Podcasts about Seamus Heaney

Poet Christian Wiman and theologian Miroslav Volf wrote each other letters in which they wrestled honestly with the big questions: what does it mean to love God? What is faith?  Letter writing deepened the friendship between these two intellectuals as they wrestled with their questions about faith and the nature of God.  The longings they discuss speak to our deepest needs for transcendence and connection.  If we're going to transcend muffled lives and cut through the noise, we need a sharp, almost brutal honesty. These letters were published in Glimmerings: Letters on Faith Between a Poet and a Theologian. The book is named after a Seamus Heaney line: “glimmerings are what the soul's composed of”.  Miroslav Volf is a Croatian-American theologian Miroslav Volf is the Henry B. Wright Professor of Theology at Yale Divinity School and founder and director of the Yale Center for Faith and Culture. Christian Wiman is a poet, translator, and essayist from West Texas. He served as editor of Poetry magazine from 2003 to 2013. Discussed in this episode:   Jewish theologian Abraham Joshua Heschel  Veni Creator by Czesław Miłosz Zero at the Bone by Christian Wiman With & For is a podcast of the Thrive Center, an applied research center that exists to catalyze a movement of human thriving, with and for others through spiritual health. Learn more at thethrivecenter.org. Follow us on Instagram @thrivecenter Follow us on LinkedIn @thethrivecenter Dr. Pamela Ebstyne King hosts With & For, and is the Executive Director of the Thrive Center and the Peter L. Benson Professor of Applied Developmental Science at the School of Psychology & Marriage and Family Therapy at Fuller Seminary. Follow her @drpamking. About With & For Host: Pam King Senior Director and Producer: Jill Westbrook Operations Manager: Lauren Kim Social Media & Graphic Designer: Wren Juergensen Senior Producer: Clare Wiley Executive Producer: Jakob Lewis Produced by Great Feeling Studios Special thanks to the team at Fuller Studio and Fuller Seminary's School of Psychology & Marriage and Family Therapy. The podcast was made possible through the support from the John Templeton Foundation. The opinions expressed in this publication are those of the host and guests, and do not necessarily reflect the views of the John Templeton Foundation.

fWotD Episode 3294: Golden Bough (Aeneid) Welcome to featured Wiki of the Day, your daily dose of knowledge from Wikipedia's finest articles.The featured article for Tuesday, 12 May 2026, is Golden Bough (Aeneid).The Golden Bough is a fantastical object described in the Aeneid, an epic poem by the Roman poet Virgil composed between 29 and 19 BCE narrating the adventures of the Trojan hero Aeneas after the Trojan War. The episode of the Golden Bough is found in its sixth book and is part of Aeneas's journey into the Underworld. The bough itself acts as proof of Aeneas's divine favour, and allows him to pass into the Underworld. He is tasked to find it in an expansive forest, which he accomplishes with the aid of his mother, the goddess Venus, and to remove it from its host tree. Although Aeneas has been told that it would come easily, if his journey is ordained by fate, Virgil describes the bough as briefly hesitating before he takes it.Virgil's portrayal of the bough has no direct literary antecedents, though it draws on several precedents from literature, folklore and philosophy. Scholars have connected it with, among others, the Golden Fleece in the story of the Argonauts; symbolic objects associated with deities such as Hermes, Dionysus and Circe; and the branches carried by prospective initiates into the Eleusinian Mysteries, a Greek religious rite centred on a symbolic journey into the Underworld. Virgil associates it with both death and immortality, partly by way of symbolic associations in Graeco-Roman culture between gold and the gods. It also recalls ideas put forth by the Roman philosopher Lucretius as to the nature of the soul. The episode of the Golden Bough was parodied by authors including Virgil's contemporary Ovid, and drawn upon by later Roman poets including Lucan and Valerius Flaccus.Early interpretations of the Golden Bough tended to give it an allegorical function, particularly via Pythagorean and Neoplatonist philosophy, which viewed it as symbolic of the choice between virtue and vice. Medieval commentators often considered it a symbol of wisdom, and several Christian theologians interpreted it as representing Christian wisdom and virtue. In the sixteenth century, it became a heraldic symbol of the Florentine House of Medici. Early modern receptions of the bough, including those of François Rabelais and Jonathan Swift, were often parodic or obscene. In the twentieth century, scholars following the Harvard School interpretation of the Aeneid argued that Virgil's use of the bough reflected his ambivalence towards Aeneas and the latter's mission to set in motion the rise of the Roman Empire. Other critics have highlighted echoes between the episode of the Golden Bough and the morally charged deaths of two of Aeneas's antagonists, Dido and Turnus.In the fourth or fifth century CE, the commentator Servius connected the bough to rex Nemorensis, a priest of the goddess Diana at Lake Nemi whose office was passed on by the killing of its holder. This equation influenced the anthropologist James George Frazer, who used the bough for the title of his 1890 work on comparative religion. The bough is recalled in Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy and was the subject of an 1834 painting by J. M. W. Turner, which was used as the frontispiece for the early editions of Frazer's book. It was an influential motif in the "Byzantium" poems of W. B. Yeats and in the poetry of Seamus Heaney, who made several translations of Virgil's account of the episode. Scholars have also drawn parallels between the Golden Bough and significant objects in the novels of J. R. R. Tolkien.This recording reflects the Wikipedia text as of 00:53 UTC on Tuesday, 12 May 2026.For the full current version of the article, see Golden Bough (Aeneid) on Wikipedia.This podcast uses content from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.Visit our archives at wikioftheday.com and subscribe to stay updated on new episodes.Follow us on Mastodon at @wikioftheday@masto.ai.Also check out Curmudgeon's Corner, a current events podcast.Until next time, I'm standard Emma.

