STORYTELLER Taffy Thomas is bubbling with his usual enthusiasm and bursting with tall tales as he gives me the low down on his forthcoming round of gigs.

First, however, he informs me about a splendid new gift for the Storyteller's Garden, donated by good-hearted first lady of sculpture Josefina de Vasconcellos.

Taffy says one of her finest works of art, the Madonna and Child, will be stored until his Tales in Trust, Northern Centre for Story-telling garden at the Church Stile Studio, Grasmere, starts its programme of Christmas stories.

The eloquent Mr Thomas says the gift was the result of Josefina's visit to the Storyteller's Garden just before Christmas, when he told her tales of his own childhood experiences in the run-up to the festive season, and particularly how excited he was at going back each yuletide with his mother to an old wooden shack that would be filled with hay and a few magical figurines and transformed into a crib.

Referring to the figures, an excited young Taffy would ask: "Are they there yet?"

He told Josefina of his wish that young visitors to the Storyteller's Garden could be similarly wide-eyed and inquisitive as Christmas drew near. Days later, out of the blue, two of Josefina's helpers delivered the beautiful Madonna and Child to a speechless Taffy.

"It's an honour to have one of her works in the storyteller's garden. Josefina's a national treasure and someone who, at the age of 99 and still producing art, is an inspiration to anybody," says the South Lakeland storyteller.

"The sculpture will be on show from late November until Twelfth Night annually, next to our dogwood bush.

"According to legend, dogwood provided the timber for the Calvary cross, which is why every Easter the bark turns blood red."

Meanwhile, fans of Taffy can hear his myths and legends at the South Lakeland Storytelling Club, at The Watermill Inn, Ings, on the first Tuesday of the every month, and the Storyteller's Garden season opens on April 10/12 with an Easter egg hunt and Tales of Eggs, Bunnies and Bonnets.

Of course, Taffy has one eye on his ever-growing, yarn-spinning family feast of entertainment for September the Lakeland Festival of Storytelling at Staveley.

Before that, though, there is lots in between such as the fun-filled May Minifest weekend (May 29/30/31) in the Grasmere garden, and Taffy and his wife Chrissy have been busy putting together a new 20-page Stories from the Storytellers Garden.

For further details about Taffy and his wife Chrissy's touring programme and booklet, contact 015394-35641.