Director David Lowery conjures up visual wonders and metaphysical mysteries from the anonymously authored 14th-century chivalric poemChrist’s sacrifice and the erotic death-wish of earthly glory: these are the components of this freaky folk horror from…
Poem of the week: Thames by John Challis
Bobbing and jostling with assorted fragments, London’s unsettled river here loses and finds its human pastThamesAfter a day of keeping tugs and waste disposal barges,sailing racers, showboats and commuter clippers afloat,the Thames turns inwardly to fi…
John Cooper Clarke: ‘I draw the line at flapjack, falafel and tripe’
The poet relates tales of his childhood, run-ins with Bernard Manning – and explains why he wishes Ken Loach would lighten upDr John Cooper Clarke, Salford’s favourite son, arrives in the whitewashed upper room of St John near London’s Smithfield meat …
“the alchemy of total opposites”
Soprano Jóna G. Kolbrúnardóttir sings Jóhann Jóhannsson’s “Odi et Amo” from the album Englabörn, accompanied by the Icelandic Symphony Orchestra. Usually when the piece is performed, the Latin poem by Catullus is sung by a computer and played off a tap…
A little bird told me: how a magpie taught me I could be a father
Charlie Gilmour never wanted to have children – his father had abandoned him at six months and he feared he’d do the same. But then a magpie came into his life and changed everythingIt wasn’t long after our wedding – on our New Forest honeymoon, in fac…
Ursula LeGuin, Jacqueline Jackson, and the Wooden Woman
A previously unpublished poem by Ursula LeGuin has just appeared on the web. You can learn much more about Jacqueline Dougan Jackson, children’s author and college professor, on her website. A few of the many previous posts on LeGuin: here, here, and h…
Poem of the week: The Red Poppy by Louise Glück
This poem by the Nobel laureate is a fierce short parable about environmental devastationThe Red PoppyThe great thingis not havinga mind. Feelings:oh, I have those; theygovern me. I havea lord in heavencalled the sun, and openfor him, showing himthe fi…
How Do I Love Thee In the Aughts and Beyond?
Nothing Beats a Fountain Pen by kartikay.sahay (cc by-nc)In Ask Metafilter, pleasebekind asks “Can you recommend any contemporary love poems or poetry collections?” … I would really like to read more works by women and queer poets, as well as poets o…
The Gospel of Philip K. Dick & thepostarchive
The Gospel of Phillip K. Dick from thepostarchive, the latter of which is an incredible and ongoing labor of love compiled by a self described ”NB PoC trying archivist collecting between and through institutions.” Wherein you can find for now, among s…
‘Thanks for your help, Sticky’: Michael Rosen on learning to walk again after Covid
His traumatic experience with coronavirus inspired the author’s new children’s book – about the ‘friend’ he leaned onIt was the tweet that let the world know Michael Rosen was back on form and on the mend. “My wheelchair days are over. Stick now. Stick…