About the Authors
Dr Robert Dunning
Author, A Diocesan Celebration
"Its not so very bad writing the words; a bit more stressful getting them to the publisher on time. Then comes the trouble: are there enough photos, are they good enough? Those who promised to take photos for me have been brilliant, though occasionally their computers have let them down and they didn't arrive.
Then one photographer, an expert on stone, having been asked to take three carvings of musicians (excitingly found by the author), revealed that only one was genuine, the others copies. Would they do? Then the catalogue of bishops' portraits turned out not to be in the correct format and could not be copied. Several favourite pictures were rejected as not quite in focus (I thought they were ok!).
Then came the proofs, and could they be read and indexed in a week? And indexing always revealed that the author has made mistakes he would much rather no-one knew about ... but tomorrow, the very last day (for the book is being printed in Italy and the launch date has long ago been set) has now come ..."
Hilary Binding
Author, Big Drips from Bath and Wells
"Crumbs!" as one or other of the Famous Five might have exclaimed at some high point of their adventures. Where was Enid Blyton when the Diocese of Bath and Wells wanted stories for children linked with the diocese as it celebrated its 1100th anniversary? "I can't do this," I said to several people. "Who else is going to?" they asked. And so it was that I found myself liaising with Robert Dunning for potential stories and with Jennie Reed - who went off for a Gap in April - but who produced wonderful drawings long before the stories were ever finished.
Choosing the stories was hard. How interested would children be in the logics and legalities of church law and the misdemeanours of archdeacons? Not much, I thought. So I settled for several stories based on legend before moving on to well documented tales of some really exciting and interesting people. If they weren't very big drips at least the Barlynch schoolboy, the two hungry nuns and the vicar of Meare who fought off the 'girt dog' with the huge church key were real people living real lives!
But how to tell the stories? You'll find that I have invented the odd observer: Wulfric's servant Osbern, a real person but of whom we know little; a friend's grandson to tell the story of Bishop Ken; a singer in a Gallery quire and a young teenage girl, keen to make a way for herself in the world and who was lucky enough to encounter Hannah More. You'll also find a couple of dragons, a sea-sick cow and Bishop Beckynton's jester, ever ready with a pithy comment.
And if you're not sure why the book's called 'Big Drips from Bath and Wells' just keep thinking!
Robert Dunning, Historian and Author 'A Diocesan Celebration'
Hilary Binding, Author 'Big Drips from Bath and Wells'
