Episode 73 – Out of the sea by A.C. Benson

A Podcast to the Curious - The M.R. James Podcast

This episode Mike and Will indulge in murder, moralising and supernatural goat-based mayhem in A.C. Benson’s ‘Out of the Sea’.

Big thanks to our reader for this episode Debbie Wedge, and don’t forget to check out her M.R. James-themed t-shirt designs, ‘No diggin’ ere‘ and ‘Barchestering‘!

Notes:

• A.C. Benson (Wikipedia)
  A.C. Benson was one of MRJ’s closest friends throughout his life. They attended prep school, Eton and King’s College together, worked together in later life and remained regular correspondents right up until Benson’s death in 1925.
• ‘Out of the sea’ (full story – Project Gutenberg)
  You can read this story online, or download as a free ebook at Project Gutenberg. The story features in Benson’s 1904 collection ‘The Isles of Sunset’.
• Wreckers (wikipedia)
  In this episode we speculated that Mister Grimston might have been involved in ‘Wrecking’, the act of luring passing ships into dangerous waters to sink them so their cargo could be stolen.
• A.C. Benson and Cambridge (Ged Martin)
  An extended essay about A.C. Benson that touches on his whole life at Cambridge, as well as his relationship with his father and his mental health.
• Why is the Devil also a goat? (Refinery29.com)
  This article explores why goats became associated with evil in both religious symbolism and popular culture.