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Poems of Mayo

The Essay by BBC

Feb 13, 202513:20Society & Culture

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 nu...

About This Episode

Poems of Mayo is an episode from The Essay by BBC. 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...

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Episode Details

Published Feb 13, 2025, 13:20 long, audio available.

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What is Poems of Mayo about?

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 Hutchins Michael Longley's Life of Poetry is a Rockfinch production for BBC Radio 3.

Where can I listen to Poems of Mayo?

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Which podcast is Poems of Mayo from?

Poems of Mayo is an episode from The Essay by BBC.

How long is this episode?

This episode is 13:20 long.

When was this episode published?

This episode was published on Feb 13, 2025.

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Are there related episodes from The Essay?

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Where can I listen to Poems of Mayo?

You can listen to Poems of Mayo on this page when the episode audio is available from the podcast feed.

Which podcast is this episode from?

Poems of Mayo is from The Essay by BBC.

What are the episode details?

Published Feb 13, 2025 and 13:20 long