Pandemic Poems

Just before lockdown, Samuel West (a British actor) asked his twitter followers what poems they’d like him to read for them. He was driven by a need to do something – the play he was about to perform in was cancelled – and a desire to offer something of meaning to people.

Hundreds of people sent suggestions, and Sam enlisted other readers. Readers of colour for poems by writers of colour, and women to read poems by women, (the first of my selection) but also a range of voices to speak lines which range from the classics and household names to song lyrics and children’s favourites.

Each reading is set in a brief context which adds something to the meaning and also highlights the difference between normal workaday speech and the polished, crafted jewel of the poem itself.

Listen with caution though: It is through poetry that ideas take the shortest route to the heart, cutting through the insulation and connecting us with the live wire of feeling.

Try this one:

I’ve spent a lot of time in nature over the past six months. I’m no better at identifying birdsong, but this poems captures the bittersweet joy of it.

Although there were lots of autumn poems to pick from, this one spoke to me, I hope you’ll like it. You can find all the poems on Soundcloud.