The Essay Podcast
Leading writers on arts, history, philosophy, science, religion and beyond, themed across a week - insight, opinion and intellectual surprise.
Episodes to download
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Long, Slow Journey through the Night—Let There Be Dark
Thu 19 Dec 2013
4/5 Rupert Goodwins tries to find if technology can limit his isolation from blindness.
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Doctoring the Evidence—Let There Be Dark
Wed 18 Dec 2013
3/5 Rupert Goodwins reflects on the medical experience of losing his sight.
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Behind the Eyes—Let There Be Dark
Tue 17 Dec 2013
2/5 Writer Rupert Goodwins describes unexpected insights he gained as he lost his sight.
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Let There Be Dark—Let There Be Dark
Mon 16 Dec 2013
1/5 Rupert Goodwins on what going blind suddenly taught him about science, culture and life.
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Al-Farabi—The Islamic Golden Age
Fri 6 Dec 2013
10/20 Professor Peter Adamson discusses the great Muslim philosopher Al-Farabi.
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Al-Tabari—The Islamic Golden Age
Thu 5 Dec 2013
9/20 Hugh Kennedy discusses the life and times of the great historian of early Islam, al-Tabari
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Al-Kindi—The Islamic Golden Age
Wed 4 Dec 2013
8/20 Professor James Montgomery discusses the life and work of Arab philosopher Al-Kindi.
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Al-Khwarizmi—The Islamic Golden Age
Tue 3 Dec 2013
7/20 Jim Al-Khalili explores the legacy of mathematician and astronomer al-Khwarizmi.
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Rabia Balkhi and Mahsati Ganjavi—The Islamic Golden Age
Mon 2 Dec 2013
6/20 Narguess Farzad of SOAS discusses Persian poetesses Rabia Balkhi and Mahsati Ganjavi.
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Harun al-Rashid—The Islamic Golden Age
Fri 29 Nov 2013
5/20 Julia Bray explores the figure of Harun al-Rashid from the Thousand and One Night tales.
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Paper—The Islamic Golden Age
Thu 28 Nov 2013
4/20 Jonathan Bloom explains how Islamic scholars and thinkers became early adopters of paper.
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Imam Bukhari—The Islamic Golden Age
Wed 27 Nov 2013
3/20 Baroness Sayeeda Warsi gives her personal take on Persian scholar Imam Bukhari.
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Ali ibn Abi Talib—The Islamic Golden Age
Tue 26 Nov 2013
2/20 Professor Robert Gleave discusses Ali ibn Abi Talib and the origins of Shia Islam.
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The Establishment of the Islamic State—The Islamic Golden Age
Mon 25 Nov 2013
1/20 Professor Hugh Kennedy explains how the Islamic state was established.
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Emmy van Deurzen—The Existential Me
Fri 15 Nov 2013
5/5 Psychotherapist Emmy van Deurzen on how existentialism has shaped her life and work.
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Gary Walkow—The Existential Me
Thu 14 Nov 2013
4/5 Film-maker Gary Walkow reflects on how existential thinking has influenced his work.
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Michele Roberts—The Existential Me
Wed 13 Nov 2013
3/5 Michele Roberts on existentialist women writers and how these have influenced her own work
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Paul Hart—The Existential Me
Tue 12 Nov 2013
2/5 Theatre director Paul Hart considers the power and veracity of existentialist ideas.
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Naomi Alderman—The Existential Me
Mon 11 Nov 2013
1/5 Naomi Alderman on how existentialism affects the novels and computer games she creates.
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Glenn Patterson—If Walls Could Talk
Fri 18 Oct 2013
5/5 Novelist Glenn Patterson with a uniquely Belfast view of Derry, UK City of Culture 2013.
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Nuala Hayes—If Walls Could Talk
Thu 17 Oct 2013
4/5 Actress Nuala Hayes explores shirt-making and storytelling in Derry, UK City of Culture.
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Brian McGilloway—If Walls Could Talk
Wed 16 Oct 2013
3/5 Crime novelist Brian McGilloway explores how a city can shape a writer.
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Neil Cowley—If Walls Could Talk
Tue 15 Oct 2013
2/5 Composer Neil Cowley revisits his year as musician-in-residence for Derry-Londonderry.
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Susan McKay—If Walls Could Talk
Mon 14 Oct 2013
1/5 Journalist Susan McKay returns to her native Derry to ask what is a 'City of Culture'?
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Matthew Sweet—Sound of Cinema: You Ain't Heard Nothing Yet
Fri 4 Oct 2013
5/5 Matthew Sweet explores silence in film and the effect on sound of digital technology.
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David Thomson—Sound of Cinema: You Ain't Heard Nothing Yet
Thu 3 Oct 2013
4/5 Writer and film critic David Thomson explores how film composers create mood.
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Camille Paglia—Sound of Cinema: You Ain't Heard Nothing Yet
Wed 2 Oct 2013
3/5 Writer Camille Paglia discusses the film music which has inspired her since childhood.
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Miklos Rozsa—Sound of Cinema: You Ain't Heard Nothing Yet
Tue 1 Oct 2013
2/5 Novelist Jonathan Coe explores how composer Miklos Rozsa came to write for film.
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The Sounds of Early Cinema—Sound of Cinema: You Ain't Heard Nothing Yet
Mon 30 Sep 2013
1/5 Matthew Sweet discusses the sounds of cinema's beginnings.
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I Know Where I'm Going—Praising Powell and Pressburger
Fri 27 Sep 2013
5/5 AL Kennedy discusses the 1945 Powell and Pressburger film I Know Where I'm Going.
Death in Trieste
A 1760s murder still informs ideas about aesthetics, a certain sort of sex, and death.
Watch: My Deaf World
Five compelling experiences of what it is like to be deaf in 21st-century Britain.
The Book that Changed Me
Five figures from the arts and science introduce books that changed their lives and work.
Download The Essay
Download all the episodes from the series and listen at your leisure.
