Fireside Tales was a play produced at the Liverpool Everyman Theatre from December 8, 1983 - January 7, 1984. It featured shorts from several Liverpudlian writers that were intended to be a mixture of horror and comedy.
A continuous narrative linked the stories together. When a traveler enters a Liverpool pub on a dreary night, he encounters several mysterious strangers who share stories with him and then vanish into the building's basement.
Brian Jacques was one of the main contributors.
Players[]
- Richard Tate as Sam O'Shanker
- Carl Chase
- Nicky Furre
- Ashley Knight
- Billy Geraghty
- Brendan Hughes
- Adrian Lukis
- Jackie Downey
Crew[]
- Director: Andrew Dickson
- Set Design: Andy Greenfield
- Lighting: John Parkinson
- Writers: John Dooley, Roger Hill, Jim Hitchmough
Running Order[]
Act 1:
- Firebird by Taylor Lovering
- Comedians by Terry Morgan
- Long Pig by Brian Jacques
- Billy's Tale by Kenny Murray
- U.F.O. by Roger Hill
- Pac Man Rap inspired by Roger Hill
Act 2:
- Merry String Vest by Jim Hitchmough
- The Hands of Dr. Satan by Greta McDonnell, inspired by Earl Robert Trent
- Howl by Ivor Benjamin
- Sam O'Shanker's Drive by Willy Russell
Long Pig[]
Plot[]
Local media described Brian Jacques' "Long Pig" as a "grisly tale" that gave "firm shape" to the performance. It involved a class of schoolboys "devouring their master."