Kids Bedtime Stories

In this bedtime story you are a mischievous yet lovable goose!

Suitable for all ages.
Narrated by Jamie Firth
Written by Chris Winson Longley
Music by Michael Hodgson
Produced by Magdoos Media Limited
© 2023 Magdoos Media Limited - All Right Reserved
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Creators & Guests

Host
Jamie Firth
I do theatre (@BoondogTheatre), comedy (https://t.co/MwLXfjQkge…), video games, silly voices and stuff. Also @FFSLiveStream for the Edinburgh Festival
Composer
Michael Hodgson
Music Producer & Composer for Film, TV & Games. m.hodgsonmusic@gmail.com // Mhods
Producer
Tamer Asfahani
Journalist and producer. Formerly @BBC @talkRADIO, @RT_com. Director @MagdoosMedia, Ed-In-Chief @ArabicGamers and @CheckpointMZINE. https://t.co/5qVbaJ025T

What is Kids Bedtime Stories?

Relax and unwind with classic bedtime stories for kids. One of the best free bedtime story podcasts, perfect for those long trips and journeys with your kids

Untitled Goose Game

Snuggle down and cosy up for tonight you explore the mischievous world of Untitled Goose Game.

You wake to find yourself standing by a lake surrounded by tall reeds. The air is filled with beautiful, blue butterflies and you can hear the faint sound of bees buzzing in the distance. Unfurling your wings, you stretch out your neck and stare into a cloudless sky. The sun is shining brightly, and the air is warm. Opposite the lake, there is a large cottage garden, protected by a picket fence.

Waddling over, you peer between the wooden slats of the fence. There is a groundskeeper busy with a hose, watering the vegetable plots that fill the garden. Rows of green lettuce glisten in the sunshine, but your attention is taken by the delicate fronds of the carrot tops, bending in the water spray. The carrots are fully grown and are breaking out of the earth. They look like orange, tropical islands floating on a sea of dark, damp soil. You love the taste of carrot tops and rush over to the gate. Using your beak, you lift the latch easily, but the gate is too heavy for you to manage. Determined to gain entry, you search for another way in.

You begin by examining the fence. You are hoping to find a spot where the slats have become old and rotten, but they are all in good condition and very strong. Making your way back towards the gate, you notice a bench by the pond. Next to the bench there is a picnic blanket, and on the blanket a picnic basket, a half-eaten sandwich, an apple and – a radio. You have an idea. Carefully picking up the radio, you place it on the bench making sure the speaker faces the garden. Then, you begin gently pecking at the buttons. Suddenly, the radio bursts into life, shattering the peaceful afternoon. You immediately run and hide by the gate. As you predicted, the groundskeeper doesn’t want the afternoon spoiled by the noisy radio and strides purposefully through the gate, leaving it wide open. You quickly nip through and head straight for the carrots. The water-soaked tops taste delicious. Busily devouring the fresh, green leaves, you fail to hear the radio being turned off and the groundskeeper return. All of a sudden, you feel the cold splash of the water as the groundskeeper sprays you with the hose. You run away as fast as you can, honking loudly and flapping your wings furiously.

You arrive at the town square. In the centre is an outdoor market containing a variety of stalls, surrounded by shops. Most of them appear to be shut, but you wander over to where one of the shopwindows is filled with TV screens. The largest one is showing a ball game. Mesmerised by the bright colours, you closely study the players running around the pitch, passing the ball to one other. You have seen children playing this game before but have never witnessed such a huge pitch and such a massive crowd of people watching. Suddenly, one of the players is passed the ball and begins to run ahead of all the others, towards the goal. You begin to hop excitedly from one webbed foot to the other as they reach the defenders. The player is tackled. Once. Twice. Then, as if by magic, there is no one between them and the goalkeeper. They hesitate for only a second before deftly kicking the ball over the head of the keeper and into the back of the net. The crowd on the tv screen jump out of their seats and go wild. You join in, honking with delight and flapping your wings in celebration. Then, the referee blows the final whistle, and it is all over. As the players start to leave the pitch, you are dismayed to see the screen go blank. When it comes back on, only moments later, it is showing a very different scene. The players, the pitch and the huge crowd have all been replaced with an array of tv screens, kitchen appliances and a counter with a till. It looks like the inside of an electrical store. As you continue to stare, puzzled by the change of scene, the screen is completely filled by a man wearing a flat cap. Then the shop door opens, and the same man walks out of the shop. You understand immediately. The shop has a camera system. You realise this is your big chance. Before the door has fully closed, you push it open with your beak, then force your whole body into the shop. You begin running around, honking and leaping into the air with your wings outstretched. As you imagine yourself tackling the defenders and shooting at the goal, you are pleased to see yourself on the tv screens inside the shop. The owner of the shop is not so pleased. They start shouting and shooing you towards the door. Outside, one of the market stall owners has seen the commotion on the screen in the window and is running over to help. As they burst through the door, you make a dash between their legs and run into the square, honking in delight.

