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Episode details

World Service,29 Aug 2017,26 mins

Lorna Goodison: Jamaican Poet Laureate

In the Studio

Available for over a year

Lorna Goodison has recently been appointed Poet Laureate of Jamaica and has decided to mark her first Emancipation Day in the role with a special poem. The public holiday of Emancipation Day on the 1st of August commemorates the end of slavery in Jamaica and as a poet who feels it’s her duty to document the slave history of her native island in her work, this day is a very important one for Lorna, both professionally and personally – it’s also her birthday. The BBC’s Andrea Kidd follows Lorna as she creates a poem fit for a nation. As someone who can spend years crafting a poem, will she meet her deadline?

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