Editing Listen with Mother

{{Short description|BBC children's radio programme (1950–1982)}}
{{Redirect|Are you sitting comfortably?|other uses|Are You Sitting Comfortably? (disambiguation)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2020}}
{{More citations needed|date=June 2024}}
{{italic title}}
'''''Listen with Mother''''' was a [[BBC]] radio programme for children which ran between 16 January 1950 and 10 September 1982.<ref name="historyofthebbc"/> It was originally produced by [[Freda Lingstrom]] although for the majority of its run it was produced by George Dixon, and was presented over the years by [[Daphne Oxenford]], [[Julia Lang (actress)|Julia Lang]], [[Eileen Browne (broadcaster)|Eileen Browne]], [[Dorothy Smith (BBC)|Dorothy Smith]] and others.<ref name="British 1950s TV and Radio">{{Cite web|url=http://www.whirligig-tv.co.uk/radio/lwm.htm|title=British 1950s TV and Radio|website=Whirligig-tv.co.uk}}</ref>

==History==
It was first broadcast on 16 January 1950 on the [[BBC Light Programme]] in a fifteen-minute slot every weekday afternoon at 1.45, just before ''[[Woman's Hour]]''. Consisting of stories, songs and [[nursery rhyme]]s (often sung by [[Eileen Browne (broadcaster)|Eileen Browne]] and George Dixon) for "mothers and children at home", it had at its peak an audience of more than a million listeners. [[Roger Fiske]] assisted with the music. From 7 September 1964 the programme moved to the [[BBC Home Service]] (later [[BBC Radio 4]]).

The final week of programmes (widely reported in the press) featured Wriggly Worm stories, presented by [[Nerys Hughes]] and [[Tony Aitken]] and directed by David Bell. These stories were broadcast on the ''Listen with Mother'' throughout the 1970s and early 1980s.

''Listening Corner'', which replaced ''Listen with Mother'' on 13 September 1982, began with repeats of the Wriggly Worm stories. Collections of ''Listen with Mother'' stories have been published by Hutchinsons/Random House. Two collections of Wriggly Worm stories ('Wonderful Wriggly Worm' and 'Wonderful Wriggly Worm Rides Again'), by Eugenie Summerfield, have been published by Book Guild. ''Listening Corner'' continued until 24 August 1990, ending three days before the launch of [[BBC Radio 5 (former)|BBC Radio 5]], which became the new home of children's radio programmes.

==Theme music==
At the start of each programme a short introduction on piano was played. The tune went to the rhythm of the words ''quarter to two'', which of course was the time of the broadcast, and many children were helped in learning to tell the time by this ingenious device.<ref name="British 1950s TV and Radio"/>

A piece for piano duet, the ''Berceuse'' from [[Gabriel Fauré]]'s ''[[Dolly (Fauré)|Dolly Suite]]'', Op. 56,<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20110717113225/http://www.turnipnet.com/radio/fauredolly.wav] </ref> was played at the conclusion of each broadcast and became synonymous with the programme. It was recorded for the programme by [[Eileen Browne (broadcaster)|Eileen Browne]] and [[Roger Fiske]],<ref>[[Biddy Baxter]]. '[https://www.theguardian.com/news/1999/may/05/guardianobituaries Eileen Browne obituary]' in ''The Guardian'', 5 May 1999</ref> However [[Julia Lang (actress)|Julia Lang]], in an Anglia Television interview in the 1990s, said that during her tenure when she finished reading the story she had to get up (noiselessly), rush across to the piano in the studio and play the ''Berceuse'' live.

