Seasonal Saki | Christmas Stories by H. H. Munro | Read by Simon Stanhope

Four short satires on the festive season by Saki (Hector Hugh Munro), including 'Bertie's Christmas Eve', 'Reginald's Christmas Revel', and reflections on the pitfalls of both giving and receiving Christmas gifts: 'Reginald on Christmas Presents' and 'Down Pens'. Timestamps below:

00:00:00 Narrator's Introduction
00:00:58 Bertie's Christmas Eve
00:15:00 Reginald's Christmas Revel
00:22:26 Reginald on Christmas Presents
00:27:23 Down Pens
00:36:38 Credits, thanks and further listening

Narrated/performed by Simon Stanhope. If you enjoy this content and would like to help me keep creating, there are a few ways you can support me (and get access to previews and exclusive content):

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About the author: Saki was the pen name of Hector Hugh Munro, one of the greatest masters of the short story form in English. He was born in 1870 in Burma, then part of British India, where his father was an Inspector General for the Imperial Police, but his life was affected by tragedy when he was just two years old: his mother Mary Munro was charged by a cow while visiting family back in England, and she died as a result of her injuries. Hector and his siblings were sent home to England, to live in Devon with his paternal grandmother and two maiden aunts. The aunts (Augusta and Charlotte) were apparently strict and austere and provided much material for future character studies in Saki's satires. After some 10 years or so, Hector eventually "escaped" to boarding school. In his early 20s he followed his father's footsteps and enrolled in the Indian Imperial Police, but was invalided home with fever after little over a year. Turning to writing to make his living, Munro began working as a journalist in the late 1890s. He wrote countless pieces for magazine and newspaper publication, and took up the pen name Saki around 1900. His always witty – and sometimes macabre – stories established his reputation as one of the greatest satirists of the Edwardian era.

Despite being officially over-age for military service, turning 44 at the end of 1914, he enlisted in World War I, turning down the offer of a commission and serving as an ordinary trooper in the 2nd King Edward’s Horse regiment. Tragically, he was killed by a sniper while sheltering in a shell hole during the Battle of the Ancre in November 1916. His last words were reported to be “Put that bloody cigarette out”. His resting place is unknown.

Bertie's Christmas Eve: first published in The Westminster Gazette on 23 December 1911.
Reginald's Christmas Revel: first published in The Westminster Gazette on 22 December 1903.
Reginald on Christmas Presents: first published in The Westminster Gazette on 18 December 1901.
Down Pens: first published in The Morning Post on 6 January 1914.

This recording © Bitesized Audio 2025