At the far end of the square, well away from the angry shop keeper, you find a café by the river. Only a few of the outside tables are occupied, and the staff are nowhere to be seen. For a while, you wander around the tables, looking for scraps of food. You are hungry and it is a long time since you ate breakfast in the vegetable garden. Finding nothing on the floor, you decide to investigate the tops of the tables. Using a bench as a ladder, you climb up, then hop from one to another, using your wings for balance, but, unfortunately, the staff are very efficient, and the tables have all been cleared. As you jump down from the last table, you use your wings to slow your descent and land near some customers who are smiling and pointing at you. You walk towards them, folding your wings and placing them carefully along the centre of your back. Standing in front of them, you are surprised to see the customers start to flap their arms like wings. After a few seconds they stop and stare at you expectantly. You understand what they want, and you flap your own wings twice before replacing them along your back. The customers are delighted. They laugh and clap their hands. You decide to try something else and nod your head deliberately to one of them. They immediately nod back, then laugh and clap their hands again. You repeat the game with each of the customers in turn and are rewarded with a flower from a vase on the table. You were hoping to be rewarded with something good to eat, but you take the flower anyway and with a parting flourish of your wings, leave the café. On the way out, you pass by a stone sink. It is much taller than you, but there is something poking out over the rim. It is bright orange in colour, and you know that people wash vegetables in sinks. Dropping the flower, you begin to look for something to stand on. You find nothing. Returning to the sink you see there is a hosepipe nearby. You have an idea. You follow the hosepipe to where it joins a tap, and you turn it on. Returning quickly, you grip the nozzle in your beak, and aim the jet of water into the sink. As it begins to fill, the object begins to float. It rises higher and higher until you are surprised to see that it is not a carrot after all, but a toy boat. The water starts to overflow the sink, and the boat is carried over the side. You immediately drop the hose allowing it to wriggle like a snake and spray the café with water. Ignoring the shouting of the customers, you put the flower in the boat, grab the boat in your beak and head for the river.

On the river, you allow the gentle current to carry you and your newly acquired boat effortlessly. At times, you have to correct the boat’s direction with your beak, but it floats perfectly, and you are very pleased with your discovery. As the late-afternoon Sun sinks lower in the sky, it drops behind the willow trees that line the banks casting shadows across the water. Following a gentle bend in the river, a gap appears in the trees, and you see the back of a large half-timbered house. It looks very grand. A perfectly mown lawn slopes down gradually to meet the shallow water and, in the middle of the lawn, bathed in sunlight, stands - a goal.

Picking up the boat, you quickly paddle towards the house. Leaving the boat safe on the bank, you make your way across the lawn, scanning the area continuously. You find what you are looking for under a rose bush. Careful not to scratch yourself on the sharp thorns, you retrieve the ball and start to play. It is much more difficult than you thought.

At first you try to kick the ball using your feet, but they are too flat and simply slide underneath. You try aiming higher and kicking with your toes, but you lose your balance and fall over. You refuse to give up and try using your head. You find that by bending down you can push the ball with the top of your head. You move forward quite quickly, but because you can’t see where you are going, you go straight past the goal. Undeterred, you try using your chest instead. By arching your back and puffing out your chest, you can push the ball just as quickly as before. You guide it to the front of the goal and then give one last, enormous push. As the ball moves forwards, you open your wings wide and clap. The gust of air you produce shoots the ball straight into the back of the net. You celebrate by running around the lawn, flapping your wings and honking as loudly as you can.

You have managed two victory laps of the garden when the backdoor of the house opens and two children step outside. They are smiling and clapping enthusiastically. You wander over to them as one of the children whispers something to the other and goes inside. They return a moment later carrying a small golden crown. You lean forward and graciously receive your prize. Then, with your head held high you parade around the garden.

Returning to the river, you carefully place the boat on the water and together you head downstream. The evening is drawing in, but the air is still warm. Occasionally, you turn your head and watch the small ripples caused by your wake grow smaller and vanish in the wide expanse of water.

After a while, the river enters the lake and the current that carried you and your boat downstream all but disappears. You pick the boat up and paddle slowly across the lake to the bank where you saw the picnic blanket. You put the boat on the blanket and return to the edge of the lake to spend some time feeding on pondweed. With your belly full, you lay down on the warm blanket. It is very comfortable. You are pleased to find the radio is still on the bench and you stretch out your neck in order to reach the buttons. This time the music is soft and gentle, and you move your head and neck in time to the rhythm. You enjoy the sensation of the crown wobbling on your head. It has been a long day and you have had many adventures, but you are tired now. With one last look at the lake, you twist your neck, place your head beneath a wing and close your eyes. Gently, you drift away, awaiting your next adventure.