A Traveller in Time
by Alison Uttley
Looking back when she was a young girl, Penelope remembers it all. She's never wanted to forget it. They say that time heals all wounds,
but to Penelope's mind, it's time that makes them. If she could go back, whatever the cost, to them and him... but that's not possible.
It was after the war, so the rationing wasn't as bad as it had been. But still, after a long, dreary winter with fogs, smogs, and too much snow,
all of the children were run-down and wheezy, especially Penelope. Then, one morning, a letter arrived from her mother's Aunt 'Tissie',
Cecily-Ann Taberner. It was to accept Penelope's mother's request to send her along with Ian and Alison, her two older siblings, to
'Thackers', their centuries-old farm in Derbyshire, for a month or two so that they can get well again.
After arriving at 'Thackers', Penelope is immediately drawn to the wonderful atmosphere of the place and longs to discover all the secrets of
its past. Soon, Penelope finds herself drifting back and forth in time, from the present to 1582, where she is welcomed by the Babington
family whose home it was then. But with each journey, as her relationship with Francis Babington builds, she finds it more difficult to control
her movements through time and to remember the surroundings from which she came.
While in the past, she finds that her new-found friends are scheming to rescue their beloved Mary, Queen of Scots, as the doomed monarch
is soon to be transferred to the nearby Wingfield Manor. But even with her twentieth-century knowledge, Penelope can only watch helplessly
as her warnings go unheeded by all except Francis. Only in her own time does she become fully aware of the tragedy which lies ahead,
drawing closer whenever she steps into the past.
A four-part dramatisation by Melissa Murray of Alison Uttley's classic 1939 novel, "A Traveller in Time", broadcast on BBC Radio 4.
Directed by Alison Hindell in Wales
1) Part 1 of 4 (Sunday 5th February 1995)
It's just after the war as Penelope and her two older siblings are sent from their London home to stay with their great-aunt and uncle at old
Thackers Farm in Derbyshire. As she explores the ancient farmhouse where her family has lived for centuries, Penelope finds she has a touch
of second-sight as she begins to catch glimpses of people from the past. Soon, she finds she is able to travel back to the age of Queen
Elizabeth, when the Babington family owned Thackers, and her own distant ancestor, Dame Cicely Taberner, was their cook. Dame Cicely
sees the family resemblance in Penelope and accepts her story that she is her niece, newly come from London.
The year is 1582 and the household is under strain. The Babingtons, whose manor it is, are Catholic supporters of the imprisoned Mary,
Queen of Scots, soon to be moved to a nearby manor. Anthony, the head of the family, is her fervent supporter, scheming to free her.
Befriending Anthony's younger brother, Francis, Penelope soon becomes caught up in the Babington's partisanship although she knows that
Mary's story does not end well....
With Eirlys Bellin [Penelope Taberner], Geraldine Fitzgerald [Aunt Tissie aka Cecily-Ann Taberner / Dame Cecily-Ann Taberner, the
Babington Cook], Susie Hawthorne [Alison, Penelope's Sister / Tabitha Fletcher, the Babington Housemaid], Jonathan Chapple [Ian,
Penelope's Brother], John Evitts [Uncle Barnabas Taberner], Lee Graves [Francis Babington], Ben Miles [Jude, the Babington Farmhand],
and Julie Higginson [Mistress Babington, Francis's Sister-in-Law / Penelope as an Adult].
Other parts played by members of the cast.
30 minutes
2) Part 2 of 4 (Sunday 12th February 1995)
After travelling back in time to the year 1582, Penelope found it hard to remember that she ever lived in London. Thackers had become part
of her as it had been part of the life of her family for generations. The first time that she opened the door and saw them, she wasn't afraid.
She wanted to speak to them but she couldn't hear them and they couldn't hear her. The second time she crossed the threshold, there was no
barrier. She now moved and spoke with them. She loved them and they were real.
