In 1724 Margaret Dickson was sentenced to death for alleged infanticide, hanged from a gibbet in the Grassmarket in Edinburgh, pronounced dead—and then woke up a few hours later complaining of a sore neck. She was scorned in street ballads and

Invictus

Jan 24th, 2021 20m 28s

“I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul.” Long before words like “affirmation” or “motivational” were commonplace, before “inspirational” became an industry, William Ernest Henley—who suffered lifelong illness, amputation, pove

Hunting the Wren

Dec 26th, 2020 23m 28s

December 26th is known by many names, including “Wren Day.” Named after an ancient ritual known as Hunting the Wren, its roots lie in sun-worship and symbolic sacrifice; the death of the old year and the birth of the new. “The wren, the wren, t

When Wombats Do Inspire

Nov 21st, 2020 26m 9s

Poet and painter Dante Gabriel Rossetti was obsessed with wombats, as were his siblings and the members of the Pre-Raphaelite movement he founded. Top, the wombat Rossetti acquired in 1869, became legendary in their circle, inspiring poems and

For the Futurians

Oct 28th, 2020 19m 18s

What would you include in a time capsule? Any favorite poems come to mind? They didn’t for the executives of Westinghouse, who created a time capsule for the 1939 World’s Fair that was meant to last 5000 years, but didn’t even include Shakespea

King of Kings

Sep 17th, 2020 15m 30s

Time erodes all earthly power and its trappings; though that didn’t stop European countries in the early 19th century from racing to grab up Egypt’s fallen monuments, trying to claim ancient glories for their own. One misidentified fragment in

When I Am An Old Woman I Shall Wear Purple

Aug 17th, 2020 13m 56s

Big things can come from humble beginnings. That was the case for Jenny Joseph’s poem “Warning,” which began life as a throwaway, according to the poet. Yet it ended up its own industry, being the basis for a Broadway musical, a society with ov

Trailer

Introducing the Rime Podcast

Aug 17th, 2020 3m 25s

Poems are the gateway to incredible stories here at the Rime podcast. You don’t even have to be interested in poetry itself to enjoy the stories that poet MJ Millington will be sharing, which are amazing true tales from the history of poetry. O

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