The British Council's Peter Orr and Woodberry Poetry Room's Jack Sweeney collaborated on the Poet Speaks series throughout the 1960s. The intent was to capture the poet as a person, relaxed and unrehearsed. In addition, by recording and having copies archived in London and Cambridge, Mass., it would ensure that the legacy of the spoken word was accessible in intellectual environments internationally.
The majority of the readings and interviews took place at the BBC's offices at Albion House, 55 New Oxford Street, London, pictured here.
Did you know that Sylvia Plath was the only American woman (that I could find) who read poems and was interviewed in the Poet Speaks series? Plath's reading and interview was held on 30 October 1962.
In 1966, a selection of interviews was published under the title The Poet Speaks. Simultaneously, selected recordings were released by Argo on a series long playing records. Plath appears with Thom Gunn, Ted Hughes, and Peter Redgrove. Plath's poems included on this LP are: "Daddy", "Lady Lazarus", "Fever 103", and "Ariel".
The majority of the readings and interviews took place at the BBC's offices at Albion House, 55 New Oxford Street, London, pictured here.
Did you know that Sylvia Plath was the only American woman (that I could find) who read poems and was interviewed in the Poet Speaks series? Plath's reading and interview was held on 30 October 1962.
In 1966, a selection of interviews was published under the title The Poet Speaks. Simultaneously, selected recordings were released by Argo on a series long playing records. Plath appears with Thom Gunn, Ted Hughes, and Peter Redgrove. Plath's poems included on this LP are: "Daddy", "Lady Lazarus", "Fever 103", and "Ariel".