WN Herbert
from The Essay Hosted by BBC Radio 3
There are 43 tidal islands around the UK, accessible just briefly each day, along beguiling and perilous paths. As the tide retreats, five writers walk their favourite causeway to islands of refuge, pilgrimage, magic and glamour. Today, WN Herbert follows in the footsteps of pilgrims to Lindisfarne and reflects on the causeway connecting to a meditational space and how we are all now connected by various versions of a tidal causeway, advancing and retreating through social media. Across the series: Claire McGowan sees time change as she enters the freezing waters off Burgh Island and sips cocktails in the art deco hotel bar. Ben Cottam almost gets stuck in the mud as he searches for the grave of a black slave and questions his family’s past at Sunderland Point. And between kite surfers and dog walkers, Patrick Gale is suspended between two worlds as he follows the S shaped causeway, shaped by relentless tides and currents to St Michael’s Mount. Evie Wyld boards the ferry at Lymington pier and retraces a path well-travelled in her childhood -the Western Yar on the Isle of Wight. As sea levels rise and the sands shift, causeways are in flux. The essayists draw us down onto the sands, revealing what these liminal routes mean to both them and the cultural history of the UK. Producer: Mohini Patel
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