Henry Vaughan

There is no portrait of Metaphysical poet Henry Vaughan (1621-95), and little documentation of his life. However, at the tercentenary of his death his writing remains as influential as ever and the writer continues to fascinate ...

Herbert Howells

Paul Spicer

Composer, organist, teacher, writer and broadcaster, Herbert Howells (1892-1983) is a major figure in English music. His three choral masterpieces, Hymnus Paradisi, the Stabat Mater and Missa Sabrinensis, are classics, while his ecclesiastical music - quite possiblly sung daily in Britain - is the greatest contribution to Anglican Church music of the twentieth century ...

Housman, A. E.

Keith Jebb


The poetry of A.E. Housman is being redisovered. His volume A Shropshire Lad led him to be considered the finest poet in England. Housman’s work, popular, accessible, pessimistic, fell from favour in the post-war period but as his times are reassessed there is a growing interest in his authentic voice ...