The Poet Laureate has gone to his Shed

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The Poet Laureate Has Gone to His Shed

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Poet Laureate Simon Armitage talks to guests about life, language and music in his shed.

Poet Laureate Simon Armitage is a former probation officer, DJ and poet celebrated for his witty and profound take on modern life. He writes in the shed in his garden, and in this podcast he invites guests to join him to talk about poetry, creativity, music, art, sheds, sherry and the countryside.

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The Poet Laureate Has Gone to His Shed: Johnny Marr

Johnny Marr

BBC Radio 4 - The Poet Laureate Has Gone to His Shed, Johnny Marr

Johnny Marr, musician, songwriter and guitarist with The Smiths talks to Simon Armitage.

Simon Armitage opens the doors of his writing shed in the Pennine Hills to talk to Johnny Marr, who first came to fame in the 80s as the guitarist and co-songwriter of The Smiths.

If the poets of the past sat in their garrets dipping their quills in ink and waiting for inspiration to strike, our current Poet Laureate Simon Armitage has a more mundane and domestic arrangement. From his wooden shed in the garden, surrounded on all sides by the Pennine Hills and the Pennine weather, this summer he's working on a set of haikus inspired by the landscape around him and the people who drop by. 
Any distraction is welcome, even encouraged, to talk about poetry, creativity, music, art, sheds, sherry, music and the countryside. 

To kick off the new series Johnny Marr, who first achieved fame as the guitarist and co-songwriter of The Smiths, takes the trip over the Pennines from Manchester to visit the shed, along with his new twelve-string guitar. In a conversation punctuated by snatches of Smiths songs, Johnny Marr talks about his life in music and gives the Poet Laureate, a huge fan of The Smiths, a private run-through of chord sequences from his back catalogue.

Producer Susan Roberts

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The Poet Laureate Has Gone to His Shed

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