An audio resource that contains 21 poems on climate change. Compiled by UK poet laureate, Carol Ann Duffy, the resource provides audio files on themes of climate change by renowned poets, narrated by celebrities. The resource includes the following poems read by different celebrities:
- James Franco reads ‘Causeway’ by Matthew Hollis
- Jeremy Irons reads ‘Storm’ by Michael Longley
- Ruth Wilson reads ‘Vertigo’ by Alice Oswald
- Gabriel Byrne reads ‘Zoological Positivism Blues’ by Paul Muldoon
- Michael Sheen reads ‘Scratching for Metaphor in the Somerset Coalfields’ by Sean Borodale
- Kelly Macdonald reads ‘Extinction’ by Jackie Kay
- Maxine Peake reads ‘A Mancunian Taxi-driver Foresees His Death’ by Michael Symmons Roberts
- Tamsin Greig reads ‘Last Snowman’ by Simon Armitage
- Iain Glen reads ‘Nostalgia’ by Don Paterson
- Iwan Rheon reads ‘Cantre’r Gwaelod*’ by Gillian Clarke
- James Franco reads ‘Still like with Sea Pinks and High Tide’ by Maura Dooley
- Jeremy Irons reads ‘Turbines in January’ by Colette Bryce
- Ruth Wilson reads ‘Silent Sea’ by Rachael Boast
- Gabriel Byrne reads ‘The Solace of Artemis’ by Paula Meehan
- Michael Sheen reads ‘The Rhinoceros’ by Robert Minhinnick
- Kelly Macdonald reads ‘X’ by Imtiaz Dharkar
- Maxine Peake reads ‘Doggerland’ by Jo Bell
- Tamsin Greig reads ‘A Language of Change’ by David Sergeant
- Iain Glen reads ‘California Dreaming’ by Lachlan McKinnon
- Gabriel Byrne reads ‘Late Sentinels’ by Peter Fallon
- James Franco reads ‘I was Born into a World’ by James Franco
Both audio mp3 and text versions of the poems are available on the website
Students will learn about climate change through the use of poetry. They will also understand the techniques involved in writing and analysing poetry.
Use this tool to help your students find answers to:
- How is climate change portrayed in modern poetry?
- How do you analyse a poem?
About the Tool
Tool Name | ‘Our melting, shifting liquid world’: celebrities read poems on climate change |
Discipline | Humanities |
Topic(s) in Discipline | Poetry, Literature |
Climate Topic | Climate and Society |
Type of tool | Reading, Audio |
Grade Level | High school, Undergraduate |
Location | Global |
Language | English |
Translation | |
Developed by | Carol Ann Duffy |
Hosted at | The Guardian |
Link | Audio Link |
Access | Online/Offline |
Computer Skills | Basic |