Claire Power, Poetry Ireland, discusses the official opening of No.11 Parnell Square by President Catherine Connolly today, which will house the shared headquarters for the Irish Heritage Trust, the Irish Landmark Trust and Poetry Ireland.

The last Saturday of April is Independent Bookstore Day. This week Carmela Vedar, the owner of The Book Wardrobe, joins the show to talk about her store in Streetsville, Mississauga and how it came to be. Plus, scholar David Williams discusses the everlasting impact of the great Irish poet, Seamus Heaney.Books discussed on this week's show include:East of Eden by John SteinbeckWintering Out by Seamus HeaneyCheck us out on Instagram @cbcbooks and TikTok @cbcbooks

In this episode of The Hive Poetry Show, Julie Murphy speaks with Bay Area poet Veronica Kornberg about her debut collection Strange Gift, newly released by Wandering Aengus Press. Their conversation explores the interplay of memory, family, and the natural world, and how close attention becomes a generative force in Kornberg's work. Moving between poems like “Brogues,” “Moon Garden,” and the title piece, they reflect on imagination as both refuge and threshold, where beauty and unease coexist. The episode also touches on Postscript by Seamus Heaney, and the fleeting moments that open and shape a life in poetry. A Bay Area poet, Veronica Kornberg is a recipient of the Morton Marcus Poetry Prize, and the Wandering Aengus Book Award in Poetry. Her work has appeared in numerous journals, including Alaska Quarterly Review, New Ohio Review, Poet Lore, Catamaran, Plume, Calyx, and Beloit Poetry Journal.  Veronica co-founded a long-running poetry reading club on the Peninsula, and is a Peer Reviewer for Whale Road Review. At her home in Pescadero, you can find her exploring the tidepools, or on her knees in the dirt in her habitat garden of coastal scrub. Her debut poetry collection, Strange Gift, was just published on April 7th, 2026, and is available from your bookseller of choice.

Nick Hennegan celebrates the birthday and life of Irish Writer Seamus Heaney.

Nick Hennegan celebrates the birthday and life of Irish Writer Seamus Heaney

In this month's episode the panel review Faith Hogan's The Bookshop Ladies, profile ColmToibin, and considers Seamus Heaney's poem Casualty. Presented by David Fleming with Mary Kelleher, Rosette Whyte, Marianne Purcell and Tom Hanley. Originally broadcast 27th March 2026

Today's poem answers the question you never thought to ask: what do a poem, a barnyard, and a marriage have in common? Happy reading. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit dailypoempod.substack.com/subscribe

There's a reason people write poetry about trees and not speed bumps.In this episode, I talk with Dr. Geoffrey Donovan — forest economist, 23-year USDA Forest Service researcher, and founder of Ash and Elm Consulting — about why the health benefits of urban trees dwarf every other benefit we talk about, and why most people still don't believe it. We get into the emerald ash borer study that produced the headline "when trees die, people die," the Portland research showing the inverse — tree planting linked to decreased cardiovascular mortality — and why the strongest evidence sits at both ends of life: babies born heavier when mothers live near tree canopy, and people living longer in greener neighborhoods.We also talk about biodiversity and immune development, including Geof's studies linking genus-level plant diversity to lower rates of childhood asthma and leukemia, why peak exposure to grayness may be a risk factor for ADHD, and what a pregnant woman can actually do with all of this research. The conversation ends where I think the field needs to go: science-based storytelling, why Geof reads Seamus Heaney to audiences after the graphs, and why trees don't make cities more livable — they make them survivable.Find Geof and Ash and Elm Consulting at ashelmconsulting.com.

Vincenta Leyden lives in Hilltown, County Down, Northern Ireland, near the Mourne Mountains. Born in Northern Ireland and raised partly in the Republic of Ireland, her life has unfolded along the border between two places and identities. Growing up during the Troubles, she experienced the conflict not through dramatic moments but through the everyday realities of living in a divided society. Those experiences shaped her curiosity about history, identity, and the ways communities understand the past.A creative thinker and lifelong learner, Vincenta is drawn to poetry, music, and art as ways to explore emotions and open conversations across differences. Inspired by poets like Seamus Heaney, she writes and reads poetry as a way to reflect on personal and collective stories.As a mother, she encourages her children to engage with a wider world through music and cross-border cultural experiences. Vincenta believes creativity and curiosity can help people challenge assumptions, connect across communities, and imagine a more hopeful future.Credits:Photos and text, John NoltnerField production, summer interns Kate West, Sawyer Garrison, and Kaitlin ImaiAudio Engineering, Razik SaifullahThanks for listening to A Peace of My Mind's podcast. For photos, videos, and additional content, visit our website and follow us on Instagram.

The children's author Frank Cottrell-Boyce and the author of Wild Swans and Big Sister Little Sister Red Sister Jung Chang choose their good reads.Where Should We Run To by Alan Garner chosen by Frank Cottrell-Boyce Death of A Naturalist by Seamus Heaney chosen by Harriett Gilbert Hans Christian Andersen's Fairytales chosen by Jung ChangProduced in Bristol by Maggie Ayre

Lalita du Perron talks to Postdoctoral Fellow Danny Shanahan about his work on literature and emergency law in Northern Ireland and Kashmir, the parallels, differences, and where we find hope. The episode was recorded on January 27th, 2026.Literature to add to your reading lists:Seamus Heaney, NorthAnna Burns, MilkmanAgha Shahid Ali, The Country without a Post OfficeMadhuri Vijay, The Far Field.

