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25/12/2014

Susanna Hislop on the origins of names of the night sky's constellations: Telescopium and Libra. From December 2014.

A seasonal reading for clear and frosty nights, when the skies sparkle with thousands of dots forming half remembered, almost traceable shapes. These are the stories behind the names and shapes of the constellations that pattern the night sky.

Stories In The Stars by Susanna Hislop is read by a range of voices and accents from around the country and the globe. It might be one of the stories that the great Egyptian astronomer Ptolemy assigned to them in his masterwork that became known as the Almagest, or it might be a personified first person narration from the constellation Chameleon having a grumble about the number of different names and imagined shapes assigned to him over the millennia.

From Greco-Roman mythology to the lives of the eighteenth century astronomers, this is a delightful miscellany which gives us a reason to step outside, look up and wonder at the magic lantern show above us.

Readers: Jessica Gunning, Paul Copley, Maggie Steed, Colman Domingo

Episode Four:
A telescope – Telescopium – is given as a gift. Libra balances things out.

Abridged, directed and produced by Jill Waters
A Waters Company Production for Â鶹Éç Radio 4

15 minutes

Last on

Fri 28 Dec 2018 02:45

Credits

Role Contributor
Reader Jessica Gunning
Reader Paul Copley
Reader Maggie Steed
Reader Colman Domingo
Author Susanna Hislop
Abridger Jill Waters
Director Jill Waters
Producer Jill Waters

Broadcasts

  • Christmas Day 2014 09:45
  • Boxing Day 2014 00:30
  • Thu 27 Dec 2018 14:45
  • Fri 28 Dec 2018 02:45

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