Our family loves media style entertainment. We are movie buffs, book lovers, music enthusiasts, and radio drama fans! While we love all of these, we are incredibly picky about which ones we consume, especially when it comes to our children. So many things labeled as entertainment merely adds more depravity. We try to be as discerning as possible and add wholesome, uplifting, encouraging entertainment to our children's lives while at the same time being high quality. Heirloom Audio has been a favorite since our first listen and St. Bartholomew's Eve does not disappoint!
Each of the radio dramas from this company has its roots in a G. A. Henty novel. This English novelist has been well-loved for his entertaining historical novels since the late nineteenth century. His purpose was to not only tell historical accounts of real people in an entertaining way, but to also point readers back to God and the Bible. I love that these radio dramas seek to do the same thing!
I love all things vintage anyway, but we find it very appropriate to listen to these radio dramas on our replica radio and CD player. You can also buy digital copies of the dramas and listen to them on your phone. The car is another great location and these are especially fun for longer road trips we homeschoolers love to take! My oldest daughter enjoy listening at bedtime. I do not allow my younger two this, however, because both tend to be sensitive to more intense stories in the evening. They do however love to listen during the daytime! They have recently stated engaging in a really fun way with radio dramas as you see below. They gather a group of toys or stuffed animals, and begin acting out what they are hearing! In this particular scene Prince Henry (played by Pumpkin Bear) was chatting with Philip (Played by Baseball Bear) soon after they met. I love seeing their creativity and engagement in this way with the audio!
This particular story centers around the Huguenot Wars in France during the 16th century. Since the historical setting is war, be prepared there are definitely some very intense scenes. This makes it a favorite among the young men we know! As I said before, my oldest daughter really loves these stories at 13. My younger daughters, 11 and 9, are not quite as enthralled, but did enjoy it still. Rose really likes history and learning about countries and wars whereas neither Beth nor Grace has cared as much about this information.
The absolute best part of these stories is how they point our family back to the Lord. At the end we are reminded the importance of fighting for freedom to worship and how thankful we must be for those who have gone before us and how we must be on the alert so we do not lose these rights. A more important lesson to teach our children is to worship the Lord whether or not the government gives us permission or not. I love the conversations this will allow us to have in the future, especially as we pray for the persecuted church overseas.
Another fun part is the way the stories are bookended with G. A. Henty (portrayed by Brian Blessed) narrating the story to a group of young boys. This gives a fun character portrayal of the author and makes him seem more real to the listener.
You may want to explore becoming a part of the Live the Adventure Club! Here you will find all of the previously released titles as well as some wonderful radio dramas from the golden age of radio. You will also enjoy the printable lesson plans and resources for many of the previous stories. Rose has especially enjoyed being a part of this so she can listen online with her tablet.
Our family highly recommends Heirloom Audio and St. Bartholomew's Eve. Check out what my Crewmates have to say!
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