Adult Storytelling

"Traditional stories and ballads re-configured for a modern audience like barbed wire."

Sophie has a rich repertoire of stories from around the world suitable for adult audiences. From light and funny stories to darkly gothic tales, from medieval epics, ghost stories, tales of nature and romance, to themes chosen to suit a particular setting or occasion.

Sophie has worked with literature festivals, grand historic homes and performed for arts and community spaces and private functions across the country. 

You can choose one of the shows listed below, or just let Sophie find the right story for the audience on the day. Sophie even sings the odd folk song.

Seven Deadly Sins     "Bless me Father, for I have sinned!" Do you have anything to confess?

A young girl hiding in the confessional overhears her neighbours' confessions - lust, gluttony, greed, sloth, wrath, envy and pride - whispered revelations of sinning and secret desires. As she listens with growing unease, stories unfold that should never be told, until our heroine overhears one final devastating revelation, and the penny drops... Be prepared for thrills and spills as you try to guess where each story is heading. A rollicking ride through the Seven Deadly Sins!

Bloeduewedd     The Lady of the Flowers and other medieval tales.

The story of Blodeuwedd is one of the most romantic and dramatic segments of the Mabinogion, a Mediaeval Welsh epic and one of our oldest written-down stories. A tantalising snippet of pre-Christian mythology, it tells of a beautiful woman conjured up from the magical incantations of a father whose own shame forces him to remedy a wrong. Innocent curiosity and earthly love turns to betrayal and revenge. Combined with other tales from the mediaeval period, this is a show that echoes the oral bardic tradition of the courts of ancient Celtic kings.

Fireside Ghost Tales     Spooky hokum for a winter's night or Halloween itself.

A Cornish pirate abandoned to his hideous fate, the raucous haunting of a Scottish hotel, a shocking tale of supernatural animal transformation and the tragedy behind a corpse found in an old castle chest... These are just some of the Sophie's true stories of ghostly apparitions and local rumour. Be prepared for skull-duggery and lustful lords and ladies who linger long after their death. All you need is an armchair by the fireplace in a wild moorland pub (and maybe a pint!). And if you have a local ghostly tale of your own, Sophie will happily weave it in! 

The Hand of Glory     Gothic stories, balladry and song.

A rash young thief languishes in jail, ruminating on the crimes he has committed. "Open lock to the dead man's knock. Fly bolt, bar and band." Three stories, three crimes... "Neither move nor swerve joint muscle or nerve." … One punishment. "To the spell of the dead man's hand." And it all started with a deal that he made with what he thought was just a frail old woman. A cautionary tale perfect for spooky nights or a dark, candlelit cellar...


To make an enquiry or secure a booking, contact Sophie:

   Email: robandsophie@hotmail.com

   Tel: 01332 840007

"It was a complete sell-out with tremendous feedback from the audience afterwards. Sophie's darkly comic and absorbing choice of stories made for a captivating evening."

David Longford, Theatre Royal, Nottingham.

"Very expressive, viscerally thrilling, intellectually satisfying... Recommended."

Stephanie Billan, Chairman, Buxton Festival Fringe.