Telling the Tale of Jaufre. Bringing a Thirteenth-Century Story to Twenty-First-Century Listeners,

by Anne Lister

For the first time in almost 800 years Anne Purbrick (under her performing name of Anne Lister) has brought the lively, engaging, and entertaining Tale of Jaufre off the library shelves and has been telling it to audiences. There are several mysteries about Jaufre – when and why was a story about King Arthur written for a king of Aragon, and why in Occitan? Investigating this 13th century story from the practical standpoint of a storyteller has produced a number of new insights and discoveries.  This book explores the background in detail, from the manuscripts and fragments which have survived to the people for whom the story was created, as well as its extensive later history, and then discusses the decisions, the revelations and the difficulties of telling the story to 21st century audiences. The Tale of Jaufre is remarkably little known outside modern Spain and yet, as this book demonstrates, it has links to the extended family of Alienor of Aquitaine and Henry II of England, and therefore across Europe. 

The Tale of Jaufre, adapted from the Occitan by Anne Lister and illustrated by Maria Hayes

Jaufre is a lively, engaging and at times comedic tale of a knight from King Arthur’s court. The young hero encounters all manner of unpleasant adversaries including giants and a demon knight, finds true love in the form of an independent, wealthy and hot-tempered heiress, and is tricked into going to the rescue of an underwater fairy.  This story, dedicated to a king of Aragon and told in Occitan, was first set down in writing in the thirteenth century but does not appear to have reached English-speaking readers until the late nineteenth century. It was, however, originally intended for oral performance rather than for solitary readers. This new adaptation is an attempt to capture the spirit of the original Occitan, keeping close to the way it was told, and to bring the story to life in the hope that other storytellers will once again tell the tale of Jaufre and new listeners will enjoy his exploits.