Grasmere Dialect Plays

I love maps too - and these look brilliant!

I love maps so I'm giving away TWO signed paperbacks of my psychedelic/folkloric novel Villager each with these fantastic maps my dad illustrated of the fictional village in the book.Just repost this/reply below for a chance to win.

Here's an extract from the book: www.tom-cox.com/the-village-...

The play that is helping to preserve Westmorland dialect and customs The Grasmere Dialect Plays enact scenes from everyday life, entirely in Westmorland dialect

Cumbria Life has published an expanded online version of my piece on the fabulous Grasmere Dialect Plays - including lots more images. Find it here:

www.greatbritishlife.co.uk/magazines/cu...

Photo of first page of Cumbria Life article on the Grasmere Dialect Plays. 3 black-and-white images: a large one of pace-egging on stage, and two smaller ones: rushbearing on stage and a publicity postcard of two young lovers in a hayfield

Exciting news: I've got a 3-page article on the Grasmere Dialect Plays in the October 2025 issue of 'Cumbria Life' magazine! Really hoping this will bring them to a wider audience ... @drpennybradshaw.bsky.social @countrystride.bsky.social

YouTube video by Sue Wilkinson On Second Thoughts

NEW PODCAST - JUST POSTED:

Two extracts from the fabulous 1924 Grasmere Dialect Play "On Second Thoughts", read by members of the Lakeland Dialect Society. Lead roles played by Jean Scott-Smith & John Campbell. They're brilliant!

Listen here:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=UP7t...

Three costumed actors, reading from scripts, in front of bookcases. Older man on left, younger man in centre, older woman on right.

Will Dinah marry Gawin, or his nephew, Kit? (Act IV, "On Second Thoughts")
Another picture from yesterday's readings from the Grasmere Dialect Plays at the Armitt Museum, Ambleside.
L to R: John Campbell (Gawin), Phillip Gate (Kit), & Jean Scott-Smith (Dinah).
Watch out for the podcast!

Two traditional bearings - as used in the annual Grasmere rushbearing procession, which features in the Grasmere Dialect Plays. They're made of sheafs of rushes, bound with twine, and decorated with pink-and-white flowers and sprigs of bracken

It's not every day you're given decorated bearings, hand-made with rushes from Wet Sleddale. Thank you so much, Jean Scott-Smith, President of the Lakeland Dialect Society
The flower-decked sheafs are traditional in the Grasmere rushbearing, which features in the Grasmere Dialect Plays #LakeDistrict

I met Richard Hardisty, whose great-uncle, Johnnie Hodgson, played the fiddle in several of the Grasmere Dialect Plays. Here's Richard holding a photo (which he hadn't seen before) of his great-uncle (far left) - in the rushbearing scene from "On Second Thoughts" (1924)

Members of the Lakeland Dialect Society, in costume, reading from the Grasmere Dialect Plays. They are in the library of the Armitt Museum, with bookcases and a projector screen behind them. Two men and one woman are standing, with scripts, and another woman is seated.

Very many thanks to Jean Scott-Smith, John Campbell, Phillip Gate and Louise Green from the Lakeland Dialect Society for their superb readings from the Grasmere Dialect Plays. Thanks, too, to the Armitt Museum for hosting our event - & to the appreciative audience!

Members of the Lakeland Dialect Society, in costume, reading from the Grasmere Dialect Plays. They are in the library of the Armitt Museum, with bookcases and a projector screen behind them.

A fabulous afternoon at the Armitt Museum, introducing readings from the Grasmere Dialect Plays by members of the Lakeland Dialect Society. A great time was had by players and audience alike! And wonderful to meet Grasmere residents with relatives in the original plays.

Don't miss it! Tomorrow 2 pm at the Armitt, Ambleside
Tickets: armitt-library-and-museum-centre.arttickets.org.uk/armitt-libra...

Just 4 days to go ...
The fabulous Jean Scott-Smith and John Campbell star in Readings from the Grasmere Dialect Plays at the Armitt Museum, Ambleside at 2 pm on Wed 13 August.
Don't miss it!
Tickets here: armitt-library-and-museum-centre.arttickets.org.uk/armitt-libra...

Coming soon (13 August) at the Armitt Museum, Ambleside ...