In this episode, we explore self-portrait poems through the lens of visual art—from “plating poems” to Dante Di Stefano's haunting idea of “ghost-ekphrasis.” Along the way, we dig into standout work by Hayden Saunier, Donald Hall, Seamus Heaney, Chen Chen, A.K. Ramanujan, Denise Duhamel, and Di Stefano himself—plus we paint an intense detour into Caravaggio. If you love ekphrastic poetry, craft talk, and poems that double as portraits, this one's for you.At the Table:Katie DozierTimothy GreenDante Di StefanoBrian O'SullivanJoe Barca

Andrew Roycroft is a freelance editor and writer. He has published poetry in a number of Irish and British literary journals, has produced work for BBC Radio 4, has contributed to Arts Council Northern Ireland projects, and written commissioned work for New Irish Arts. Andrew is also a regular contributor to the Rabbit Room Poetry community. His Substack is New Grub Street. In this episode, Andrew and Jonathan Rogers talk about calling, Substack, and Seamus Heaney.Support the show: https://therabbitroom.givingfuel.com/memberSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Belfast man Colin Davidson is one of Ireland's most celebrated painters. Queen Elizabeth II, Bono, Ed Sheeran and Seamus Heaney are among the host of famous faces to have sat for him. Yet the Belfast-born painter regards his greatest work as a series of 18 portraits, which he did for free. In his new book, titled ‘Twelve paintings: Conversations with Mark Carruthers' the NI artist speaks to BBC Journalist about 12 of his key works about why he does what he does. Belfast Telegraph's Northern Ireland Editor Sam McBride is joined by Colin Davidson and Mark Carruthers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Show Notes Ted Caplow graduated with a degree in social science and has had a career in engineering and entrepreneurship. He describes his initial interest in science and his experience with physics at Harvard, which he found challenging. Ted shares his interest in humanities, particularly theater, and his involvement in various theater activities at Harvard. He discusses his consideration of theater conservatory programs and urban planning after graduation.  Joining the Peace Corps and Sailing across the Atlantic Ted recounts his application to the Peace Corps and the unexpected technical fields he was qualified for, which were teaching  English or beekeeping. This led him to reconsider his career path. He describes his sailing adventure across the Atlantic Ocean with his family and friends. They left shortly after graduation and the trip lasted six months. They stopped in the Azores for a couple of weeks, onto Gibraltar and Spain, through the Mediterranean. They stopped in Sardinia and stayed in Malta for a month; they sailed to Greece, the islands and Cyprus where they stopped and decided whether to continue around the world or go back to real life.  Returning to New York and the Theater Industry Ted returned and went to New York where he  joined the theater industry, working on production and starting his own theatrical company. Ted talks about his involvement in the theater industry, including producing interdisciplinary performances and meeting his first wife through a mutual friend. He describes his transition from theater to entrepreneurship. He started his own company and a non-profit theater company. This lasted a few years before Ted felt he should focus on a more technical field and he discusses the separation between creative pursuits and technical professions. Ultimately, he decided to pursue urban planning and his interest in sustainable development. A Shift to Engineering Ted shares his experience at Princeton and Columbia, where he pursued a PhD in engineering, despite initial doubts about his qualifications. He reflects on the challenges and rewards of his academic journey, including the intense environment at Princeton and the decision to pursue a master's degree instead of a PhD. He wrote his masters' thesis on solar power. Moving on from academia, Ted's next job was with a yacht designer. He then ran his friend's restaurant for two years before going back to school and earning his PhD. in engineering at Columbia in 2004. The Development of the Science Barge  Ted explains his idea to create a sustainable technology laboratory in the Bahamas, why he became interested in hydroponics, and why he didn't go to the Bahamas. He explains how the original idea evolved into the Science Barge in the Hudson River.  The Science Barge was a hydroponic greenhouse with solar panels, wind power, and aquaponics, designed to educate schoolchildren about sustainable technologies such as recycling the waste water. Ted discusses the challenges of moving the barge every two months and the decision to find a permanent home for it in Yonkers, and how this venture inspired the SunWork Center project. Sustainable Development Success Stories He highlights the success of the SunWork Center, a greenhouse on the rooftop of PS 333 in Manhattan, and the expansion of New York SunWorks to over 300 schools. Ted describes the development of Bright Farms, a commercial company that grew local produce in greenhouses on top of grocery stores. He shares the challenges and successes of Bright Farms, including partnerships with major retailers and the acquisition by Cox Enterprises. Ted reflects on the importance of sustainable design and the impact of his work on the food industry. He discusses the evolution of his design firm, Caplow Manzano, and its focus on creating durable, resilient homes that prioritize human health and environmental sustainability.  Technological Innovation in Building Ted talks about his personal journey and the diverse skills he has developed over the years. He reflects on the importance of technological innovation, the role of engineering in his work, and the difficulty of navigating and innovating around  all the components of building houses. Ted shares his plans for expanding his design firm's impact and the potential for scaling sustainable design solutions. Harvard Reflections He expresses gratitude for the opportunities and challenges that have shaped his career and looks forward to continuing his work in sustainable design and education. He mentions E.O. Wilson for Evolutionary Biology as an incredible talent and researcher in that field. He also mentions a poetry class with Seamus Heaney. He also mentions a class on China and one on Africa that he found inspiring and eye opening, and taking classes on Shakespeare from actors in the repertory theater. Timestamps: 04:26: Exploring Career Paths  15:45: Entrepreneurial Ventures and Personal Life  31:56: The Science Barge and Educational Initiatives  48:06: Commercial Ventures and Bright Farms  55:37: Personal Reflections and Future Plans  Links: Caplow Manzano: https://www.caplowmanzano.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/caplow/ Featured Non-profit: The featured non-profit of this week's episode is brought to you by Kristen Hunter who reports:    "Hi, I'm Kristen Hunter, class of 1992. The featured nonprofit of this episode of The 92 Report is Habitat for Humanity, Greater Boston. Habitat for Humanity, Greater Boston works in partnership with families in need to build decent, affordable homes that strengthen communities, expanding access to home ownership for low income households, I'm proud to support the work of Habitat for Humanity, Greater Boston, whose CEO, James Costars, a longtime mentor, colleague and friend, has brought visionary leadership to their mission. You can learn more and support their work at habitatboston.org,  and now here's Will Bachman with this week's episode." To learn more about their work, visit: habitatboston.org *AI generated show notes and transcript  

