The Queen's Library: A podcast episode to mark the occasion of the Platinum Jubilee celebrated across the UK today

The image above shows The Queen in the Royal Library at Windsor Castle in 1982. The Royal Library is a treasure trove of more than 50,000 books and manuscripts collected by British monarchs over the centuries. (c) Royal Collection Trust

This BBC Podcast, presented by Ian McMillan, The Verb, Radio 3’s showcase for the best in new poetry, writing and performance, hosts a special programme recorded in The Queen’s Library at Windsor Castle.
Poet Laureate Simon Armitage performs a new work for the occasion, and the podcast explores rare poetic gems from the collection – annotated editions gifted to the library by his Laureate predecessors Wordsworth and Tennyson. Ian McMillan will discuss the collection with the Royal Librarian, Stella Panayotova.

The team will be joined by Grace Nichols, recipient of the Queen's Gold Medal for Poetry in 2021 and the Young People's Laureate for London, Theresa Lola, linking verse past and present in an intimate setting with an astonishing history.