Less than two weeks to go until THE event of the summer: the Grasmere Dialect Plays at the Armitt, starring Jean Scott-Smith & John Campbell
Tickets from: armitt-library-and-museum-centre.arttickets.org.uk/armitt-libra...
We were rehearsing today In Kendal:

Announcement of an event - readings from the Grasmere Dialect Plays - at the Armitt Museum, Ambleside, in 13 August, 2.00-3.30 pm. Illustrated with a photograph of a young man and woman in a hayfield, taken from one of the original productions of the plays

Details about the Grasmere Dialect Plays - which feature in an event to be held at the Armitt Museum, Ambleside, in 13 August, 2.00-3.30 pm. Illustrated with a photograph of a young man and woman in a hayfield, taken from one of the original productions of the plays

Tickets now available for readings from the Grasmere Dialect Plays on 13 August, 2.00-3.30 at the Armitt Museum, Ambleside. I guarantee it will be an entertaining (as well as informative) event!
www.armitt.com/event-direct... (scroll down to evvent)

Come along to the Armitt Museum, Ambleside at 2 pm on 13 August! I'll be introducing readings from the Grasmere Dialect Plays by members of the Lakeland Dialect Society. Tickets:
armitt-library-and-museum-centre.arttickets.org.uk/armitt-libra...

I 'discovered' the #GrasmereDialectPlays as a part-time student on this fabulous MA course (& wrote my final dissertation on them). Certain that more discoveries await future students - why not find out more ...?!

UPDATE:

You can now access Jean Scott-Smith and Donald Campbell's brilliant readings from the Grasmere Dialect Plays directly from the Lakeland Dialect Society's website. Link here:

lakelanddialectsociety.co.uk/recordings

We are disappointed but not surprised that Meta has used millions of pirated books to develop its AI systems.

As a matter of urgency, Meta needs to compensate the rightsholders of all the works it has been exploiting.

But what can authors do? Read here:
societyofauthors.org/2025/03/21/t...

Poet Wordsworth's role as first Lake District 'influencer' An exhibition at Allan Bank in Grasmere looks at how Wordsworth helped conservation in the Lakes.

Eleanor Rawnsley (nee Simpson), who wrote/staged the Grasmere Dialect Plays, lived for most of her life at Allan Bank, Grasmere.

William Wordsworth - who lived at Allan Bank from 1808-1811 - wrote his 'Guide to the Lakes' there. New exhibition:

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

List of 9 plays by Eleanor Rawnsley (nee Simpson), with an image of her + an image of the covers of 6 playtexts

All 3 of my short podcasts featuring readings form the #GrasmereDialectPlays now available here:

www.youtube.com/channel/UC6w...

Congrats - a great thing to do! New challenge for '25?

If you enjoyed hearing Jean Scott-Smith (President of the Lakeland Dialect Society) playing the female leads in my "Three Proposals ..." podcast last week, here she is again as Matilda Knott, in a longer reading from Eleanor Rawnsley's play, "The Mistress of Mosshead". Happy Christmas!

I don't know. I subscribe to the British Newspaper archive so maybe could check there too, just in case. And I might post in the Lakeland Dialect Society group on Facebook asking if anyone else remembers it

Could be - and continuing under-development of W Cumbria relative to the 'honeypot' of the Lakes too

I don't know the 'Jobby & Mary' column. Is (any version of it) still going? Do you have any old copies?
The Keswick Reminder has a 'nobbut laikin' column, but it doesn't always feature dialect.

Hi Mick
There are some recent claims in Facebook posts on the Lakeland Dialect Society page (LDS isn't on here) that West Cumbrian dialect is distinct from other areas of Cumberland (& Westmorland). Do you have any thoughts on why/how West Cumbrian is now more distinctive?

YouTube video by Sue Wilkinson 'The Mistress of Mosshead': An extract from one of the Grasmere Dialect Plays

The perfect distraction from Christmas?! Third (and for now, final) short podcast of readings from the fantastic #GrasmereDialectPlays.

What happens when Joseph Mumberson pays a surprise call on Matilda Knott, the eponymous "Mistress of Mosshead"? Find out here!

www.youtube.com/watch?v=lCJ-...

Congrats and Happy Birthday!

Have yourself 13 mins of pre-Christmas entertainment by listening to Kitty, Rachel and Matilda's responses to a proposal of marriage.

(And enjoy a taster of Westmorland dialect as spoken by native Westmerians)

#GrasmereDialectPlays