Monday 30th September, Pinhoe Library, 7pm
As part of his tour across Devon this autumn, popular historian Dr Todd Gray gave a talk about his latest book, “Uncle Tom Cobley and All” to an enthusiastic audience at Pinhoe Library.
The phrase ‘Uncle Tom Cobley and all’ has passed into common usage and comes from the Devon folk song Widecombe Fair, which ends with a chorus of a long list of names.
Dr Gray’s book tells the fascinating history of this ancient song – once the county’s favourite – and reintroduces audiences to more than 50 variants, most of them long forgotten after hundreds of years.