What's the deal with jesters?

Weird Medieval Guys

Jesters. They're just funny little guys with bells who hang around their medieval king and make wisecracks, right? As it turns out, there's actually a bit more to it. Olivia and Aran trace the origins and development of jesters, minstrels, fools, and other entertainers in the wider context of humour in the Middle Ages. Along the way, we meet some of medieval europe's weirdest guys and crack plenty of authentically medieval jokes! Also discussed are Critical Clown Studies, historical oppression of drummers, and the most single Welshman ever.For more information about some of what we discuss, check out:

• E.K. Chambers' The Mediaeval Stage (1903), in particular chapter 3: "The Minstrel Life"

  • https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.215896/page/n93/mode/2up

• Fooling Around the World: The History of the Jester

  • https://press.uchicago.edu/Misc/Chicago/640914.html

• More about Stanczyk the jester and Jan Matejko's famous painting of him

  • https://www.rhiannonpiper.com/blog/behind-the-painting-unveiling-the-layers-of-meaning-in-staczyk