Written and presented by Matthew Bevis and Jasmine Jagger. This series of 4 short programmes considers the life and achievements of Edward Lear and studies how the poet's feelings are explored in his work. The series showcases the astonishing range of Lear's abilities by looking at his nonsense writing alongside many other forms of expression (letters, diaries, drawings, and paintings).
A talk given at the Ashmolean Museum on Edward Lear’s life, art, and poetry. Edward Lear’s achievements – as a nonsense poet, scientific illustrator, and landscape painter – have often been studied in isolation from each other. This lecture explores the remarkable interconnections between them,...
Published 05/10/18
'He weeps by the side of the ocean, He weeps on the top of the hill', the poet wrote of himself in 'How Pleasant to Know Mr Lear'. This programme considers when and why people cry in Lear's work, and considers how - or how far - tears offer catharsis.
Published 04/04/18
Lear once spoke of 'this ludicrously whirligig life which one suffers from first and laughs at afterwards.' This programme studies the intertwining of the laughable and the lamentable in Lear's work, examining how serio-comic forms of expression explore mixed feelings.
Published 04/04/18