The Essay

Colin Grant on VS Naipaul


Listen Later

Nobel laureate Naipaul began his career working in radio for the BBC, and it is also where writer Colin Grant met him towards the end of his life half a century later. How had the giant of Trinidadian literature changed during that time since being told to "write like a West Indian" and quickly becoming the precocious editor of Caribbean Voices? This polemical exploration celebrates his contributions, as well as examining his many contradictions.

Seventy-five years ago, the revolutionary Caribbean Voices strand was established on the Overseas Service by trailblazing Jamaican broadcaster Una Marson. Every week for over a decade, it gave exposure on radio to emerging writers from the region such as Sam Selvon, Derek Walcott and George Lamming - many for the first time. Delving into the BBC's Written Archives, five writers go in search of five important figures who contributed to the programme throughout the 1940s and 50s, each of whom changed the literary landscape in a different way. This series is part archival treasure hunt, part cultural history and part personal reflections on the people behind a landmark institution.

Producer: Ciaran Bermingham

...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

The EssayBy BBC Radio 3

  • 4.2
  • 4.2
  • 4.2
  • 4.2
  • 4.2

4.2

82 ratings


More shows like The Essay

View all
Global News Podcast by BBC World Service

Global News Podcast

7,664 Listeners

Ask Penguin by Penguin Books UK

Ask Penguin

146 Listeners

Newshour by BBC World Service

Newshour

1,049 Listeners

In Our Time by BBC Radio 4

In Our Time

5,516 Listeners

The Documentary Podcast by BBC World Service

The Documentary Podcast

1,793 Listeners

Arts & Ideas by BBC Radio 4

Arts & Ideas

295 Listeners

6 Minute English by BBC Radio

6 Minute English

1,761 Listeners

Learning English Conversations by BBC Radio

Learning English Conversations

1,047 Listeners

The Infinite Monkey Cage by BBC Radio 4

The Infinite Monkey Cage

1,921 Listeners

Great Lives by BBC Radio 4

Great Lives

492 Listeners

Backlisted by Backlisted

Backlisted

584 Listeners

The Conversation by BBC World Service

The Conversation

69 Listeners

BBC Inside Science by BBC Radio 4

BBC Inside Science

410 Listeners

Thinking Allowed by BBC Radio 4

Thinking Allowed

306 Listeners

Curious Cases by BBC Radio 4

Curious Cases

759 Listeners

The Audio Long Read by The Guardian

The Audio Long Read

853 Listeners

Front Row by BBC Radio 4

Front Row

128 Listeners

All in the Mind by BBC Radio 4

All in the Mind

78 Listeners

Bookclub by BBC Radio 4

Bookclub

244 Listeners

Word of Mouth by BBC Radio 4

Word of Mouth

61 Listeners

Private Passions by BBC Radio 3

Private Passions

52 Listeners

The TLS Podcast by The TLS

The TLS Podcast

183 Listeners

13 Minutes Presents: Artemis II by BBC World Service

13 Minutes Presents: Artemis II

4,160 Listeners

You're Dead to Me by BBC Radio 4

You're Dead to Me

3,165 Listeners