In this episode of Words That Burn, poet Maurice Riordan joins Ben to reflect on a career-spanning selection of poems curated by former student and fellow poet Jack Underwood. With the new Selected Poems from Faber and Faber arranged out of chronology, Riordan discusses how themes like rural life, modernity, nature, and time emerge more clearly—and more hauntingly—across decades of work.

Together, they explore how poetry manipulates time, the influence of film and science, the uncanny weight of Irish myth, and what it means to write with one foot in the past and the other in an overcrowded present. From candlelit farmhouses to televised World Cups, Riordan’s work straddles eras, places, and emotional states—always grounded in vivid, startling imagery.

Poems discussed include Rural Electrification, 1956, The Flight, The Lull, Timeout, Gone With the Wind, and Badb, among others.

00:00 Introduction to the Podcast

00:06 Maurice Riordan's Selected Poems

00:48 Themes and Evolution in Maurice's Work

03:15 Rural Electrification and Early Influences

06:35 The Power of Imagery in Poetry

12:28 Cinematic Influences on Poetry

17:21 Observations and Domestic Themes

21:23 Exploring Connection with Nature

25:50 The Influence of Irish Mythology

30:24 Reflections on Isolation and Alienation

33:01 Balancing Life Between London and Cork

34:42 The Intersection of Poetry and Science

37:26 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

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