The Poetaster

There's nothing Andrew likes more than a good nature poem, so Tim indulges him with "Hamlen Brook" by former American Poet Laureate Richard Wilbur. A lovely little celebration of the natural world with debts to Wordsworth, Clare, the metaphysical poets and possibly a touch of Henry Thoreau as well.

Tim and Andrew discuss what it takes to build a cathedral; who does the building; where our humanity comes from; and why a cathedral is not like AI.

Tim and Andrew consider the way love changes over the years, from youthful passion to aged tolerance and kindness, and how the special moments of one's life are like drops of water backlit by sunlight.

In Homer, the gods took the place of consciousness. For contemporary New Zealand poet Kate Camp, it's gulls. What's the connection? And why does the speaker of this poem like derelict piers gently mouldering away in the sea? Tim and Andrew offer their take on "Gulls".

Tim and Andrew bid farewell to Andrew's kitchen, at least for a few weeks, and indulge in a semi-professional recording studio. Full of the milk of human kindness as a result, Tim shrugs off his grumpy demeanour, and leads a discussion of the lifegiving qualities of the sun, as described by fellow curmudgeon Philip Larkin in his poem "Solar".

More poetry about art - this time from current Commonwealth Poet Laureate, Selina Tusitala Marsh, who is "pissed off" at Paul Gauguin's depictions of nude women on a Tahitian beach.

For Good Friday, Tim and Andy talk about another Easter poem, this time from twentieth-century surrealist David Gascoyne.

Tim is frantically doing his homework ahead of Easter celebrations, and is keen to bounce some ideas around about John Donne's poem "Crucifying". Metaphysical poets need a fair bit of unpacking but does this limit the emotional connection we feel with the poetry itself?