PhD student Joanna Crosby shared her expertise on apples with BBC Radio 3 listeners during a special festive edition of The Early Music Show.

The special edition, titled Here We Come a-Wassailing, saw presenter Lucie Skeaping investigate the ancient musical tradition whereby people went from door to door singing carols and were rewarded with hot mulled cider. 

• Listen to the latest edition of The Early Music Show on BBC iPlayer

Joanna, from the Department of History, is an expert on the history of apples including their social and cultural significance so was able to explain some of the customs and traditions associated with wassailing. 

Wassailing can be traced back possibly as far as Anglo-Saxon times and has evolved over time to become associated with Christmas.

Lucie introduced some of the music that has been associated with the wassailing tradition.

Links:

Nine strange facts about the history of apples on the BBC History website

Is this the world's first PhD in apples? on Anglia News