Chivalry: A BBC Radio Full-Cast Reading

by Neil Gaiman, Glenda Jackson (Narrator), Kit Harrington (Narrator)

Neil Gaiman’s delightfully quirky story, in which Mrs Whitaker discovers the Holy Grail in a charity shop.

Mrs Whitaker just wants to have a chat with her dear friend Mrs Greenberg over home-made macaroons. But her charity shop find soon makes her the focal point of a most important quest when a handsome young man - who says he’s called Galaad - comes asking for the Grail.

This sound designed, multi-voiced reading is an extended cut, including material not heard in the radio broadcast, and is introduced by an exclusive interview with Neil Gaiman.

Starring Glenda Jackson as the Narrator and Mrs Whitaker, and Kit Harington as Sir Galaad.

Written by Neil Gaiman
Produced and Directed by Allegra McIlroy

Cast:
Narrator/ Mrs Whitaker ….. Glenda Jackson
Sir Galaad ….. Kit Harington
Mrs Greenberg and the new lady on the till….. Jessica Turner
Marie ….. Lucy Reynolds

Sound design ….. David Chilton
Neil Gaiman’s Chivalry is a BBC Northern Ireland Production

Genres: Audiobook, Fantasy, Short Stories, Fiction, Mythology, Urban Fantasy, British Literature

1 pages, Audiobook

Published January 2, 2020

Reviews

[Trish · Rating 4 out of 5]

As has almost become tradition by now, there is yet another Neil Gaiman story adapted in audio format by the BBC to be listened to for free from December to January no matter where in the world you live.
This year's story is Chivalry which is read by Glenda Jackson and Kit Harrington.

Old Mrs Whitacker makes a chance discovery in her local charity shop and suddenly her cozy days filled with gardening and interesting chats with her neighbour/friend over a cup of tea are disturbed by a young man calling himself Galaad, who is on a quest and needs to find / obtain the Holy Grail. He proves quite persistent and keeps trying to strike a bargain with the old lady.

This story was actually in one of Gaiman's short story collections I've already read, but this was a lovely new version. It had me giggle even more than I remember giggling back when I read it for the first time in print.

You can listen to it for free for 27 more days here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000...

[Rachel England-Brassy · Rating 5 out of 5]

The perfect little story for young and old. I listened to this as a bedtime story and it was smashing!
Highly recommended.

[Maria · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've read this short story before but the other day, there it was, almost waiting to be listened so I borrowed from my library and remembered how entertaining this one was.

This audio version has an interview with Gaiman that is heartwarming and enticing and reminds me why I love short stories, Some times it allows authors and readers to go back to a snippet of something we already might know - Which in this case is the search of the Holy Grail which oddly enough is just sitting in the back shelf of a charity shop that is found by Mrs. Whitaker one day. I loved that she decided to buy it for her mantle - knowing full well that it was the holy grail, she's wanting it on her mantle because it'll look good there had me giggling because why not?
This in fact was a great idea because she becomes the focal point for Galaad to come calling and asking about it and trying to convince her to give it to him.

I loved the BBC adaptation of this one. Glenda Jackson and Kit Harrington are great choices as each one lent a different take on what I had read. Within their voices, there was warmth, and enchantment, and great comedic timing as Jackson's portrayal of Mrs. Whitaker had me giggling along as she did say no a few times to Kit's Galaad who had moments where he came across as honor-bound to retrieve the chalice but respectful to Mrs. Whitaker

[Esther Hong · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short stories - about one thing.

So sweet - character of Mrs W (based off Gaiman’s grandmothers).

Been thinking of my late aunt lately…and this story was a comfort to me.

Sometimes one cries quietly (or loudly) into a Kleenex (or toilet paper, which then leaves white flecks around one’s eyes - do avoid).

[Cesse · Rating 5 out of 5]

I completely and utterly adore this dramatisation of Gaiman's short story. So funny and also thoughtful story. The cast did an amazing job reading this for me, the listener. This is something I'll definitely will return and listen to from time to time.

[Farah Mendlesohn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this. A very Joan Aikenish story read by one of our greatest actresses.

[Mandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sooo good 😁👍

[Solveig · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun and funny short story of Mrs Whitraker's interactions with Sir Galahad over the Holy Grail.

[Jenna · Rating 3 out of 5]

A humorous short story following Mrs Whitaker and her rather eventful charity shop findings.

[A.M. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mrs Whitaker finds the Holy Grail in the local OxFam shop, so she takes it home and pops it on the mantelpiece.
“Have you got any identification?” she asks the knight who rings her doorbell the next day.
He whips out a scroll, signed by King Arthur while his charger nibbles her gladiolus.

Listen to it here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m00...
Starring Glenda Jackson as the Narrator and Mrs Whitaker, and Kit Harington as Sir Galaad.

It’s adorable…
5 stars

[Uliana · Rating 4 out of 5]

I highly recommend you to spend half an hour listening to this delightful story about an old lady, the Holy Grail and a knight.
Follow the link and enjoy: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m00...

[siege is tired · Rating 5 out of 5]

a full 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 stars!


‘I’m on a quest for the holy grail’
‘That’s nice’


This review is specially of the BBC Digital Audio edition of this story (which I would recommend checking out, especially interesting due to the introduction by the author himself which gives interesting backstory into what lead to/what it was like writing this story and his passion for the story).