The poet Seamus Heaney once said, "I think of the bog as a feminine goddess-ridden ground, rather like the territory of Ireland itself."And that territory is 14- to- 21 percent bog.So, on their fourth day “Off the Beaten Craic in the Hidden Heartlands,” Irish Stew cohosts John Lee and Martin Nutty head to Shinrone in Offaly near the Tipperary border to the farm of Donie Regan, a demonstration site for Peatlands for Prosperity, the brainchild of Douglas McMillan and his Green Restoration Ireland Cooperative team.Doug explains how centuries of peat extraction left expanses of degraded bogland, often dismissed as wastelands. But they're fields of dreams for Doug who outlines how rewetting bogs halts carbon loss, restores biodiversity, and opens the opportunity to the wet farming techniques known as paludiculture.Using Donie's farm as a showroom for how paludiculture can restore economic value to bog land, Peatlands for Prosperity is testing potential hydrophilic cash crops such as bog berries, cranberries, even lettuce and celery, as well as common wetland plants like bullrushes and common reeds which can be renewable sources of building and packaging materials. Both believe wetland agriculture can offer farmers meaningful new income streams from both these kinds of crops and from earning carbon credits for maintaining carbon-sequestering bogs.The conversation probes the challenges of farmer hesitancy, policy confusion, cultural ties to turf cutting, and how the demonstration site helps other farmers see the program's potential.Donie speaks passionately about witnessing wildlife return to his land, and the team discusses educational outreach, including bringing schoolchildren onto the bog to inspire the next generation of environmental stewards, the ecotourism possibilities of restored boglands, and how transforming Ireland's peatlands could be a win-win for climate, biodiversity, farmers, and rural communities alike.But let's give Seamus Heaney the last word from his poem Bogland:Our unfenced country Is bog that keeps crusting Between the sights of the sunNext week Irish Stew reports from Birr Castle with a focus on the groundbreaking science done there, exemplified by the world's largest telescope for 72 years, the mighty Leviathan of Parsonstown.LinksGreen Restoration Ireland WebsitePeatlands for ProsperityFacebookYouTubeLinkedInInstagramBlueskyXDouglas McMillanLinkedInHidden Heartlands Travel ResourcesIreland.comDiscover Ireland's Hidden HeartlandsIrish Stew LinksWebsiteEpisode Page: Peatlands for ProsperityInstagramLinkedInXFacebook

Today's poem reminds us that we are destined to become the parents of our parents. (I also dedicate it to a child who makes me feel better about that arrangement.) Happy reading! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit dailypoempod.substack.com/subscribe

Alexander Larman and Susannah Clapp join Tom to discuss I Swear, a film which tells the life story of John Davidson MBE who was diagnosed with Tourette's age 15.They also talk about Thomas Pynchon's new novel Shadow Ticket.Booker shortlisted novelist Tibor Fischer assesses the Hungarian writer László Krasznahorkai who has won the Nobel Prize in Literature.As the complete works of Seamus Heaney is published, Owen McDonnell reads the previously unpublished poem Swallow.Plus, Tom and guests discuss Susan Sarandon's UK debut on stage in Tracy Letts' play, Mary Page Marlowe.Presenter: Tom Sutcliffe Producer: Claire Bartleet

Dr Rosie Lavan, Associate Professor at Trinity College Dublin, discusses a new book on the collections of Seamus Heaney, which includes 25 previously unpublished works.

Live from the Pavilion Theatre in Dún Laoghaire for a special event to mark the publication of The Poems of Seamus Heaney. Rick was joined by Bernard O'Donoghue and Rosie Lavan, who edited this new edition of Heaney's work; poets Moya Cannon and Victoria Kennefick; and critic Fintan O'Toole.

by Seamus Heaney (read by Melissa Severin) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

While Strength&Solidarity is on a break we're taking the chance to re-up some favourite episodes.Coda #24 featured criminal justice and human rights expert Chris Stone reading and reflecting on a poem by Seamus Heaney, called Casualty. This famous poem of the Northern Ireland Troubles tells the story of an event that followed Bloody Sunday, the day in 1972 when British soldiers shot dead 13 unarmed civilians in Derry as they were protesting internment without trial.Quick LinksSeamus Heaney's Casualty: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/51607/casualty-56d22f7512b97Bloody Sunday, or the Bogside Massacre: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bloody_Sunday_(1972)Chris Stone: https://www.bsg.ox.ac.uk/people/christopher-stoneSymposium on Strength and Solidarity for Human Rights: https://strengthandsolidarity.org/about/

