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Adventures in Poetry

Programme exploring the background, effect and lasting appeal of some well-loved poems

Adventures in Poetry: Series 12

Adventures in Poetry: Series 12: Episode 2: The Raven

Factual: Arts, Culture & the Media

Episode 2

Episode 2: The Raven

Series 12

The Raven

BBC Radio 4 - Adventures in Poetry, Series 12, The Raven

Peggy Reynolds explores Edgar Allan Poe's iconic gothic poem.

Peggy Reynolds explores Edgar Allan Poe's iconic gothic poem that has been inspiring film makers and horror writers since it was first published over 160 years ago.

Peggy Reynolds explores one of the most iconic poems ever published. Over 160 years since its first appearance, it is still inspiring film makers, horror writers and theatre directors to produce their own interpretations. Yet many loathed the poem, including W.B Yeats who said it was insincere and vulgar. The poem granted its author instant fame, yet he spent most of his life in poverty. To try and capitalise on its success he wrote an essay about its composition, which many believe to imbued with an over inflated sense of mastery. The poet attracted nearly as much controversy as his poem. An inveterate gambler, alcoholic and occasional drug abuser, he was a philanderer whose most popular poems were about his devotion to a lost love. There's also a demonic bird involved. Need any more clues? Nevermore
With guests including the poet and falconer Helen Macdonald, Professor of English John Sutherland, the poet Jay Parini, the raven master at the Tower of London and occasional appearances by feathered friends, Peggy Reynolds unpicks Edgar Allan Poe's The Raven.

Producer: Sarah Langan.

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Peggy Reynolds explores the background, effect and lasting appeal of some well-loved poems

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Adventures in Poetry

Series 12

Episode 2: The Raven

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