Tell Me a Story (21 traditional stories from the British Isles dramatised by J.D.Graham), страница 25

“I don’t know what’s the matter with Uncle Harry,” said Katy.   She tied up the pudding and put into the pot to boil.   After a while Jim noticed something strange about the pudding.   It was dancing up and down inside the pot.   “There must be something inside it!   I’m sure Uncle Harry’s got something to do with this,” said Katy.   “I’m sure you’re right,” said Jim.

And then the lid of the pot flew off and out jumped the pudding.   “Keep away,” shouted Jim.   But the pudding jumped straight at him.   “If I had a knife and fork, I’d finish you off.”   Katy said “You must be nice to it.   There must be a fair in this pudding.   Don’t hurt us,” she said to the pudding.   “It’s all Uncle Harry’s fault.   He’s made you dance about like this.”   And Jim said “Why don’t you go and chase Harry?   He’s just gone down the road.”   And Jim went to the door and opened it.   And the pudding hopped out of the door and set off down the road.

Katy and Jim followed it outside to see where it was going.   When the neighbours saw the pudding dancing down the road they all came out to look.   “I think there’s a fairy in it,” Katy told the neighbours.   Once the neighbours were with him, Jim began to feel braver.   He decided to chase the pudding.   “Follow that pudding!” he shouted.  So they all chased it until they came to the river bank.   The pudding jumped into the river.   “Oh!   It’s escaped!” said the neighbours, very disappointed.  So they went home again.

The pudding floated down the river, singing happily to itself.   It floated along until it came to a bridge and who should be walking across the bridge at that moment but Uncle Harry.   So he rushed down the river bank and fished the pudding out of the water.   “Come with me, pudding,” he said.   “We’re going to have some fun!”

Meanwhile, Katy and Jim had gone back to their kitchen.   Katy decided to make another pudding.   Suddenly the door burst open and in rushed Uncle Harry.   “Come outside!” he shouted.   “The sky’s falling down.”   Uncle Harry seemed to have something hidden under his coat, but Katy and Jim didn’t take much notice.   They rushed outside and looked up at the sky.   But they couldn’t see anything unusual.

Katy and Jim were about to go back inside again when they met Uncle Harry coming out of the house in rather a hurry.   He had something hidden under his coat and there was steam coming from it.   “Uncle Harry, your coat’s on fire!” cried Katy.   But Uncle Harry went away in a great hurry.   “What was he carrying under his coat?” asked Jim.   “Perhaps he’s taken the pudding,” said Katy.   So they ran back into the kitchen.

The pudding was boiling in its pot.   “There’s the pudding!” said Katy.   “So he didn’t take it after all.”   But Uncle Harry had taken the pudding and put the magic pudding in the pot instead.   “They’ll never notice the difference,” he said.   “Not until they eat it.”

Later on that day, the wedding took place.   And afterwards everyone came back to the house for the party.   They had dinner and at the end of the dinner, Katy brought in the pudding.   She cut up the pudding and handed it round.   And as soon as they had eaten the pudding the guests began to dance - even Jim.   And then the door opened and Uncle Harry came in.   He began serving out the pudding as fast as he could.   Everyone danced, Katy and Jim as well.   “I’m sure Uncle Harry’s got something to do with this,” said Katy.

The Dancing went on and on until at last all the guests danced out of the door and danced home and danced into bed.   The next day everyone was very, very tired.   The wedding was remembered ever after as the liveliest wedding the village had ever had.