St. Kevin is a 6th century Irish saint, best known, perhaps, for the monastery he founded at Glendalough, tucked deep into County Wicklow. Beyond the monastic community, Kevin has been immortalized by Irish poet Seamus Heaney in a poem called “St. Kevin and the Blackbird.” It's a poem that speaks of a legend, a peculiar moment of prayer and stillness. Our own communications team member, Eric Clayton, knew very little about St. Kevin until a statue was erected on the campus of his alma mater to honor his late friend and spiritual mentor, the Jesuit priest Jim Bowler. The statue depicted Kevin and his blackbird, and Eric wondered why. Today's episode tracks Eric's own pilgrimage from a Connecticut university library to a cave over an Irish lake. His guide is the pilgrimage expert, Irish Jesuit Fr. Brendan McManus. Brendan is an award-winning author who has penned multiple books on the life-changing pilgrimages he's made, most notably along the Camino de Santiago. Journey with Eric and Brendan as they set out into the spiritual heart of Ireland. Resources: Take a look at some of Eric's photos from the pilgrimage: https://www.jesuits.org/stories/now-discern-this-chasing-after-st-kevin/#anchor2 Read the poem, “St. Kevin and the Blackbird,” by Seamus Heaney: https://glendalough.wicklowheritage.org/new-contributions/st-kevin-and-the-blackbird-read-by-seamus-heaney Get a copy of Fr. Brendan's classic book, “Redemption Road:” https://store.loyolapress.com/redemption-road

Hello to you listening in Hamburg, Germany!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Motivate Your Monday and your host, Diane Wyzga.  We are living in a time of historic upheaval. But what if this currently confusing, chaotic, confounding, cultural churn is stumbling toward change that reveals the hidden roots of social injustice for what they are so that we can reconfigure for good?How easily the safeguards can be leaped. And they have been. We can clutch our pearls and bemoan the times we live in; or, we can invite our feelings of hopelessness to give way to action, to repair, restore, and renew out of the ashes of the old ways. We are responsible for making change because we're the only “sentient force” that can.Question: What one small grand gesture are you committed to take on behalf of what you love and care for?These words from the Irish poet Seamus Heaney may motivate and sustain you wherever your feet touch the ground, whatever progress you are intent on making today.    “History says, Don't hopeOn this side of the grave...But then, once in a lifetimeThe longed-for tidal waveOf justice can rise upAnd hope and history rhyme.” [“The Cure at Troy” Seamus Heaney]BONUS: Seamus Heaney reads his poem, The Cure at TroyThe Cure at Troy (full text)"Human beings sufferThey torture one another,They get hurt and get hard.No poem or play or songCan fully right a wrongInflicted and endured. The innocent in gaolsBeat on their bars together.A hunger-striker's fatherStands in the graveyard dumb.The police widow in veilsFaints at the funeral home. History says, Don't hopeOn this side of the grave…But then, once in a lifetimeThe longed-for tidal waveOf justice can rise up,And hope and history rhyme. So hope for a great sea-changeOn the far side of revenge.Believe that a further shoreIs reachable from here.Believe in miraclesAnd cures and healing wells. Call miracle self-healing:The utter, self-revealingDouble-take of feeling.If there's fire on the mountainOr lightning and stormAnd a god speaks from the sky That means someone is hearingThe outcry and the birth-cryOf new life at its term.It means once in a lifetimeThat justice can rise upAnd hope and history rhyme. [From "The Cure at Troy: A Version of Sophocles' Philoctetes"]You're always welcome: "Come for the stories - Stay for the magic!" Speaking of magic, I hope you'll subscribe, share a 5-star rating and nice review on your social media or podcast channel of choice, bring your friends and rellies, and join us! You will have wonderful company as we continue to walk our lives together. Be sure to stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website, check out the Services, arrange a no-obligation Discovery Call, and stay current with me as "Wyzga on Words" on Substack.ALL content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.  If you found this podcast episode helpful, please consider sharing and attributing it to Diane Wyzga of Stories From Women Who Walk podcast with a link back to the original source.

Daniel Seifert is a journalist and editor who has written for the New York Times, National Geographic and BBC. His poems have appeared in Poetry Wales, Rattle and Terrain. He lives in Singapore, and tweets @DanSeifwrites. Larkin poems discussed:The Mower, The Trees, Two Guitar Pieces, Broadcast ,For Sidney Bechet, Reference Back, Days, If My DarlingPoets mentioned:Seamus Heaney, John Betjeman, Emily Dickinson, TS Eliot Selected Poems (Prufrock, The Wasteland, Rhapsody on a Windy Night)When You Are Levitated by Daniel SeifertAnthony Thwaite- Collected PoemsArchie Burnett- Complete PoemsJames Booth- Life, Art and LovePhilip Larkin- JillThe London MagazineFather Ted https://www.channel4.com/programmes/father-tedJohn Robins https://www.johnrobins.com/NW Rowe Philip Larkin:Art and Self Five (Palgrave Macmillan, 2011) Larkin and the CreepyMusic:Petit Fleur (Sidney Bechet) played by Monty SunshineTheme music:The Horns of the Morning by Wes Finch and the Mechanicals Bandhttps://themechanicalsband.bandcamp.com/album/the-righteous-jazzProduced by Lyn Lockwood and Gavin Hogg and PodmachinePlease email Lyn at ⁠plsdeputychair@gmail.com ⁠ with any questions or commentsPLS Membership, events, merchandise and information: philiplarkin.com

St Kevin and the Blackbird (1996)And then there was St Kevin and the blackbird.The saint is kneeling, arms stretched out, insideHis cell, but the cell is narrow, soOne turned-up palm is out the window, stiffAs a crossbeam, when a blackbird landsAnd lays in it and settles down to nest.Kevin feels the warm eggs, the small breast, the tuckedNeat head and claws and, finding himself linkedInto the network of eternal life,Is moved to pity: now he must hold his handLike a branch out in the sun and rain for weeksUntil the young are hatched and fledged and flown.*And since the whole thing's imagined anyhow,Imagine being Kevin. Which is he?Self-forgetful or in agony all the timeFrom the neck on out down through his hurting forearms?Are his fingers sleeping? Does he still feel his knees?Or has the shut-eyed blank of underearthCrept up through him? Is there distance in his head?Alone and mirrored clear in love's deep river,'To labour and not to seek reward,' he prays,A prayer his body makes entirelyFor he has forgotten self, forgotten birdAnd on the riverbank forgotten the river's name. —Seamus Heaney 

