A Memory Lost

The Peasant Poet of Northampton, John Clare shot to poetic fame and met the literary giants of his day, including Coleridge and Charles Lamb. His first book was a bestseller but within a few years he was forgotten. His physical and mental health collapsed and he spent the last 22 years of his life in a lunatic asylum. There, he continued writing until his death in 1864. Simon Rae uses Clare’s words to retell his tragic story, with Jack Shepherd as Clare.

Music by Gary Yershon.

Producer Susan Roberts