Prose

Programme Outline

• The short story: Mike Jenkins discusses his book of interconnected stories, Wanting to Belong, and his use of Merthyr dialect.
• The novel: Catherine Fisher discusses Belin’s Hill and her use of myth and landscape.

Mike Jenkins talks about his role as a teacher, and how he does not want to be authoritarian but more of a friend to his pupils. He shares their interests in football and pop music. He speaks of how he wants to give a voice to working-class children in the valleys and capture something of the reality of their lives and their humour. In a discussion with students, Jenkins discusses the narrative structure of Wanting to Belong, which is made up of interconnected stories told by teenagers who appear in each other’s stories. In particular, he describes his use of Merthyr dialect for his characters’ dialogue while using standard English for the narrative itself. Two scenes from Tracey Kicks, the ninth story in Wanting to Belong, are dramatised in the programme. Tracey compares herself to the suffragettes and speaks of her determination to succeed as a footballer despite all the obstacles put in her way.

Catherine Fisher talks of her interest in archaeology and mythology, of how her novels blur fantasy and reality, of how she likes to rework legend and folklore into something contemporary. She says that myths, through their powerful stories, convey truths which are difficult to explain in any other way. She is influenced by the Mabinogion and the legends of Gwent (the area where she lives). The programme focuses on her novel Belin’s Hill which is set in Caerleon; she refers to Arthur Machen’s The Hill of Dreams as a particular influence. Fisher reads four extracts from the novel. In the novel, Huw, whose parents have been killed in a train crash, finds an ancient stone head. It is when he tries to get rid of it that his adventures begin. The head symbolises Huw’s grief and fears, and the eruption of the past into the present causes him to face up to his experience. Fisher talks of her use of detailed description, of how she wants the reader to see, taste and feel the environment; she discusses the circular structure of her stories.