Gaiman wrote this just after writing ‘Good Omens’ with Terry Pratchett (one of my new favourite books & my favourite book of this year so far) for an anthology about ‘the holy grail.’

I’ve already enjoyed how Gaiman plays around with these often done concepts (the holy grail (this story; ‘Chivalry’), the anti-christ/heaven & hell/the apocalypse (‘Good Omens’), and really puts his own spin on things so something familiar has new life and quite a bit more unfamiliar and this story is no different.


It begins with light anticipation, introducing us to its main character, a sweet old lady named Mrs Whittaker (who really enjoys saying ‘that’s nice) who buys The Holy Grail (as in the silver goblet) because it would look nice on her mantle, already quite aware of what it’s supposed to be. The story continues letting us get to know her, & her life and takes a turn when a knight (wearing armour, who took a horse as transport) shows up at her door, and asks for The Holy Grail to complete his quest, (after proving his identity using a scroll signed by King Arthur). She says no because it looks ‘perfect’ on her mantle.

Overall, the interactions between the two are (as you would expect), wonderfully amusing. Ranging from; using said Knight for free manual labour, to trading life stories in a slightly gossipy manor. But, mostly he’s trying to convince her to give him The Holy Grail by offering her gifts of fanciful legendary magical objects (including, at one point a Phoenix egg).


The not wasted, perfect amount time spent setting things up pays off and you get truly into this deeply comforting little short story, with a laugh-out-loud ending.

I really, really do understand quite well why Gaiman enjoys this story so much now. This is a perfect comfort read.

I highly recommend reading it (or, even better, listening to it, the full cast audio book has an amazing atmosphere with its perfectly done casting & well executed sound effects) how I did; as a bedtime story, just before rolling over and going to sleep.

🏆

[trijnewijn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ik leende recent een geïllustreerde versie van dit boek mee en we lazen het met veel plezier uit, maar toch kon ik het audioboek niet weerstaan. The sleeper and the spindle luisterden we samen voor ik het in de bib te pakken kreeg, waardoor ik al wist dat dit soort boeken perfect gelezen én geluisterd kunnen worden, omdat elke versie voor een eigen beleving zorgt. En een BBC audioboek is meestal geen boek meer, maar een luisterspel met meerdere acteurs.

Het audioboek loste mijn hoge verwachtingen in, overtrof ze zelfs. Het voorwoord van Neil Gaiman is een meerwaarde, het verhaal is en blijft zalig en de vertolking was heerlijk. Manlief luisterde net zo gefascineerd als ikzelf en de kinderen en dat is zowat de hoogste eer die een audioboek bij ons thuis kan krijgen.

[rita neves · Rating 4 out of 5]

Writing this review in retrospect
It was almost Christmas, I was sleep deprived, overworked after 3 night shifts in a row and due to bake my parting-from-a-lovely-team cake so I needed comfort. And if there is a voice and created worlds and words that will always bring me comfort it will be Neil Gaiman. The introduction to this almost as long as the story itself is simple and beautiful and read by Neil himself.
This short story is probably one of my favourite ones now because I love how it is set and how simple and lovely it is. It is so "nice" and I feel Mrs Whitaker could be any of us.
Just magical and wholesome.

[Kelly Furniss · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 Stars
I really enjoyed listening to this. What a surreal/ magical tale.
The characterisation was brilliant which really made the story. I loved how Gaiman mixed up the mundane routine of daily life with the fantasy aspect of buying the holy grail in Oxfam!. The descriptive language made it all so imaginable.
A short & brilliant tale!.

[Jenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great production of Neil Gaiman’s Chivalry. It’s an enjoyable story, filled with nice details and characters. The voice acting was great, too. I really liked the forward by Gaiman about the inspiration for the story.

[Shelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick but wonderful short story presented by a full cast. Mrs. Whitaker, a cheeky older woman, has found THE Holy Grain in a charity shop for thirty pounds. Sir Galaad however, desperately seeks to obtain it from her to complete his noble quest.

[Lavon Youins · Rating 5 out of 5]

The voice acting was top-notch and captured the nuance of the nonchalance of the protagonist while imbuing her with the depth she carried in enjoying the company of somebody who offered her so much.
The instrumentals married to the story perfectly.

[Bethal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute, charming tale. I absolutely loved it!

[Boosmummy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this short story. It was narrated excellently and the main character of Mrs Whitaker sounds like the gran most of us have.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brief, but richly imagined - the Holy Grail picked up for a song in Oxfam, and persuasively reclaimed by its rightful guardian...

[Rita · Rating 5 out of 5]

I admit I only sought out this story because I needed an extra book to reach my Goodreads goal of the year. And yet I couldn't have picked a better one. It is superlatively, positivily... nice! ;-)

[Martin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short stories are great!

[Vieve · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a sweet story. The plot was easy to understand and imaginative. I liked the concept about the chalice and how the knight was trying to exchange. Very simple but very sweet.

[gltgw · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun! Felt like a children’s book (complimentary).

[Dav Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Always loved this little story - this version is particularly special, with its full cast production.

[molly williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an enjoyable funny listen - incredibly short but lovely vibes

[Courtney Johnston]

A bit cheaty to be fair, this is barely a novella, but it’s one of my favourite Gaimans and oh, Glenda Jackson’s vowels are to die for

[John Gannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first heard this at a Neil Gaiman reading back in the nineties, I think. This reading from the BBC is very cute.

[Molly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very nice.