Hi everyone. This is Robert. Welcome to The Well Told Tale. Every week I narrate a classic story; the greatest science fiction, fantasy and speculative fiction stories ever written, not just in a small chunk at a time, but enough for you to really relax into. No adverts in the middle, just the story itself. All stories are pubic domain and free from copyright.
Today, our story is another classic fairy tale, 'Beauty and the Beast'. Although it has taken inspiration from much older stories, like the myth of Psyche and Cupid, it first appeared in print after…
Last week, we learned of the horrors that befell the Gardner farm after a meteorite landed near its well, emitting a strange colour that defied description. The produce has grown large, taking on th…
This week, we journey once again into the nightmarish world of H. P. Lovecraft with his sci-fi work from 1927, "The Colour Out Of Space". This was Lovecraft's own personal favourite of his short sto…
This week, we have the finale of 'The Island of Dr. Moreau' by H. G. Wells. Moreau is dead, killed by his own creations, who appear to be devolving back into their beast-like nature. Prendick and M…
This week, we have the penultimate part of Edward Prendick's nightmare on the island of Dr Moreau. Last week he was treated to a horrifying explanation of his scientific process. He also explained …
Our protagonist, Edward Prendick, has escaped the clutches of Dr. Moreau and his assistant Montgomery and is on the run. Not only does he have the mad scientist and his assistant to hide from, but h…
Last week, we left our protagonist, Prendick, on the Island of Dr. Moreau. Having met the eponymous doctor, Prendick finds he has no choice but to try and escape, but he's on an isolated island, wit…
Last week, we left our protagonist, Edward Prendick, adrift on the ocean once more. Having been rescued from a shipwreck by unusual medical man Montgomery, he has been abandoned in a dinghy after a …
This week, we return to one of our favourite writers here at The Well Told Tale, the grandfather of science fiction, H. G. Wells, and his classic, 'The Island of Dr. Moreau'. As with many of his boo…
This week, we have a classic fairy tale from master of the genre Hans Christian Andersen, 'The Little Mermaid'. This is, of course, a very different story to the famous Disney film of the same name.…
This week's Tale introduces us to another of Robert E. Howard's foundational epic fantasy characters, Solomon Kane. This is still a world of sword and sorcery but, arguably, a world closer to our ow…
Last week, we went to Canterville Chase where the Otis family have settled after moving to the English countryside from America. They were warned about the Canterville Ghost which has haunted the pr…
This charming Tale is from one of the finest and funniest writers of all time, Oscar Wilde. "The Canterville Ghost" was Wilde's first published story, and has been adapted many times since for stage …
This week, we return to one of our favourites, master of horror Edgar Allan Poe, and one of his most famous works, "The Tell Tale Heart." First published in 1843, it quickly became a classic. Be war…
This week, we bring you three Tales in one - three of Rudyard Kipling's 'Just So' stories. Kipling used to tell these fanciful origin stories to his daughter every night, and she would insist that he…
This week we present a Tale unusual in that it forms part of a more famous story, that of Bram Stoker's gothic masterpiece, 'Dracula'. Published after his death in a collection of short stories, it …
Last week found Conan, King of Aquilonia, stripped of all his powers and imprisoned by the evil wizard Tsotha-lanti. A host of horrors await him in this dungeon. How will he escape and reclaim his …
This week, we return to the Hyborian Age for another Conan Tale, 'The Scarlet Citadel'. This takes place later in Conan's chronology, after he has become not just a skilled and mighty warrior, but t…
This week we reach the finale of "Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom." Who did kill Julius? Will he save the park? And will he ever reconcile with Lil?
More from Cory Doctorow:
His website - https://…
In this penultimate episode, our narrator Julius really is 'down and out'. He's become obsessed with stopping Deborah taking over the entire park. So obsessed, he has lost his girlfriend Lil to his …