In 2024, Harvard University offered a course on Taylor Swift. It was popular, to say the least. That course was taught by a professor and literary critic named Stephanie Burt. In The New Yorker, Burt has written seriously about comics and science fiction, but she's also considered great poets such as Seamus Heaney and Mary Oliver. Now, Burt has put together an anthology titled, “Super Gay Poems.” It's a collection of L.G.B.T.Q. poetry, whose contents begin after the Stonewall uprising, in 1969. When describing the collection, Burt tells the New Yorker Radio Hour producer Jeffrey Masters, “ There are poems where we read it and we say, Wow, that's me. And there are poems where we read it and we say, Wow, I didn't know that can happen; that's not me; that's new to me; that's different. And there are poems where we read them and we just say, That's beautiful. That is elegant. That is funny. That is sexy. That is hot. That is so sad that I don't know why I like it, but I do. And I like making those experiences available to readers.”

Seamus Heaney's North at 50 - The Riptide Movement - In Plain Sight

The book that marked an important turn in Heaney's poetry, and cemented his reputation.

Today's poem is a Heaney favorite, and goes out to all of the couples tying the knot this summer. Happy reading! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit dailypoempod.substack.com/subscribe

Season 5Even if the hopes you started out with are dashed, hope has to be maintained. - Seamus Heaney

It's the week of William Shakespeare's birthday, so Gyles has poetry on his mind... and we thought we'd celebrate with a special conversation recorded with Simon Armitage, who has been Poet Laureate since 2019. Gyles finds out about Simon's childhood and early days, when he played out on the moors with his friends, watched TV and read comics... long before he became turned on to poetry by reading Ted Hughes. Gyles hears about Simon's parents, his love of indy music, and his first career as a probation officer. Gyles and Simon talk about poetry, about Ted Hughes and Seamus Heaney. We hope you enjoy this episode, and that it inspires you to read some poetry today - Simon's most recent book, Blossomise, it out now - it's a celebration of blossom and is well worth reading this springtime. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It's the week of William Shakespeare's birthday, so Gyles has poetry on his mind... and we thought we'd celebrate with a special conversation recorded with Simon Armitage, who has been Poet Laureate since 2019. Gyles finds out about Simon's childhood and early days, when he played out on the moors with his friends, watched TV and read comics... long before he became turned on to poetry by reading Ted Hughes. Gyles hears about Simon's parents, his love of indy music, and his first career as a probation officer. Gyles and Simon talk about poetry, about Ted Hughes and Seamus Heaney. We hope you enjoy this episode, and that it inspires you to read some poetry today - Simon's most recent book, Blossomise, it out now - it's a celebration of blossom and is well worth reading this springtime. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Faye Toogood is perhaps best known for her Roly-Poly chair, among the more famous pieces of furniture to come out of the 2010s and take over the zeitgeist, but the London-based designer's artistry and craft runs much deeper and spans much wider. She began finding, collecting, cataloging, producing, and editing her “assemblages” long before she ever had a name for them, and her design career has been marked by exactly that, beginning with the debut of Assemblage 1 (2010) and through to her latest, Assemblage 8: Palette (2024). On the whole, Toogood's creations serve as material investigations and discipline-defying attempts to better understand herself. Without formal training in design, Toogood—who was the Designer of the Year at the Maison&Objet design fair in Paris this past January and the Stockholm Furniture Fair's Guest of Honor in February—uses what she describes as the feeling of being “a fraud in the room” to her advantage. Through her work, she is an enigma; with projects across furniture, interiors, fashion, and homewares, she's unwilling to be defined by a single output and has instead built a multilayered practice and belief system that allows her to be “all heart and hands.” On this week's Time Sensitive—our debut of Season 11—Toogood talks about the acts of creation and connection, and how each underscores the enduring play that's ever-present in her work.Special thanks to our Season 11 presenting sponsor, L'École, School of Jewelry Arts.Show notes:Faye ToogoodToogood[3:49] Assemblage 1[7:43] Assemblage 7[13:28] Seamus Heaney[14:50] Isamu Noguchi[14:50] Kan Yasuda[17:23] Roly-Poly chair[18:06] Rachel Whiteread[20:07] Barbara Hepworth Museum and Sculpture Garden[22:45] Matisse Chapel[25:40] “Ways of Seeing”[29:57] “Womanifesto!”[36:55] Assemblage 8[52:17] “The World of Interiors”

Santa Cruz poet, journalist, and author, Addie Mahmassani, buzzes into the Hive to talk Irish poetry with Dion O'Reilly. We read William Butler Yeats, Seamus Heaney, Samuel Beckett and Eamon-GrennanAddie Mahmassani is originally from the East Coast, where she completed a PhD in American Studies. This spring she is finishing an MFA in poetry at SJSU. She covers Arts & Entertainment for Metro Silicon Valley and other Bay Area papers and served as poetry editor of Reed Magazine, Issue 156. Her first book, a feminist history of the American folk revival, is forthcoming with University of Iowa Press.

