Loading...

TellBetter

20
tours
1204
ratings
4.8
avg. rating
A TellBetter tours, we tell better stories.
New York City’s best stories.
About
Tours in:

Instead of merely guiding you through a neighborhood, what if an audio tour could transport you though time, and make you feel as if you were actually there at some of history’s most memorable events, hearing from fascinating characters in their own words? TellBetter tours are written and produced by Tom Darbyshire, a published author and Emmy-nominated storyteller, who uses actors, sound effects, music, and dramatic dialogue to create powerful “theater of the mind.” True tales of love, loss, laughter, treachery, tears and triumph.

Tom spent decades working in New York City as Executive Creative director of BBDO, the world’s most award-winning advertising agency. His work – including Super Bowl commercials and TV spots with celebrities like Muhammad Ali, Cindy Crawford, Alec Baldwin, Shaq, and Mikhail Gorbachev – scored trophies in all the major creative competitions: Cannes Lion, Clio, Addy, Art Director’s Club, One Show, D&AD, London International Festival Obie, Webby and more. Tom learned to craft captivating stories in short time frames; now he brings those storytelling and broadcast production skills to the world of audio tours.

Maybe that’s why his tours rank in VoiceMap’s Top 10 for downloads, sales and followers.

At TellBetter tours, we tell better stories.

Credentials
Awards
  • Dozens of gold, silver and bronze awards for creative excellence from the major national and international advertising awards: Emmy Awards, Effies, Clio Awards, One Show, Addy Awards, Art Directors Club, Cannes Lions, London International Festival, Obie Awards, Webby Awards, D&AD.

Publications and Shows
  • If Wishes Were Porsches, and Other Nursery Rhymes for Modern Times, book co-authored with Stefan Underhill, Cassel, 1988

  • If Wishes Were Saabs, and Other Nursery Rhymes for Modern Times, book co-authored with Stefan Underhill, Little, Brown, 1986

  • Who Grew My Soup, book illustrated by C. F. Payne, Publications International, 2010

  • Expert commentary on Super Bowl advertising for KPCW's Mountain Money (2023, 2024, 2025)

  • Creative director and copywriter for the internationally acclaimed 1998 Pizza Hut commercial with Mikhail Gorbachev, featured in BBC and Financial Times

Education
  • Bachelor of Science Architecture; University of Virginia; 1982

Architecture
Industrial Revolution
Film And TV
Admire the architecture and savor the scandals of Fifth Avenue’s old money set
Walking Tour
|
90 mins
Pop Culture
Celebrities And Gossip
Music And Performance
Stroll the three blocks where Warhol, the Yippies and Blondie rewrote America
Walking Tour
|
90 mins
Architecture
Neighbourhoods
Social Movements
Trace the gritty path from pushcarts, pickles, and pogroms to punchlines
Walking Tour
|
120 mins
Modern History
Transportation Heritage
Top Sights
Learn how one married couple built a bridge, and another rebuilt a neighborhood
Walking Tour
|
90 mins
Local Legends
Literature
Modern History
Follow the story of a philanderer-philanthropist reverend in NYC’s leafy enclave
Walking Tour
|
120 mins
Top Sights
Public Art
Maritime Heritage
Take in views of Lady Liberty and drink in history at a legendary tavern
Walking Tour
|
90 mins
Food And Drink
Oddities And Rarities
Crime And Mystery
Get the inside scoop on Gilded Age slums, saloons, brothels, and opium dens
Walking Tour
|
120 mins
Architecture
Business And Commerce
Industrial Revolution
Take the grand tour of the world’s most impressive train station
Indoor Tour
|
90 mins
Architecture
Transportation Heritage
Parks And Gardens
Walk the park that elevated an industrial ruin into an icon of urban renewal
Walking Tour
|
90 mins
Top Sights
Pop Culture
Music And Performance
Discover the back alleys and backstories of NYC’s musical theater district
Walking Tour
|
120 mins
Pop Culture
Crime And Mystery
Top Sights
Be illuminated by Times Square’s dazzling sights, scandals, secrets and stories
Walking Tour
|
75 mins
Local Legends
Literature
Architecture
Hear “the greatest public space on earth” come alive and learn its origin story
Walking Tour
|
75 mins
Architecture
Public Art
Top Sights
Unlock the Rockefeller’s secrets, from angry Irishmen to a shocking art scandal
Walking Tour
|
90 mins
Oddities And Rarities
Parks And Gardens
Local Legends
Turn a walk in the park into a fascinating adventure with a master storyteller
Walking Tour
|
120 mins
Business And Commerce
Architecture
Public Art
Parade up Broadway into NYC’s Financial District, the center of American power
Walking Tour
|
90 mins