Scottish Poetry Library Podcast

Nothing But The Poem - Robin Robertson

Winner of all three Forward Prizes for poetry, Robin Robertson has had seven collections of poetry published and holds the distinction of writing the only poem ever nominated for the Booker Prize: his epic 2018 work The Long Take.
"Robertson's emotional terrain is difficulty and guilt; often he writes as if his poems have arisen from a pact with the devil. The poems are clear-lined, sometimes hard-edged, and meticulously worked." - Deryn Rees-Jones
"The genius of this Scots poet is for finding the sensually charged moment ... and depicting it in language that is simultaneously spare and ample, and reminiscent of early Heaney or Hughes." - New Yorker
Regular podcast host Samuel Tongue, with the Friends of the SPL group, rolls up his sleeves and gets under the bonnet of two vintage Robin Robertson poems:
Cat, Failing
Swimming In the Woods

Nothing But The Poem - Jane Hirshfield

Jane Hirshfield has many admirers worldwide. She is as adored by her legion of fans as she is by her fellow poets. The Polish Nobel Prize winning poet, Wisława Szymborska, called her 'a poet very close to my heart'. Another Polish Nobel Laureate, Czesław Miłosz, commented on her 'profound empathy for the suffering of all beings'. Critics too shower praise on her work. Susan Mansfield writing in The Scotsman spoke of her 'poems of wisdom, steeped in a profound understanding of what it is to be human.'
In this episode of Nothing But The Poem, our regular podcast host Samuel Tongue reads and then discusses two wonderful Jane Hirshfield poems, and reports back from the monthly online meetup of the Friends of the SPL group who had a lively discussion around these poems.
Mathematics from Given Sugar, Given Salt (2001)
For What Binds Us from Of Gravity and Angels (1988)
 
 
 
 

Nothing But The Poem - Jack Gilbert

This edition of Nothing But The Poem features two poems by the American poet Jack Gilbert (1925-2012), both of which are included in Gilbert's penultimate collection 'Refusing Heaven'.
Our regular podcast host, Samuel Tongue, after discussing the poems with the Friends of the SPL group (who meet monthly on Zoom), takes his customary deep dive into the stanzas, lines, words and sounds.
“He takes himself away to a place more inward than is safe to go; from that awful silence and tightening, he returns to us poems of savage compassion.” - James Dickey, on Jack Gilbert
"The unique kernel of Gilbert’s poetry is its fearless exploration of the adult heart. It takes a moment to have a fling or write one good line, but sustaining authentic emotional participation, as Gilbert has in his life as a poet, is terrifying and hard, and is practically a lost art." - Sarah Manguso, The Poetry Foundation
The two poems by Jack Gilbert read and discussed on the podcast are:
1. Failing and Flying
2. How Much of That is Left in Me

In Conversation with Mohammed Moussa

Mohammed Moussa, a Palestinian freelance journalist and poet, was born and raised in the Gaza Strip. Growing up in this conflict-ridden region, he faced numerous challenges that shaped his perspective and fueled his passion for storytelling. Despite the hardships, Moussa found solace in literature and poetry, using them as outlets to express his experiences and emotions.
In this podcast, Mohammed Moussa is in conversation with Kevin Williamson. A discussion Kevin described as one of the most moving of his life.
Mohammed Moussa's newest collection The face before you: To write poetry on genocide (Leamington Books) is out in February 2026 and is available to buy from the SPL bookshop here. 

In Conversation With Valerie Gillies

In this special extended SPL podcast the poet Valerie Gillies discusses her life in poetry with the SPL's Samuel Tongue and Sukhema (aka Larry Butler) one of the SPL's founding members back in 1984. Their free ranging discussion touches on Poetry and Wellbeing - a motivating force for all three poets - as well as facilitating and structuring workshops, survivors poetry, writing prompts, muses, and some of the projects they've been involved with over the years. Valerie reads a number of her own poems.

From the Archive: Brian Turner. May 2014

Brian Turner is an American poet. He served for seven years in the U.S. Army, completing tours of duty in Bosnia-Herzegovina (1999-2000) before being sent in November 2003 to Iraq. He is the winner of the 2005 Beatrice Hawley Award for his debut, Here, Bullet, a collection of poems about his experience as a soldier during the Iraq War. In this podcast, Turner talks to Jennifer Williams about the poetry that came out of his experiences in the US military, and how poetry can be a line thrown out by the breath or a question planted inside a reader.
Recorded in association with StAnza, Scotland’s International Poetry Festival at StAnza 2014.
Many thanks to James Iremonger (www.jamesiremonger.co.uk) for the podcast music.

From the Archive: Antonio Ochoa and Eduardo Milán. July 2013

In this podcast from July 2013, former SPL Programme Manager Jennifer Williams talks to poet, teacher and editor Antonio Ochoa about living and working with, translating and editing the Uruguayan poet Eduardo Milan. Antonio reads some of Eduardo’s poems as well as his own, in both Spanish and English.

Nothing But The Poem - Andrea Gibson

When Andrea Gibson died from cancer in 2025 it was a huge loss to the poetry community worldwide. Her poetry resonated deeply with a wide audience of readers and inspired many of her fellow poets. In an essay/tribute to Andrea on the Poetry Foundation website, Amber Tamblyn wrote:
"Andrea was that rare breed of writer whose deep compassion for the human condition was limitless, potent, and unequivocal. Their poems were diverse and wide-ranging in theme, and they wrote with unvarnished honesty and integrity about American racism, and the privileges of being white, albeit queer..."
In this edition of Nothing But The Poem two of Andrea's poems are featured. Our regular podcast host, Samuel Tongue, after discussing the poems with the Friends of the SPL group who meet monthly on Zoom, takes his customary deep dive.
The two poems by Andrea Gibson read on the podcast, and discussed in depth, are:
1. IN THE CHEMO ROOM, I WEAR MITTENS MADE OF ICE SO I DON'T LOSE MY FINGERNAILS. BUT I TOOK A RISK TODAY TO WRITE THIS DOWN. (Read the poem here).
2. INSTEAD OF DEPRESSION (Read the poem here).

From the Archive: Far Off Places. October 2014

In 2014 we chatted to the editors of Far Off Places, a young literary magazine, brave in its outlook and willing to seek connections between genres and art forms. Editors Annie Rutherford and Ceris Aston, and contributing poet Niall Foley, talk about submissions, creepy poetry tastes and the lure of merchandise.
Far Off Places was a magazine featuring creative writing and illustration which ran from 2013 to 2018.

From the Archive: Ilyse Kusnetz. May 2014

In this podcast Jennifer Williams talks to Ilyse Kusnetz (1966—2016) who was visiting Scotland during the StAnza Festival 2014. They talk about when to put the poem in the closet, feminism and politics in poetry and what the Scottish Referendum looks like from across the Atlantic. Before her death in 2016, she taught English and Creative Writing at Valencia College in Orlando, where she lived with her husband, the poet Brian Turner. Ilyse Kusnetz was the winner of the 2014 T. S. Eliot Prize for Poetry for her collection Small Hours.
Music by James Iremonger.
This podcast was recorded in association with StAnza, Scotland’s International Poetry Festival.