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基本説明
New in paperback. Hardcover was published in 2008.
Full Description
The book represent a genuine and important discovery in the canon of Betjeman's poems, often considered closed with the publication of the "Complete Poems". Between 1953-57, John Betjeman read a series of poems on "The Faith in the West" program airing on the BBC's West of England Home Service. This series, called "Poems in the Porch", was so popular that Betjeman received constant requests to publish the poems. Although he deprecatingly referred to the poems as mere 'verses', Betjeman at last capitulated to the public. The result was a slim volume of six poems, entitled Poems in the Porch. What few people now realize is that Betjeman read at least 20 original poems on the radio in this series, perhaps even more, although owing to the haphazard records of both the BBC and Betjeman himself it is impossible to reconstruct with complete accuracy the history of this series. Kevin Gardner has been able to identify and collect 26 of these poems and has written a fascinating introductory essay recounting the story of Betjeman as a radio poet and discussing the artistry of these poems. Most have never been published and currently exist only in manuscript.
Despite the gap between the BBC records on the one hand and the printed and manuscript texts on the other, Gardner has been able to construct a relatively reliable edition of "Betjeman's Poems in the Porch".
Contents
Preface; Introduction; The Poems in the Porch; Diary of a Church Mouse; Electric Light and Heating; Christmas; Blame the Vicar; Septuagesima; Churchyards; The Friends of the Cathedral; The Bishop; Advent Bells; The Conversion of St Paul; The Lenten Season; The Parochial Church Council Sunday Morning; Advent 1955 T; he Nativity Play; Three Crosses; Honest Doubt; St Petroc; Not Necessarily Leeds; The St. Paul's Appeal; The Visiting Vicar; God Bless the Church of England; Appendix; Bibliography.