== "Are you sitting comfortably?" ==
{{Unreferenced section|date=June 2024}}
Each story on ''Listen with Mother'' opened with the phrase "Are you sitting comfortably? Then I'll begin" (sometimes "...Then we'll begin").<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://andywalmsley.blogspot.co.uk/2011/08/are-you-sitting-comfortably.html|title=Are You Sitting Comfortably?|work=Random Radio Jottings|date=8 August 2011 |access-date=31 August 2015}}</ref> The question, originally an [[ad lib]] by Julia Lang on 16 January 1950, became so well known that it appears in ''[[The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations]]''<ref name="historyofthebbc">[https://web.archive.org/web/20140109150658/http://www.bbc.co.uk/historyofthebbc/great_moments/archive/january.shtml "January Anniversaries: Listen with Mother 16 January 1950"]. The BBC Story. Archived from [https://www.bbc.co.uk/historyofthebbc/great_moments/archive/january.shtml the original] on 2014-01-09.</ref> It has been incorporated and sampled by many artists and musicians; for instance, 
* in the episode "[[The Idiot's Lantern]]", in the revived series of ''[[Doctor Who]]'', it was used by the alien presence known as "The Wire" appearing on a television screen and addressing its first victim, the hapless Mr Magpie. 
* in the episode "[[School Reunion (Doctor Who)|School Reunion]]", in the revived series of ''[[Doctor Who]]'', it was used by the Doctor when he addressed a classroom of students for whom he was substitute teacher.
* in a later episode of ''Doctor Who'', "[[The Timeless Children]]", the line was reformulated by [[The Master (Doctor Who)|The Master]] as "Are you suffering comfortably? Then I'll begin" on addressing [[The Doctor (Doctor Who)|The Doctor]] in the [[Matrix (Doctor Who)|Matrix]].
* as the opening of the narration by [[Stanley Unwin (comedian)|Stanley Unwin]] of the [[Small Faces]]' "Happiness Stan" song cycle on Side 2 of their ''[[Ogden's Nut Gone Flake]]'' album, rendered in [[Stanley Unwin (comedian)#Unwinese|Unwin's characteristic style]]: "Are you all sitting comftybold two-square on your botty? Then I'll begin."
* as the opening line in the film ''[[The Others (2001 film)|The Others]]''.
* by English actor [[John Wood (English actor)|John Wood]] in the 1983 film ''[[WarGames]]''. 
* in the song "It Doesn't Really Matter" by the Canadian band [[Platinum Blonde (band)|Platinum Blonde]] on their 1983 ''[[Standing in the Dark (album)|Standing in the Dark]]'' album.
* as the title, and included in the lyrics of, the [[The Moody Blues|Moody Blues]] song "Are You Sitting Comfortably?" from the 1969 album ''[[On the Threshold of a Dream]]''. 
* at the beginning of the [[Slade (band)|Slade]] song "Did Your Mama Ever Tell Ya?", which appeared on the band's 1976 album ''[[Nobody's Fools]].''
* in the band [[alt-J]]'s song "Hand-Made", from the 2012 album "[[An Awesome Wave]]". 
* in the opening monologue in the episode "[[The Narrow Escape Problem]]" of the TV series ''[[Fargo (TV series)|Fargo]]''.
* in the soundtrack of [[PlayStation]] game ''[[Jet Moto 3]]'' at "Shipwreck Cove" arena.
* in the [[Monty Python]] sketch "Children's Stories", from ''[[Monty Python's Flying Circus]]'' season 1, episode 3: "How to Recognise Different Types of Trees from Quite a Long Way Away". Performer [[Eric Idle]] opens the sketch with the words: "Hello children, hello. Here is this morning's story. Are you ready? Then, we'll begin".
* in the graphic novel ''V for Vendetta'', at the beginning of V monologue "Good evening, London".

== See also ==
*''[[Watch with Mother]]''
*''[[Sandmännchen]]'' The West German equivalent to ''Listen with Mother'', which starts with the opening "Nun, liebe Kinder, gebt fein Acht. Ich habe euch etwas mitgebracht" (Now, dear children, pay attention. I have brought you something) in the same way that ''Listen with Mother'' started "Are You Sitting Comfortably? Then I'll Begin".

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{wikiquote|Julia Lang}}
* [http://www.whirligig-tv.co.uk/radio/lwm.htm Clips from the series]

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:1950 radio programme debuts]]
[[Category:1982 radio programme endings]]
[[Category:British children's radio programmes]]
[[Category:BBC Light Programme programmes]]
[[Category:BBC Home Service programmes]]
[[Category:BBC Radio 4 programmes]]
[[Category:1950s British radio programmes]]
[[Category:1960s British radio programmes]]
[[Category:1970s British radio programmes]]
[[Category:1980s British radio programmes]]