Writers from around the world - Anne Carson, Joe Dunthorne and Binyavanga Wainana - read letters on the theme of imprisonment, inspired by Oscar Wilde’s De Profundis. Introduced by the novelist Gillian Slovo.
Oscar Wilde was incarcerated in Reading Prison between 1895 and 1897, enduring the Separate System, a harsh penal regime designed to eliminate any contact between prisoners. Wilde’s imprisonment led to one of his last great works - De Profundis, an extended letter to his lover Lord Alfred Douglas written by Wilde in his prison cell.
Produced by Barney Rowntree and Jeremy Mortimer
Executive Producer: Joby Waldman
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