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Midwinter

Roger McGough explores the archives to find the most evocative winter poems read by some celebrated actors. With Thomas Hardy, Miroslav Holub, Robert Frost and Shakespeare.

Roger McGough explores the archives to find the most evocative winter poems read by some of our best actors. Poets Thomas Hardy, Miroslav Holub, Robert Frost and Shakespeare are brought to life by actors including Juliet Stevenson, Dame Harriet Walter and Hugh Laurie. Steeleye Span and Bert Jansch make up the numbers.

30 minutes

Last on

Tue 27 Dec 201623:30

This Week's Poems

Storm

By Roger McGough

Birds at Winter Nightfall

By Thomas Hardy

From Thomas Hardy: A Critical Selection of His Finest Poetry

Published by Oxford University Press

A Winter Night

by Tomas Transtromer

Translated by Robin Robertson

From The Deleted World

Published by Enitharmon Press

Noon Thaw

by Tomas Transtromer

translated by Robin Fulton

From New Collected Poems

Published by Bloodaxe

The Holly and the Ivy

Performed by Steeleye Span

How to Paint the Perfect Christmas

By Miroslav Holub,

translated by Iain Milner and George Theiner

From Miroslav Holub: Selected Poems, translated by Ian Milner and George Theiner

Published by Penguin

The Journey of the Magi

By TS Eliot

from Collected Poems

Published by Faber & Faber

In the Bleak Midwinter

By Christina Rossetti

Performed by Bert Jansch

Winter (extract from ‘The Seasons’)

by James Thomson

From James Thomson: Poetical Works

Published by Oxford University Press

Those Winter Sundays

By Robert Hayden

From The Oxford Book of American Poetry

Published by Oxford University Press

An Old Man’s Winter Night

By Robert Frost

From The Poetry of Robert Frost

Published by Jonathan Cape

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening

By Robert Frost

From The Poetry of Robert Frost

Published by Jonathan Cape

‘When Icicles Hang’ from ‘Love’s Labour Lost’

by William Shakespeare

London Snow

by Robert Bridges

From: Robert Bridges’ Poetical Works

Published by Oxford University Press

Now Winter Nights Enlarge

By Thomas Campion

From The Oxford Book of Sixteenth Century Verse

Published by Oxford University Press

Credit

RoleContributor
PresenterRoger McGough

Broadcasts

  • Sun 18 Dec 201616:30
  • Tue 27 Dec 201623:30

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