the well-to-do and a review in the Illustrated London News decried Murby’s melodies as “artificial, laboured and hard to sing”.

As a result Nick and Becki have recorded just two of the songs as they were written – Christmas Bells and Come List, My Love, and have set a third from the collection, The Robin Is Weeping, to their own music. Nine further Capern poems are set to their folk-influenced interpretation.
 “It’s pretty obvious that folk was his genre,” said Nick. ”We think he’d be happy with what we’ve done.”

Although he was careful not to upset the aristocracy who bought his work, Capern was keen to use his pen to champion the cause of the poor. One poem Nick and Becki have set to music is The Dinner Bell, a tale of the haves and have-nots where Capern laments the plight of families who could hear the sound of distant dinner bells but had no food themselves. In recognition of Capern’s commitment to social justice, £1 from each copy of the poetry collection sold is being donated to the Northern Devon Food Bank.

Capern died in 1894, aged 75, and is buried in the churchyard at Heanton near Braunton, with his trusty postman’s handbell fixed in a niche in the headstone.

So how will 21st century readers view Capern’s poems? Liz admits some are rather sentimental for today’s tastes but added: “The best of them are as fresh and honest now as they were then. The poems I’ve selected are those which best reflect his life and the locality. He loved his job, despite the weather and the long hours and it’s this love that really comes across in his work. His poems are written from the heart.”

Tickets for the 7.30pm launch event tonight are available from the websites. Signed copies of the books and CD can also be pre-ordered now from the websites, www.englishfiddle.com
and www.lizshakespeare.co.uk.

Liz Shakespeare, Nick Wyke and Becki Driscoll
  Photo: Liz Shakespeare, Nick Wyke and Becki Driscoll
Edward Capern, The Postman Poet
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The Rural Postman (an extract):

O, the postman’s is as happy a life
As any one’s, I trow;
Wand’ring away where dragon-flies play,
And brooks sing soft and slow;
And watching the lark as he soars on high,
To carol in yonder cloud,
"He sings in his labour, and why not I?"
The postman sings aloud.
And many a brace of humble rhymes
His pleasant soul hath made,
Of birds, and flowers, and happy times,
In sunshine and in shade.