But on her return to the present, Aunt Tissie, knowing of her ability, warns her that it's dangerous to meddle with what's done. She cannot
help them and she may harm herself. When Aunt Tissie tells her that Anthony Babington was hung for being a traitor, Penelope rushes off,
telling her that she has to warn him - she has to try - and so finds herself back in the year 1582. Penelope notices that each time she travels
back into the past, the present seems cloudier. This time, she knows she has something to tell, but can't remember what...
With Eirlys Bellin [Penelope Taberner], Geraldine Fitzgerald [Aunt Tissie aka Cecily-Ann Taberner / Dame Cecily-Ann Taberner, the
Babington Cook], Lee Graves [Francis Babington, Anthony's Younger Brother], Susie Hawthorne [Alison, Penelope's Sister / Tabitha
Fletcher, the Babington Housemaid], Ben Miles [Anthony Babington], Jonathan Chapple [Ian, Penelope's Brother], Lesley Rooney
[Arabella, the Babington's Cousin], and Julie Higginson [Mistress Babington, Anthony's Wife / Penelope as an Adult].
The Lutenist was Anthony Lamb
30 minutes
3) Part 3 of 4 (Sunday 19th February 1995)
Aunt Tissie had warned Penelope that there's danger in what she was doing. Going from here to there, from now to then, she'd be spread so
thin that nothing would seem right or real to her. The Babingtons are past any help that Penelope can give, but Penelope doesn't believe that
and so, once again, finds herself in 1582.
While there, she is questioned about the future by Francis, who cares deeply for her. Penelope tells him that when she's there, she finds it
hard to remember her other life - it's like a dream. He begs her to stay with them but she tells him that this is her land of dreams and she must
leave. But when she tries to return to the Present, she finds herself trapped, neither in her time or his. She is in some sort of limbo and cannot
get home.
Penelope had never understood how it was possible for her to move between one time and another; it seemed natural, but now she has lost
the gift. As she looks about, she could see the sun; the trees freckled with light; smell the warm, drowsy scent of windfall apples in the
orchard. The sky was a bright, unbounded blue and yet it was not real. There she will stay, she thought, neither in her time nor in their time; a
ghost that no one can hear or see.... How will she find her way out?
With Eirlys Bellin [Penelope Taberner], Geraldine Fitzgerald [Aunt Tissie aka Cecily-Ann Taberner / Dame Cecily-Ann Taberner, the
Babington Cook], Lee Graves [Francis Babington, Anthony's Younger Brother], Susie Hawthorne [Alison, Penelope's Sister / Tabitha
Fletcher, the Babington Housemaid], Ben Miles [Anthony Babington], John Evitts [Uncle Barnabas Taberner], Jonathan Chapple [Ian,
Penelope's Brother], Lesley Rooney [Arabella, the Babington's Cousin], Ben Miles [Jude, the Babington Farmhand], and Julie Higginson
[Penelope as an Adult].
Other parts played by members of the cast.
30 minutes
4) Part 4 of 4 (Sunday 26th February 1995)
After Penelope is found, fainted, after another visit to the past, her Aunt Tissie tells her she will sicken, and maybe worse, if she goes on with
this. She is like a plant that's bent on ripping itself out of the place it was planted in; a plant without roots that will fade and then will wither.
Aunt Tissie makes Penelope promise that she will never attempt to go back in the past to warn or help the Babingtons. Wherever they are,
they're at peace.
Though Penelope has given her word, she finds herself drawn back to the past by a musical spell from Arabella, who fears Penelope is
Walsingham's spy and must be disposed of. Arabella lures Penelope to the hidden tunnel in the Old Ivy Barn under the pretence of meeting
Francis Babington, whom Arabella knew was away with his brother. As she enters the tunnel, Arabella closes the heavy cover over the
entrance, knowing Penelope cannot escape or her cries heard.
At first, Penelope just sat on a pile of stones and let the cold stupefy her. The tunnel was dark with a horrible, dense, suffocating silence.
Arabella had called her a witch-girl when they first met and Penelope had seen in Jude's eyes, on her first arrival, a look as though he
guessed that she wasn't truly of his world. Well, if she had power, now is the time she must use it, or else she will die. She called him; she
whispered his name: Jude. She kissed the carved bobbin boy that Jude, a Babington farmhand, had made and given her, and commanded
him to come and save her. But will he hear her?... Will he come?...
