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WOSAS/CD42/track3
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Death of Oisin, The
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a Fionn MacCumhaill story; Irish Mythology
story
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Sound recording, story, The Death of Oisin, a
section of the epic cycle of Fionn MacCumhaill stories orginating
from Irish mythology, told by Ben Haggarty, as part of a
performance by The Company of Storytellers, at the Third
International Storytelling Festival, in The Purcell Room at the
The South Bank Centre, London, 22nd November 1989.
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Music by all three performers, followed by
story told by Ben Haggarty. Every seven years in Tir na nOg, the
land of eternal youth, there is a competition to find the king of
the land. For seven years the same man wins, but he is warned by
his head druid that he will soon loose to his son in law. The
King has no son in law, but has a beautiful daughter. He tells
the druid to solve the problem, and he gives the girl a head of a
pig. The druid tells her that if she marries one of Fionn
MacCumhaill sons she will be cured. The girl goes to the upper
world and tracks down one of Fionn MacCumhaill's sons, Oisin. She
follows him to a hunt and helps him carry half his kill. She
tells Oisin of her plight and, on hearing that she is from the
Tir na nOg, he agrees to help her. They are married and return to
Tir na nOg, where Oisin promptly wins the competition to become
the King. After three years Oisin wishes to return home. His wife
gives him a white horse to ride back to the upper world, but
warns him not to step foot on the land. He arrives home to find
the land deserted. When he asks a man what has happened to Fionn
MacCumhaill and the Fainna, he is told that these are the people
of legends. Oisin goes to find the horn that can call the Fianna
from under a rock, but as he helps to move the rock, Oisin falls
from his horse. The minute he touches the ground he ages 900
years. The priest, Patrick, is called. He nurses him, and Oisin
tells him all the stories of Fionn MacCumhaill and the Fianna
before he dies.
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audience:-
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adult
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recording quality
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condition:-
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fair
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completeness:-
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complete
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duration:-
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0 hours, 20 minutes, 2 seconds
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The Company of Storytellers at that time comprised Ben Haggarty,
Hugh Lupton and Sally Pomme Clayton.
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The Company of Storytellers (C.O.S.T) was formed in March/April
1985 with the expressed aim of performing storytelling for adult
audiences. C.O.S.T was actually formed during a tour in East
Anglia by Sally Pomme Clayton, Hugh Lupton and Ben Haggarty. The
official launch of COST was in 1986 at Common Stock Theatre,
London. At this point the members of C.O.S.T were Sally Pomme
Clayton, TUUP, Ben Haggarty, Daisy Keable, Hugh Lupton. However
TUUP and Daisy Keable did not remain in the group and it is as a
trio of storytellers, Ben Haggarty, Hugh Lupton and Sally Pomme
Clayton, that C.O.S.T is publicly known. C.O.S.T was disbanded in
1999, but periodically reforms to perform the Three Snake Leaves.
The two seminal pieces developed and performed by C.O.S.T were
The Three Snake Leaves and I Become Part of It.
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Having directed the First International Storytelling festival at
Battersea Arts Centre in 1985 and the Second International
Storytelling Festival at Watermans Arts Centre in 1987, Ben
Haggarty was approached by Ruth McKenzie and the poet Joe
Shapcott to Direct a third festival in the series. In 1989 The
Third International Storytelling Festival took place at The
Southbank Centre, London, and ran for 15 days from 11th to the
25th November. It also had an extensive national touring
component that took storytellers to 12 regional venues. The Arts
Council subsidised it with a £10,000 grant. The Festival
management was undertaken by an agency called the Arts Business.
The whole event was under the aegis of the Literature Department,
(Lead Officer, Maura Dooley). The festival programme included
performances for adult audiences, and school sessions. It was in
response to the programming needs for this festival that Ben
Haggarty founded and launched the Crick Crack Club, to provide a
place where UK based storytellers could develop their repertoire
and performance skills for adult audiences.
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storytelling:-
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storytelling group: The Company of Storytellers
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storytelling:-
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storyteller; musician: Ben Haggarty
male / British / born 30.11.1958
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storytelling:-
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storyteller; musician: Hugh Lupton
male / British / English / Welsh
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storytelling:-
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storyteller; musician: Sally Pomme Clayton
female / British
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origin:-
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Ireland
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biography for Ben Haggarty printed in festival programme
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biography for Sally Pomme Clayton printed in festival programme
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biography for Hugh Lupton printed in festival programme
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festival poster
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festival programme front cover
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festival programme page 1 showing staff list
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festival programme page 2 showing acknowledgments
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festival programme page 4 showing quite from Heinrich Zimmer
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festival programme page 5 showing introduction
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festival programme page 6 showing image
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festival programme pages 7 to 12 showing interview with Peter
Brook
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festival programme page 13 showing advertisment
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festival programme page 14 showing list of regional events
associated with the festival
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festival programmes pages 15 to 24 showing artist biographies
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festival programme page 25 showing advertisments
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festival programme page 26 showing a reading list
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festival programme page 27 showing an advertisment for 'Word of
Mouth' a Channel 4 Television programme about storytelling in the
UK
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festival programme page 28 showing advertisment and a quote from
C.S Lewis
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festival programme back cover showing an Irish saying or poem.
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Click to enlarge images
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programming & administration:-
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programmer; Festival Artistic Director: Ben Haggarty
administrator: The Arts Business
administrator: Alan Giddings
administrator: Richard Crosslands
production manager: Eddy Smith
production assistant: Hugh Lupton
production assistant: Sally Pomme Clayton
production assistant: Tom O'Reilly
production assistant: Daniel Morden
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storytelling:-
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London, England: The South Bank Centre: The Purcell Room
22 Nov 1989
festival: The Third International Storytelling Festival
festival: The 1989 International Storytelling Festival
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gift from:-
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storytelling group: The Company of Storytellers
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© The London Centre for International Storytelling:
2007