For the fifth stop of the series, Mark travels to Lerwick, the capital of Shetland, perched at the far edge of Britain, where everyone’s on first-name terms with the fog.It’s a place where Viking heritage meets oil rigs and knitting patterns, where the winter fire festival Up Helly Aa lights up the darkness, and where the locals are masters of making their own fun. This is the first of Mark’s two shows from Shetland, recorded in front of an audience in Lerwick. Later in the series he’ll also be visiting Unst, the UK’s most northerly inhabited island.This is the 14th series of Mark's award winning show where he travels around the country visiting towns that have nothing in common but their uniqueness. After thoroughly researching each town, Mark writes and performs a bespoke evening of comedy for a local audience. As well as Shetland, in this series, Mark be will also be popping to Oakham in Rutland, Wrexham, Lewisham and Cambridge. There will also be extended versions of each episode available on BBC Sounds.Written and performed by Mark SteelAdditional material by Pete Sinclair
Production co-ordinators Caroline Barlow and Katie Baum
Sound Manager Jerry Peal
Producer Carl CooperA BBC Studios production for Radio 4
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41:41
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41:41
4. Cambridge
Mark Steel visits Cambridge and creates a show for the local audience.There will also be extended versions of each episode available on BBC sounds.Written and performed by Mark Steel
Additional material by Pete Sinclair
Production co-ordinator Caroline Barlow and Katie Baum
Sound Manager Jerry Peal
Producer Carl CooperA BBC Studios production for Radio 4
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40:03
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40:03
3. Lewisham
Mark Steel visits Lewisham in south London and creates a show for the local audience.There will also be extended versions of each episode available on BBC sounds.Written and performed by Mark SteelAdditional material by Pete Sinclair
Production co-ordinator Caroline Barlow and Katie Baum
Sound Manager Chris Maclean
Producer Carl CooperA BBC Studios production for Radio 4
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39:26
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39:26
2. Wrexham
Second stop of the new series is Wrexham in North Wales. Wrexham has gone from industrial workhorse to global celebrity, thanks to two Hollywood actors who bought the local football club.
It’s a place where five of the Seven Wonders of Wales are apparently within walking distance of a Screwfix, where children learn “risk management” on playgrounds made from drainpipes salvaged at the council tip, and where an underground tunnel network may or may not have been built for priests sneaking to the pub... or for inmates tunnelling into prison for a game of pool.This is the 14th series of Mark's award-winning show where he travels around the country visiting towns that have nothing in common but their uniqueness. After thoroughly researching each town, Mark writes and performs a bespoke evening of comedy for a local audience. As well as Wrexham, in this series, Mark be will also be popping to Oakham, Cambridge, Lewisham and, Lerwick and Unst in Shetland.There will also be extended versions of each episode available on BBC sounds.Written and performed by Mark SteelAdditional material by Pete Sinclair
Production co-ordinator Caroline Barlow and Katie Baum
Sound Manager Jerry Peal
Producer Carl CooperA BBC Studios production for Radio 4
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38:29
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38:29
1. Oakham
First stop of the new series is Oakham, nestled in the UK’s smallest county – Rutland.Rutland has a village that's proudly twinned with Paris (even if the Parisians don’t know), has Europe’s largest man-made lake (which required flooding a local village) and hangs its horseshoes the other way round (so the devil falls out, obviously).Joining Mark is Clare Balding, who’s also in town to take him on a ramble around Rutland, which you can hear in Ramblings, this Thursday on Radio 4. This is the 14th series of Mark's award winning show where he travels around the country visiting towns that have nothing in common but their uniqueness. After thoroughly researching each town, Mark writes and performs a bespoke evening of comedy for a local audience. As well as Oakham, in this series, Mark be will also be popping to Wrexham, Cambridge, Lewisham and, Lerwick and Unst in Shetland.There will also be extended versions of each episode available on BBC sounds.Written and performed by Mark SteelAdditional material by Pete Sinclair
Production co-ordinator Caroline Barlow and Katie Baum
Sound Manager Jerry Peal
Producer Carl CooperA BBC Studios production for Radio 4
Ireland