With Eirlys Bellin [Penelope Taberner], Geraldine Fitzgerald [Aunt Tissie aka Cecily-Ann Taberner / Dame Cecily-Ann Taberner, the
Babington Cook], Lee Graves [Francis Babington, Anthony's Younger Brother], Ben Miles [Anthony Babington], Susie Hawthorne [Alison,
Penelope's Sister / Tabitha Fletcher, the Babington Housemaid], John Evitts [Uncle Barnabas Taberner], Jonathan Chapple [Ian, Penelope's
Brother], Lesley Rooney [Arabella, the Babington's Cousin], Ben Miles [Jude, the Babington Farmhand], and Julie Higginson [Penelope as
an Adult / Mistress Babington, Anthony's Wife].
Other parts played by members of the cast.
The Flautist was Laura Bradshaw
30 minutes
Alison Uttley (17th December 1884 – 7th May 1976)
Alison Uttley, née Alice Jane Taylor, was a prolific British writer of over 100 books. She is now best known for her children's series about
Little Grey Rabbit, and Sam Pig.
Born in Cromford and brought up in rural Derbyshire, she was educated at the Lea School in Holloway and the Lady Manners School in
Bakewell, where she developed a love for science which led to a scholarship to Manchester University to read physics. In 1906 she became
the second woman honours graduate of the University.
After leaving university she trained as a teacher in Cambridge and in 1908 took up the post of physics teacher at the Fulham Secondary
School for Girls. Three years later she married James Arthur Uttley. The Uttleys had one son, John Taylor. James Uttley died in 1930, his
health having been affected by his service in the First World War.
The Uttleys lived at Downs House, 13 Higher Downs, Bowdon, Cheshire from 1924 to 1938 which now has a blue plaque to signify the
association.
Alice began writing to support herself and her son financially after she was widowed. Her first books were a series of tales about animals,
including "Little Grey Rabbit", "The Little Red Fox", "Sam Pig and Hare". She later wrote for older children and adults, particularly focussing
on rural topics, notably in "The Country Child" (1931), a fictionalised account of her childhood experiences at her family farm home,
Castletop, near Cromford. The close, vivid empathetic powers of nature observation exhibited in that book are combined with her interest in
dreams and fantasy in one of her most popular works, "A Traveller in Time" (1939). Based on the Babington Plot of Anthony Babington at
Dethick, near her family home, this romance mixes dream and historical fact in a story about a twentieth-century girl who is transported to
the 16th century, becoming involved in a plot to free Mary, Queen of Scots from nearby Wingfield Manor. Uttley later settled in
Beaconsfield, in a house named Thackers after the house in "A Traveller in Time". Thackers was set in a house in Dethick, Derbyshire, now
owned by Simon Groom (former Blue Peter presenter), functioning as a B and B, advertised on the web.
She hated comparisons with Beatrix Potter, whom she felt was an illustrator who wrote words around pictures, whereas she herself was a
great storyteller; her gravestone reads "a spinner of tales". She also loathed her illustrator Margaret Tempest, calling her "absolutely awful".
"She is a humourless bore, seldom does a smile come, her eyes cold and hard," Uttley wrote.
Her books, from her semi-autobiographical account of her childhood on Castle Top Farm in Derbyshire, "A Country Child", to the time-slip
story for older children "A Traveller in Time", and her stories of Little Grey Rabbit, Brock the Badger, Sam Pig and Tim Rabbit, are full of
her love for the countryside, and capture it in exquisite detail. Children loved her characters, she felt, because she believed in them. "Mine
aren't made up. They are real … I don't sit down to write a story, they come," she wrote.
Uttley was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Letters degree by Manchester University in 1970 in recognition of her literary work.
In 2009 her private diaries, covering the period 1932 to 1971, were published for the first time - edited by Professor Denis Judd who had
previously written Uttley's biography.
Jim
