Elizabeth Ludlow and Amanda Vernon

Adelaide Anne Procter: Victorian Poetry, Faith and Fundraising

Education EN ↓ 5 episodes

In this series, hosts Elizabeth Ludlow and Amanda Vernon commemorate the life and work of Victorian poet and activist Adelaide Anne Procter (1825-64). While Procter was a bestselling poet in the nineteenth century, she is not as well remembered now. Through conversations with experts in academia and the charity sector, this podcast reflects on the significance of her poetry, journalism, editing work, and social activism and thinks about how her writings might connect with us today.

Author

Elizabeth Ludlow and Amanda Vernon

Episodes

Episode 5: Reading Procter today 27.11.2025 30:46

In this final episode, Lizzie and Amanda are joined by Professor Josie Billington from the University of Liverpool to discuss the powerful experiences of collective reading and to address how readers might approach Procter today. They discuss Josie’s work with The Reader , the UK’s biggest Shared Reading charity and share reflections on two of Procter’s poems, ‘Old Echoes’ and ‘Homeless’. To...

Episode 4: Activism, Charity, and Fundraising 20.11.2025 30:32

Amanda and Lizzie are joined by the Head of Community and Events at the Providence Row Charity , Maria O’Donoghue and journalist and scholar Professor Lesa Scholl. They explore Procter’s activism, her early involvement in Providence Row night refuge for women and children, and her publication, A Chaplet of Verses (1862), which she wrote to raise both awareness and funds for the refuge. With Maria,...

Episode 3: Feminism and Print Culture 13.11.2025 33:48

In the first part of this episode, Lizzie and Amanda are joined by Dr Alex Round to find out more about Procter’s close friend Bessie Parkes and the feminist circles in which both women moved and wrote. In the second part, they speak to Professor James Mussell from the University of Leeds about a publication that both Procter and Parkes were involved in, The English Woman’s Journal (digitalise...

Episode 2: Faith in Poetry 06.11.2025 29:23

In this episode, Amanda and Lizzie are joined by Professor Emma Mason from the University of Warwick to discuss Procter’s Roman Catholic faith. They discover the radical aspects of Procter’s faith, reflect on her understanding and representation of emotion in her poetry, and consider the significance of the Virgin Mary in Procter’s faith and poetry. Poems discussed include ‘Incompleteness’ a...

Episode 1: Introduction 28.10.2025 22:17

The hosts, Dr. Elizabeth Ludlow and Dr. Amanda Vernon introduce their new five-part podcast series, designed to celebrate Victorian poet and activist Adelaide Anne Procter (1825-64) in her bicentenary year. In this episode, they give a taster of what’s to come in the four episodes that follow this and the themes that will be covered, including faith, charity work and literary fundraising, femi...