The First Time Capsule
In early 2019, the Dunstable Archaeological Society was unexpectedly and urgently called to a site on Blow’s Downs by some local council workmen who had discovered a highly unusual artefact whilst digging out for the laying of some new sewage pipes.
This artefact was a Watney’s Party Seven can, sealed with a strange asbestos lid.
On opening the can, inside were found several papyrus scrolls of text that have since been carbon dated as being from 1979, and which were cushioned and protected by a shroud of 1970s sweet and chocolate bar wrappers. (Note to audience – these weren’t actually scrolls but rather a couple of old blue exercise books that had been purloined by Stumpy Sanderson from the Upper School stock cupboard. There were also various seemingly indecipherable sayings, notations and codes scribbled on the backs of old Benson & Hedges fag packets, as well as a sketchbook of primitive and rudimentary pencil, crayon and felt tip drawings).
With these exercise books, the archaeologists knew they had discovered something extraordinary – the stuff of legend and myth whose existence had been whispered about for some 40 years in Dunstable. Now at last in their hands they held the truth – the written testimony of some of the most extraordinary events of the badlands of the schools and streets of Dunstable in the1970s. Events that had been tableted by that infamous diarist, historian and chronicler of our ‘70s exploits (note to audience – my best friend and trusty sidekick), Stumpy Sanderson.
With my storytelling background, and my past performances of Stumpy Sanderson stories, the Society very kindly handed these exercise books over to me in early 2020.
The scripts for the stories were then carefully and accurately translated from their original Schoolboy English by myself and a team of trusty scribes and translators, and I then narrated and released these stories as podcasts. Each story was only released only after it had been meticulously catalogued, cross-checked and verified by myself and the team. I then narrate each one in the first person as Stumpy had originally written these works for me to tell them as such. Stumpy was always the storyteller, I was always the narrator. Also, I, just like Stumpy, witnessed at first-hand all the momentous events that took place and are describe.
(Note to audience – earlier versions and performances of some of these stories were based upon duplicate texts that were found in 1999 stashed inside one of Stumpy’s old school bags that he had stored in his parents’ loft).
The Second Time Capsule
There had been long held rumours of the existence of a second time capsule (although our gang knew of its actual existence as we had buried it in the first place!). This capsule had been buried by us in 1983 on the site of what was the Bedford Trucks factory, and which is now a retail park. After the diligent private detective work of Wainwright & Singh, who located this burial site, the Dunstable Archeological Society was once again called in, and the capsule was duly unearthed in 2023.
Within the capsule were found twenty-two previously undiscovered stories – the same number as were contained in the first time capsule. These stories though were written in quite different styles from Stumpy’s original works – in what were known as Stumpy’s Ronnie Corbett, Hemingway and Jack Kerouac phases. Also, although these stories were written by Stumpy between 1980 and 1983, each one still tells of the extraordinary and momentous events that happened to us, our gang, back in that defining decade, the 1970s.
Once again, the Society kindly handed these stories over to me, and working with the same team of trusty scribes and translators, these works will also be released as podcasts. I again narrate each story in the first person, as Stumpy had originally written these works for me to tell them as such.
