Looks Unfamiliar is a podcast in which writer and occasional broadcaster Tim Worthington talks to a guest about some of the things that they remember that nobody else ever seems to.
Joining Tim this time is writer Una McCormack, who is absolutely convinced that she hasn’t just made up school songbook Ta-Ra-Ra Boom-De-Ay, Screw-Top Virgin Marys, Desert Wellies, Elizabeth Enright’s Melendy Family novels, Jackanory series Tales From The Edge Of The World, and short-lived toy craze Trick Sticks. Along the way we’ll be finding out why asking about ‘Mr. Benn Men’ in school is frowned on, how to attract boys from the school across the brook by rolling up your socks and narrowing your tie, and why you can’t hide a pierced ear from Jesus. Also, there’s LIVE YO-YO TRICKS!
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018 – Una McCormack – Revolution 9 For Descant Recorder And Woodblock – Looks Unfamiliar
About Una
Una McCormack is a novelist and dramatist who has written extensively for Doctor Who, Star Trek and Blake’s 7. Una’s website is here and you can follow her on Twitter at @unamccormack.
Buy A Book
You can find a feature about Jackanory in the sixties in Tim’s book Well At Least It’s Free, a collection of columns and features focusing on archive television. Well At Least It’s Free is available in paperback here or from the Kindle Store here.
Alternately, if you’re just feeling generous, you can buy me a coffee here. It will not be served in a 3D Lenticular Pope mug.
Further Listening
Una has also appeared on Tim’s Marvel Cinematic Universe podcast It’s Good, Except It Sucks talking about Captain Marvel, which you can find here.
There’s more about school songbooks – this time hymn book Morning Has Broken – in the Looks Unfamiliar with Steve Berry, which you can find here. Jackanory‘s adaptation of Starstormers by Nicholas Fisk was when Tim appeared as the guest on Looks Unfamiliar, which you can find here.
Una also appears in The Best Of Looks Unfamiliar alongside Samira Ahmed on Nurdin & Peacock Own Brand Cola, Will Maclean on Once Upon A Time… Man, Steve Berry on Morning Has Broken, Jacqueline Rayner on Pippa Dolls, Rae Earl on Codename Icarus and Tim on the radio talking about the theme song from The Amazing Adventures Of Morph, which you can find here.
Further Reading
Out In The Dark is a feature looking at the long-lost two hundredth episode of Jackanory – and what might have happened in it – which you can find here.

Looks Unfamiliar is hosted by Podnose. You can help Podnose to continue providing quality podcasts for free by donating to their GoFundMe here.
© Tim Worthington.
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