“The form of the poem, in other words, is crucial to poetry's power to do the thing which always is and always will be to poetry's credit: the power to persuade that vulnerable part of our consciousness of its rightness in spite of the evidence of wrongness all around it, the power to remind us that we are hunters and gatherers of values, that our very solitudes and distresses are creditable, in so far as they, too, are an earnest of our veritable human being.”-Seamus Heaney, in his 1995 Nobel acceptance speech This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit dailypoempod.substack.com/subscribe

Hello to you listening in Hamburg, Germany!Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Motivate Your Monday and your host, Diane Wyzga.  We are living in a time of historic upheaval. But what if this currently confusing, chaotic, confounding, cultural churn is stumbling toward change that reveals the hidden roots of social injustice for what they are so that we can reconfigure for good?How easily the safeguards can be leaped. And they have been. We can clutch our pearls and bemoan the times we live in; or, we can invite our feelings of hopelessness to give way to action, to repair, restore, and renew out of the ashes of the old ways. We are responsible for making change because we're the only “sentient force” that can.Question: What one small grand gesture are you committed to take on behalf of what you love and care for?These words from the Irish poet Seamus Heaney may motivate and sustain you wherever your feet touch the ground, whatever progress you are intent on making today.    “History says, Don't hopeOn this side of the grave...But then, once in a lifetimeThe longed-for tidal waveOf justice can rise upAnd hope and history rhyme.” [“The Cure at Troy” Seamus Heaney]BONUS: Seamus Heaney reads his poem, The Cure at TroyThe Cure at Troy (full text)"Human beings sufferThey torture one another,They get hurt and get hard.No poem or play or songCan fully right a wrongInflicted and endured. The innocent in gaolsBeat on their bars together.A hunger-striker's fatherStands in the graveyard dumb.The police widow in veilsFaints at the funeral home. History says, Don't hopeOn this side of the grave…But then, once in a lifetimeThe longed-for tidal waveOf justice can rise up,And hope and history rhyme. So hope for a great sea-changeOn the far side of revenge.Believe that a further shoreIs reachable from here.Believe in miraclesAnd cures and healing wells. Call miracle self-healing:The utter, self-revealingDouble-take of feeling.If there's fire on the mountainOr lightning and stormAnd a god speaks from the sky That means someone is hearingThe outcry and the birth-cryOf new life at its term.It means once in a lifetimeThat justice can rise upAnd hope and history rhyme. [From "The Cure at Troy: A Version of Sophocles' Philoctetes"] You're always invited: “Come for the stories - stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, would you subscribe and spread the word with a generous 5-star review and comment - it helps us all - and join us next time!Meanwhile, stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website to:✓ Check out Communication Services I Offer,✓ For a no-obligation conversation about your communication challenges, get in touch with me today✓ Stay current with Diane on LinkedIn, as “Wyzga on Words” on Substack, and now Pandora Radio Stories From Women Who Walk Production TeamPodcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story ArtsMusic: Mer's Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron MusicAll content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved. 

In this conversation, Owen Ó Súilleabháin discusses the rich tapestry of Irish and Celtic culture, exploring themes such as the influence of family and cultural heritage, the significance of names and identity, the challenges of language preservation, and the evolving diversity within modern Irish society. He emphasizes the importance of storytelling, traditional music, and poetry, particularly the unique tradition of limericks while reflecting on the historical context and contemporary relevance of these cultural elements. In this conversation, Owen Ó Súilleabháin discusses the profound role of poets in society, particularly focusing on Seamus Heaney and William Butler Yeats. He explores the cultural landscape of Northern Ireland, the significance of poetry and folklore, and the impact of geography and climate on Irish identity. The dialogue also delves into Celtic traditions and the importance of community engagement in preserving cultural heritage.https://www.turasdanam.com/membershipKeywordsIrish culture, Celtic heritage, language preservation, identity, poetry, family influence, cultural genius, diversity, traditional music, storytelling, poetry, Seamus Heaney, Northern Ireland, Irish culture, folklore, Celtic traditions, community, geography, climate, storytelling

The poet Michael Longley, who died on 22nd January 2025 at the age of 85, was described by Seamus Heaney as 'a keeper of the artistic estate, a custodian of griefs and wonders.' He devoted a lifetime to the art of poetry and won numerous poetry prizes.In Episode 1 of this series of The Essay, first broadcast in 2024 and recorded to mark his 85th birthday, he talked with presenter Olivia O'Leary about his home town of Belfast and his love of jazz, saying that, 'Good poetry for me combines two things: meaning and melody.' He also loved the classics, which he studied at Trinity College Dublin, where he met his wife, Edna, a distinguished literary critic. He was one of a group of young poets that emerged from Northern Ireland in the 1960s and he describes the mutual support, rivalry and excitement of that time.He reads his poems Elegy for Fats Waller and an extract from his poem River and Fountain from a new collection, Ash Keys: New Selected Poems (Cape Poetry), published to mark his 85th birthday on 27th July 2024. He also reads Bookshops from his collection Angel Hill and Poem from The Slain Birds.Presenter: Olivia O'Leary Producer: Claire Cunningham Executive Producer: Regan HutchinsMichael Longley's Life of Poetry is a Rockfinch production for BBC Radio 3.

The Irish poet Michael Longley, who died on 22nd January 2025, was described by Seamus Heaney as 'a keeper of the artistic estate, a custodian of griefs and wonders.' He devoted a lifetime to the art of poetry and won numerous poetry prizes.In the second episode of this series of The Essay, first broadcast in 2024, he talked with presenter Olivia O'Leary about his World War 1 poems, many of which were inspired by his own father's experience of having fought in the war, although he rarely talked about it. Michael's poems link the Great War and the Northern Ireland Troubles.He reads his poems Citation, Harmonica, The Sonnets and Wounds from the collection Ash Keys: New Selected Poems (Cape Poetry), published to mark his 85th birthday on 27th July 2024. Presenter: Olivia O'Leary Producer: Claire Cunningham Executive Producer: Regan HutchinsMichael Longley's Life of Poetry is a Rockfinch production for BBC Radio 3.

