The Verb

This week's Verb looks at writing from the Caribbean diaspora.The poet Roger Robinson won the T.S. Eliot award and the Ondaatje prize for his collection 'A Portable Paradise' (Peepal Tree). Roger explains how the title poem, with it's theme of finding paradise inside yourself, has been taken to heart by many in the age of Covid-19.Ingrid Persaud won the BBC National Short Story Award in 2018, and the Commonwealth Short Story Prize in 2017, and Love After Love (Faber) is her debut novel. Set in Trinidad, the novel centers on an unconventional family unit and examines questions of unconditional love and the legacy of violence.Writer, Poet and Theatre Maker Malika Booker was the first Poet in Residence at the Royal Shakespeare Company. Her work in progress involves marrying the language King James Bible with the languages and culture of the Caribbean.Jacob Sam La Rose was born in the UK and his family are from Guyana. He has always felt he inhabits a liminal space between these cultures which has inspired his poetry. His collection, Breaking The Silence is published by Bloodaxe. Jacob shares brand new poems 'The Truth and Nothing But' and 'For The Young Men Popping Wheelies on Southwark Street in Late Afternoon Traffic' Presenter: Ian McMillan Producer: Cecile Wright

A few months ago, writing an email to a colleague that starts 'I hope you are safe in these extraordinary times' would have been an unusual thing to do, but it very quickly became 'the new normal'. This week Ian McMillan and guests look at the many ways in which our language has adapted to fit our our new routines, from Zooming with friends to socially distancing in supermarkets.Rob Drummond, The Verb's resident linguist has been keeping an ear out for the neologisms of our time, and Kate Clanchy presents some of the work written by her students as part of their weekly online poetry classes.With more time to read, many of us are finding solace in our bookshelves, and discovering new resonances in classic texts. In a piece especially recorded for The Verb, Julie Hesmondhalgh reads from Ruth, by Elizabeth Gaskell, accompanied by Nicholas Howson & Ruth Montgomery from the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, just two of the many musicians who have turned their creative energies towards new ways to perform and collaborate.We also hear from just a few of the poets and performers responding to Lockdown - Hollie McNish, Michael Dickman, and Morgan Bassichis.Presenter: Ian McMillan Producer: Jessica Treen

Since her first collection, The Thing in the Gap-Stone Stile, won the Forward Prize for Best First Collection in 1996, Alice Oswald has been a major voice in UK poetry, with collections that frequently examine the natural world. In 2002 she won the T.S. Eliot Prize for 'Dart', a book-length poem telling the story of Devon's River Dart. Her latest collection, 'Nobody', is inspired by The Odyssey.Fiona Sampson has just published a new of poetry 'Come Down', which is situated in two contrasting landscapes in Hertfordshire and Australia. Her previous work, 'Limestone Country (Little Toller), is also rooted in place, telling personal stories about four particular limestone landscapes: a farming hamlet in Perigord, France, the Karst region of Slovenia, Coleshill, a rural parish in Oxfordshire, and Jerusalem.Presenter: Ian McMillan Producer: Cecile Wright

Our annual trip to the BBC Tent at the Hay Festival is one of the highlights of the Verb calendar. This week Ian McMillan is joined by just a few of the fantastic writers who are keeping the spirit of the festival alive with Digital Hay Festival, which runs until the 31st May 2020. Ian's guests are Inua Ellams, who will be performing from his show 'An Evening with An Immigrant', a personal story - and updating it to reflect impact of the global pandemic. James Shapiro discusses his latest book 'Shakespeare in a Divided America', and Kapka Kassbova reads from 'To the Lake'. And finally we're joined by the director of the Hay Festival, Peter Florence, on how they hope to preserve some of the magic of the festival in the digital space. For information on how to take part in the digital festival please visit the Hay website: hayfestival.com/homePresenter: Ian McMillan Producer: Cecile Wright

How have humans interpreted and been inspired by birdsong? Ian is joined by musician and song collector Sam Lee, who discusses the magic that happens on his annual Singing with Nightingale walks, TS Eliot award winning poet Jen Hadfield on the birds of her beloved Shetland and Richard Smyth, author of 'A Sweet Wild Note' reminds us that birdsong really has very little to do with music.Presenter: Ian McMillan Producer: Cecile Wright

This week The Verb is considering language, reflection and mirrors. There's a brand new commission from our palindromic poet regular Ira Lightman and joining us from San Francisco is Rebecca Solnit on her new memoir 'Recollections of my non-existence' (Granta)Presenter: Ian McMillan Producer: Cecile Wright

Ian McMillan is joined by guests Alan Titchmarsh and Patience Agbabi and there's the first in a brand new series of Verb Dramas. Presenter: Ian McMillan Producer: Cecile Wright

This week, Ian McMillan is joined from a distance by his guests, who are all in their own homes. Together they discuss the changing language we are all using as we try to keep friendships alive whilst isolating. There's a brand new poem from Kate Fox, advice from someone used to working alone from A.L Kennedy, John Carey takes us through some poetry that might hold solace for us, Caroline Bird reads a poem that is helping her, and Boo Hewerdine performs a song commissioned especially for The VerbPresenter: Ian McMillan Producer: Cecile Wright

Ian McMillan explores African writing with Maaza Mengiste, Ekow Eshun, Jennifer Makumbi and Ellah Wakatama.Presenter: Ian McMillan Producer: Cecile Wright

This week, the late-night language lock-in is feeling uncertain with Shaun Usher, Jo Neary and Jude Rogers.