Paul Farley on the Starling
Poet Paul Farley on the dazzling mimicry and plumage of the starling.
An episode of the Tweet of the Day podcast, hosted by BBC Radio 4, titled "Paul Farley on the Starling" was published on December 7, 2025 and runs 1 minutes.
December 7, 2025 ·1m · Tweet of the Day
Summary
In the season where starlings gather to murmurate in our winter skies, poet Paul Farley is admiring this dazzling bird up close. Every spring a pair of starlings used to nest in a hollow wall in the house where Paul grew up, and he never got tired of studying its dark iridescent plumage. Laying in bed at night Paul would hear the starlings' impressive mimicry, and remembers the sound of a radio being tuned and even human voices, imagining that these intelligent birds have been curiously studying us.Presented by Paul Farley and produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.This programme features a recording by Oliver Swift from Xeno-Canto (XC710439 - Common Starling)
Episode Description
In the season where starlings gather to murmurate in our winter skies, poet Paul Farley is admiring this dazzling bird up close. Every spring a pair of starlings used to nest in a hollow wall in the house where Paul grew up, and he never got tired of studying its dark iridescent plumage. Laying in bed at night Paul would hear the starlings' impressive mimicry, and remembers the sound of a radio being tuned and even human voices, imagining that these intelligent birds have been curiously studying us.
Presented by Paul Farley and produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.
This programme features a recording by Oliver Swift from Xeno-Canto (XC710439 - Common Starling)