The Verb

George Szirtes, Cecilia Knapp, Lisa Knapp, Gerry Diver, Rishi Dastidar


Listen Later

Ian McMillan's guests are George Szirtes, Cecilia Knapp, Lisa Knapp, Gerry Diver and Rishi Dastidar.

The beauty of a swimming pool seen from the air, banks that fly up and out of small towns never to return, the poetry of single objects seen from a train window, and the miniature brilliance of poetry pamphlets - all in this week's edition of The Verb.

It can be a shock when banks leave our high streets - poet George Szirtes presents a brand new commission for The Verb inspired by that experience, and reads work from his 2004 collection 'Reel' which won the TS Eliot Prize. George has just been awarded the 'King's Gold Medal' for excellence in poetry.

Cecilia Knapp finds surprising images for memories of being a teenager in new poetry on this week's show. Cecilia's first collection is 'Peach Pig' - she has published a novel called 'Little Boxes', and is Poet-in-Residence for London’s City Bridge Foundation.

We look out of train windows, in a new song by Lisa Knapp and Gerry Diver ( from a new album called 'Hinterland'). Gerry has arranged music for films – and in his ground-breaking album 'The Speech Project' he created scores for the remarkable speakers including Christy Moore, the boxer Barry McGuigan and the singer Charlotte Church. Lisa Knapp has been nominated for the BBC folk awards multiple times - her recent performances on the 'Hack Poets Guild' album 'Blackletter Garland' were described as 'expert' and 'ethereal'. Gerry, Lisa and their daughter Bonnie Diver perform live in the studio.

Rishi Dastidar shares the joy of small collections - as he celebrates poetry pamphlets with Ian - exploring their appeal and their potential. Rishi is a poet, critic and copywriter. His latest collection is 'Neptune's Projects' described by one reviewer as 'add(ing) wit, postmodern panache and mythic irony to the tradition of the open sea'

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

The VerbBy BBC Radio 4

  • 4.4
  • 4.4
  • 4.4
  • 4.4
  • 4.4

4.4

30 ratings


More shows like The Verb

View all
Global News Podcast by BBC World Service

Global News Podcast

7,640 Listeners

The LRB Podcast by The London Review of Books

The LRB Podcast

296 Listeners

Newshour by BBC World Service

Newshour

1,062 Listeners

In Our Time by BBC Radio 4

In Our Time

5,475 Listeners

The Documentary Podcast by BBC World Service

The Documentary Podcast

1,802 Listeners

Arts & Ideas by BBC Radio 4

Arts & Ideas

303 Listeners

6 Minute English by BBC Radio

6 Minute English

1,747 Listeners

Learning English Conversations by BBC Radio

Learning English Conversations

1,045 Listeners

The Infinite Monkey Cage by BBC Radio 4

The Infinite Monkey Cage

2,087 Listeners

Great Lives by BBC Radio 4

Great Lives

478 Listeners

Last Word by BBC Radio 4

Last Word

45 Listeners

Page 94: The Private Eye Podcast by Page 94: The Private Eye Podcast

Page 94: The Private Eye Podcast

348 Listeners

Backlisted by Backlisted

Backlisted

591 Listeners

Front Row by BBC Radio 4

Front Row

127 Listeners

Start the Week by BBC Radio 4

Start the Week

161 Listeners

Bookclub by BBC Radio 4

Bookclub

243 Listeners

The Book Club by The Spectator

The Book Club

85 Listeners

The TLS Podcast by The TLS

The TLS Podcast

182 Listeners

You're Dead to Me by BBC Radio 4

You're Dead to Me

3,202 Listeners

Americast by BBC News

Americast

724 Listeners

Cyber Hack by BBC World Service

Cyber Hack

1,605 Listeners

This Cultural Life by BBC Radio 4

This Cultural Life

88 Listeners

Strong Message Here by BBC Radio 4

Strong Message Here

65 Listeners

Take Four Books by BBC Radio 4

Take Four Books

6 Listeners

A Good Read by BBC Radio 4

A Good Read

42 Listeners