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The Snow Goose

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The Snow Goose

By: Paul Gallico
Narrated by: Steven Mackintosh, Georgia Groome, Deborah Findlay, Full Cast
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About this listen

 A BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation of Paul Gallico’s ‘The Snow Goose’ by Nick Warburton, starring Steven Mackintosh. When 'Open Book' asked various authors to champion a favourite neglected classic on the programme, Michael Morpurgo chose 'The Snow Goose'; perhaps no surprise, with his own story 'War Horse' depicting a friendship between a boy and his horse which takes them both into the horror of World War I. In ‘The Snow Goose’, A wounded bird brings together a disfigured artist and a young girl on the eve of World War II. With Steven Mackintosh as Philip Rhayader, Georgia Groome as Fritha, Deborah Findlay as Mrs Farnes and Sam Dale as the storyteller. Also featuring Michael Shelford, Malcolm Tierney and David Seddon. Directed by Sally Avens. Genre Fiction Historical Fiction Literary Fiction Fiction Heartfelt

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All stars
Most relevant
I love listening to this and have done many times as it's short enough and so very good.



The sound effects take you there straight away and the narrators do a superb job with the characters. It's a moving story.

Atmospheric and touching

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I loved everything about this book. The story is very enjoyable and moving, and the telling of the story is great.

Outstanding

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My mother recommended this book to me when I was in my early 20’s. My uncle was a soldier stranded on the beach at Dunkirk. It was the bravery of the likes of Philip that saved many. But the Snow goose is more than that; The friendship that blossomed between a man Philip, a girl Frith and a bird, the Snow Goose. Philip’s compassion was a time in a story for Britain.
Below is a synopsis I found. It sums up the Novellain book form, I believe it also can apply to the spoken word, beautiful narrated.
It is my favourite short story, one that keeps the memory of my mother in my mind smiling, saying “I think you will like this book”

“In the spring of 1930, Philip Rhayader, a gentle twenty-seven-year-old man, purchases and moves into an abandoned lighthouse studio in the Great Marsh, located on the Essex coast of England. Rhayader has a hunchback and clawed hand, which do not impede his daily work, but distance him from his community. When Rhayader feels that his warmth and friendliness were constantly unreciprocated, he isolates himself to avoid such insincere interactions. Rhayader finds pleasure in building sanctuaries for the geese, ducks, and other birds around the lighthouse. He also spends time sailing and painting. He keeps some birds pinioned so that when others migrated there for winter, they would recognize the location as having food and sanctuary. Rhayader recalls seeing the same birds that left in the spring, later return in the fall, feeling fulfilled by his safe haven for the birds. Three years after his settlement, Rhayader finds a little girl holding a wounded bird in front of his home. The girl, Frith, had a Saxon accent and was terrified of Rhayader's deformed appearance, but nonetheless stayed as Rhayader mended the bird's wounds. Rhayader, bewildered to find that the bird is a Canadian snow goose, wonders how it got to Essex. He creates a tale about the snow goose's migration for Frith and names it the Lost Princess. Frith, although nervous, promises to return the following day to check on the goose. Over a period of several years, Frith and Rhayader care for the birds together. The snow goose becomes familiar with Rhayader; it returns during every migration and frequently follows him around the beach. In May of 1940, Rhayader prepares his sailboat, telling Frith he must go to Dunkirk to contribute to the rescuing of the trapped British army. Frith promises Rhayader that she will care for the birds in his absence. When Rhayader leaves, the snow goose flies over his boat, following him. In a pub, English soldiers recall the rescue from Dunkirk, remembering Rhayader and the snow goose. One soldier compares Rhayader to God and the snow goose to an angel, and the soldiers remarked on their inseparability in even the most dangerous voyages. Then, in an officer’s club years later, naval officers reflect on the evacuation of Dunkirk, revealing that Rhayader got machine-gunned to death in his boat, with the snow goose perched at his side and pecking at anyone who came close. After several days of waiting for Rhayader at the lighthouse, Frith understood he would not return. When the snow goose returned, she felt that Rhayader’s spirit was in it. She wished the bird Godspeed as it finally departed for good. Frith kept returning to feed the pinioned birds, but one morning, a German pilot bombs the lighthouse. Thinking it was an active military objective, the German army destroys the lighthouse, and its memory, for good”

My favourite short story.

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A story with everything. A tale of hope and love that ends in loss and tradegy, matched with an excellent performance.

A true classic.

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The most beautiful story wonderfully dramatized it is compelling listening and reading. I have loved this story for many many years, well worth your time to listen and read.

The snow goose

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