Review: Ben and David Crystal at Words by the Water, Keswick

“This is something special and absolutely to be treasured.”

by Jess Powell

Ben & David Crystal – Everyday Shakespeare (Friday 7th June)

A fantastically charismatic father-son duo, Ben & David set out to present the premise of their book, Everyday Shakespeare, to the audience at Keswick’s Theatre by the Lake, but achieved more than that.

This is their fifth book together and comprises a collection of the finest lines from less-known corners of Shakespeare’s plays and poems. There is a line for each day, accompanied by the context and an exploration of the linguistics and pronunciation. The purpose of this book is not to give you a random, unreachable quote for each day of the year, but to provide you with simple lines that encapsulate the complexity of life, the enduring appeal of Shakespeare and the easy applicability to modern life.

This theme was carried on through their talk. Playing off each other in a humorous script, discussing Shakespeare, their connection to the Bard and their connection to each other, Ben & David presented us with lines that had the audience humming in appreciation and understanding. The resonant message that you could hear in the audience’s reaction was that these quotes spanned time and age, and related to all of our own diverse experiences.

Ben & David seamlessly talked back and forward in a way that engaged everyone, and seemed as though you were just another guest sat at their family dinner table discussing with them what has clearly been such an influential part of both their lives. The anecdotes, jokes and cleverly applied Shakespearean quotes along with the engagement of the audience made for a thoroughly enjoyable evening and – whilst I cannot speak for the whole audience – I think it is safe to say, by the look of the line to buy the book at the end, that they brought us closer to Shakespeare and invited us with open arms to find ourselves in his great and enduring words.

David Crystal – Disappearing dialects – or not? (Saturday 8th June)

David Crystal’s second talk on disappearing dialects – whether or not we are losing the Cumbrian dialect – was equally fascinating, albeit more traditional. In a traditional interview format, David raised questions about whether words have survived, have changed or should be brought back. The talk promoted his book, Disappearing Dictionary – a treasury of lost English dialect words. Here he focused on Westmorland and Cumbria which, he told us, have a wealth of dialects. He read out a list of words and audience members raised their hands if they knew them, used them and if that usage had altered from the original meanings.

The audience question time was interesting. Interacting with the audience David Crystal discussed the influence of social media on language – he feels it to be one of the greatest influences on language. Crystal argued that social media gives people permission to use their dialect more.

Another discussion was over Is there more dialect freedom in childhood? You get your dialect from your peers, he argued, but then you go to school and have it drummed out of you. This is not helped by the premise that the older generation tells off the younger for how they speak and young people mock the older generation for their use of language. This results in an age gap that is slowly destroying dialects. David Crystal posited the need for younger and older people to interact with kindness to perpetuate culture.

Finally, the influence of multiculturalism on dialect in the UK was considered. Crystal suggested that multiculturalism was altering language as natural speech patterns from different cultures mix and influence each other – especially in London.

All these ideas were challenging and thought-provoking. David Crystal’s insights were thoughtful, well-spoken and encouraged critical thought by the audience. His challenge to all was: can we bring back these words that have been lost? Judging by the response of the audience, there are many who will now try!

Words on the Water

Both talks were very good with the first doing something very different – which is excellent to see. What a good job Words on the Water did with the whole event. Having been lost for a short while it is great to see the festival back at Theatre by the Lake – a perfect venue for the events. The ability to engage with authors was superb and rather unique. One could have good conversations with the writers because they were wandering around during the other events just like all the rest of us. This is something special and absolutely to be treasured. I highly recommend going next year.  

Jess Powell is a West Cumbrian writer who regularly reviews books and theatre productions. Born in Cumbria but raised in Bangladesh and with a degree in Egyptology, Jess is fascinated by languages and their history.