Triptych Conversations

The Masterpieces 1. Wendell Berry's DO NOT BE ASHAMED (1967) We had to rerecord this episode for several reasons (without changing the masterpieces), but this gave it added poignancy. The great farmer-poet Wendell Berry died in the intervening weeks (31st Aug 2026) at the age of 92 and so it was all the more special to focus on this poem, DO NOT BE ASHAMED . It’s one of the hundreds that he...

The Masterpieces 1. Midnight Mass (Mike Flannagan, 2021) Midnight Mass is a 7-part Netflix series that came out in 2021, created by horror aficionado Mike Flanagan. Which, for many of us is not exactly the greatest selling point. But bear with this, since there was method in Sophie’s madness for suggesting we watch this. For the purposes of the episode, we focused just on the first two episo...

The Masterpieces 1. Leif Enger's I CHEERFULLY REFUSE (2025) We start with a very up-to-date masterpiece this time:  Leif Enger’s 2025 novel I Cheerfully Refuse . Enger is perhaps not so well known on this side of the Atlantic, but he deserves to be. His writing is lyrical and evocative, and the world he creates for this novel is fascinating. It falls within the genre of dystopia but it wears...

The Masterpieces 1. Godzilla Minus One (2023) Godzilla Minus One is the latest in Japan’s long-running Godzilla franchise. But dispel all thought of dumb Hollywood monster-pics that revel in cheap thrills and facile redemptive arcs. This film, directed and co-written by Takashi Yamazaki,  is surprisingly arresting. It is characterised by scores of unforgettable images, genuine seriousness in...

The Masterpieces 1. "Assassins", The Crown ep 1:9 (2016) Peter Morgan has made his name, despite his explicit republicanism, from dramatising the House of Windsor. First on stage, then in cinema, and more recently in Netflix’s blockbuster monolith, The Crown . The latter’s production values are spectacular, and certainly in the first two seasons (I confess I gave up in season 3 as it s...

What happens when a young man battling Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (Matts Steen aka Ibelin) meets Guy Montag in Fahrenheit 451 and the joy riders of Gertler's 1916 painting Merry-Go-Round...

The Masterpieces 1. GODRIC by Frederick Buechner (1981) Frederick Buechner (1926-2022; pronounced ‘Beakner ‘) was an American Presbyterian minister, theologian and, most notably for our purposes, writer. He was prolific in both fiction (15 novels), poetry and non-fiction. He was heralded in his lifetime for his brilliance and creativity, though inevitably, his books have perhaps not ma...

The Masterpieces 1. The Yellow Wallpaper (1890) Charlotte Perkins Gilman (as she became after her second marriage) suffered intolerable hardships in the lead-up and aftermath of giving birth in 1885 to her only child, Katherine. Today, she would be swiftly diagnosed with severe postpartum depression, but of course in the 1880s and 90s, the concept was light years from a medic’s vocabulary. S...

The Masterpieces 1. Black Mirror 3:5 "Men Against Fire" (2016) Black Mirror is both a phenomenon and an outlier, one that has gained cult status in some quarters (though perhaps there’s a generational divide there? You’ll need to ask our producer Owen for more on that. He has views…). It started life on the UK’s once quite edgy and adventurous Channel 4, the brainchild of j...

The Masterpieces 1. Musée des Beaux Arts by W.H. Auden (1938) Wystan Auden (1908-1973) was British-American and one of the most celebrated poets of his generation. He would emigrate from the UK to the USA in 1939 on the eve of the Second World War (something for which many in the British establishment never forgave him). But before he crossed the Atlantic, he saw his role as a form of literary jou...

The Masterpieces 1. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind was first released in 2004 by French director Michel Gondry , having been written by Charlie Kaufman and Pierre Bismuth as well as Gondry (right, with  Carrey) . The cast is uniformly good, led by Jim Carrey (in a significant departure from his previous zany roles) and Kate Winslet (7 years after...

The Masterpieces 1. 'Baltimore' by The Tamlins (1979) Baltimore was the first big international hit for The Tamlins , a Jamaican reggae group founded in 1970 and renowned for their remarkable vocal skills. The original lineup was Carlton Smith, Junior Moore and Winston Morgan. From small beginnings in nightclubs, they became highly sought after by producers and singers alike for their rich harmoni...

The Masterpieces 1. Tchaikovsky's 4th Symphony: 1st movement (Russia, 1877-8) Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893) was a Russian composer during the Romantic era, one who seemed to straddle the musical worlds of east and west. He wrote music on a grand scale for operas, ballets and symphonies. His turbulent emotional life is born out in the clear turbulence of his music. The 4th Symphony was writt...

The Masterpieces 1. What Was I Made For? (Billie Eilish, Finneas, 2023) Written for the soundtrack of Barbie (dir. Greta Gerwig, 2023), What Was I Made For? stormed up the charts around the world, including reaching No. 1 in Australia, UK and Ireland. It won both a Grammy and an Oscar the following year. Billie Eilish shares writing credits for the song with her brother and frequent collaborator,...

The Masterpieces 1. The Greatest Night In Pop (2024) The Greatest Night in Pop is a Netflix documentary (2024, dir by Bao Nguyen) about the single night during which the charity single We Are The World was recorded. The song was written by Lionel Richie and Michael Jackson, and produced by Quincy Jones and Michael Omartian. The contributors included Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Wonder, Cyn...