The Irish poet Michael Longley, who died on 22nd January 2025, was described by Seamus Heaney as 'a keeper of the artistic estate, a custodian of griefs and wonders.' He devoted a lifetime to the art of poetry and won numerous poetry prizes.In 1968, violence erupted in Northern Ireland, the beginning of 30 years of the Troubles. In the third episode of this series of The Essay, first broadcast in 2024, he talked about writing poems that remembered some of those who were victims of the the violence and his most famous poem, Ceasefire, which looks to Homer's great epic poem The Iliad as it reflects on the cost of peace.As well as Ceasefire, he reads his poems The Troubles, The Ice-cream Man, and All of these People from the collection Ash Keys: New Selected Poems (Cape Poetry), published to mark his 85th birthday on 27th July 2024. Presenter: Olivia O'Leary Producer: Claire Cunningham Executive Producer: Regan HutchinsMichael Longley's Life of Poetry is a Rockfinch production for BBC Radio 3.

The Irish poet Michael Longley, who died on 22nd January 2025, was described by Seamus Heaney as 'a keeper of the artistic estate, a custodian of griefs and wonders.' He devoted a lifetime to the art of poetry and won numerous poetry prizes.In this episode of The Essay, first broadcast in 2024, he described his refuge from the city streets of Belfast in County Mayo, in one of the most remote and beautiful parts of the west of Ireland. He had been writing about its nature and landscape for over 50 years and it provided endless inspiration for poems. In more recent years he recognised the threat of climate change and he expresses the hope that younger generations will take greater care of the world.He reads his poems The Leveret, Remembering Carrigskeewaun, Stonechat and The Comber from his collection Ash Keys: New Selected Poems (Cape Poetry), published to mark his 85th birthday on 27th July 2024, and Merlin from his collection The Slain Birds.Presenter: Olivia O'Leary Producer: Claire Cunningham Executive Producer: Regan HutchinsMichael Longley's Life of Poetry is a Rockfinch production for BBC Radio 3.

Irish poet Michael Longley, who died on 22nd January 2025, was described by Seamus Heaney as 'a keeper of the artistic estate, a custodian of griefs and wonders.' He devoted a lifetime to the art of poetry and won numerous poetry prizes.He is recognised as a very fine love poet and in this episode of Michael Longley's Life of Poetry, first broadcast in 2024, he reads poems that address the gift of a decades-long love and marriage and the inevitability of ageing. After a lifetime dedicated to poetry, he says, 'I can't imagine that I would be alive now if I hadn't had poetry propelling me forward.'He reads his poems The Pattern, The Linen Industry and Age from his collection Ash Keys: New Selected Poems (Cape Poetry), published to mark his 85th birthday on 27th July 2024, and Foam from his collection The Slain Birds.Presenter: Olivia O'Leary Producer: Claire Cunningham Executive Producer: Regan HutchinsMichael Longley's Life of Poetry is a Rockfinch production for BBC Radio 3.

Was the Palisades Fire caused by embers left over from another extinguished fire? Was Eaton the fault of power lines? It may take months before investigators know. National and international firefighters have been coming to SoCal to help fight the wildfires devastating the region. How are they deployed?  These wildfires have displaced tens of thousands of Southern Californians, many of them suddenly entering LA’s brutal, competitive, and already crowded rental market. Writer Caitlin Flanagan’s friendship with Nobel Prize-winning Irish poet Seamus Heaney profoundly shaped her life and her Catholic faith. She writes about their bond in The Atlantic.

As an undergraduate, Seamus Heaney visited Station Island several times, an ancient pilgrimage site traditionally associated with St Patrick and purgatory. Decades later, Heaney worked through competing calls for political engagement and his long-lapsed Catholicism in ‘Station Island', a poem he described as an ‘exorcism'.A dreamlike reworking of Dante's Purgatorio, ‘Station Island' describes Heaney's encounters with the ghosts of childhood acquaintances, literary heroes and victims of the Troubles. Seamus and Mark explore Heaney's unusually autobiographical poem, which wrestles with the inescapability of politics.Non-subscribers will only hear an extract from this episode. To listen to the full episode, and all our other Close Readings series, subscribe: Directly in Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/4dbjbjG In other podcast apps: lrb.me/closereadings Further reading in the LRB:Paul Muldoon: Sweaney Peregrainehttps://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v06/n20/paul-muldoon/sweaney-peregraineSeamus Perry: We Did and We Didn'thttps://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v43/n09/seamus-perry/we-did-and-we-didn-tJohn Kerrigan: Hand and Foothttps://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v21/n11/john-kerrigan/hand-and-foot Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Snow Patrol's Gary Lightbody and Johnny McDaid discuss the creative process behind the band's new record The Forest is the Path, which ventures into new territories musically and lyrically. The pair talk about the influence of literary greats like Seamus Heaney, their collaboration with producer Fraser T. Smith, and the liberating experience of writing music without constraints.

Next time you want to get everyone's attention for a speech at a party, try this: stand up on a table, pound your mead-chalice on a hard surface (you've got a mead-chalice, right?) and shout HWÆT! No one will have any idea what you're saying, but they'll have no choice but to listen. That's the power of Old English. We've hit bedrock in our excavation of the history of English, which brings us to Beowulf and what Seamus Heaney calls "the coffered riches of grammer and declensions." Check out our sponsor, the Ancient Language Institute (now offering Old English instruction!): https://ancientlanguage.com/youngheretics/ Pre-order my new book, Light of the Mind, Light of the World: https://a.co/d/2QccOfM Subscribe to my new joint Substack with Andrew Klavan (no relation): https://thenewjerusalem.substack.com Mark Forsyth's books on curiosities of the English language: https://a.co/d/fxudMAn https://a.co/d/3A5XpbQ Live reading of Beowulf from Hillsdale: https://youtu.be/CH-_GwoO4xI?si=tQCTnID9A7gi5s5_