Odes To Essex

Episode

Title

First
Broadcast

Repeated

Comments

Metropolitan Essex

20210125

20221121 (R3)

Kicking off the series exploring the joys of Essex, surely the most maligned and misunderstood of counties, singer-songwriter Billy Bragg reflects on the borderland between London and Essex that fuelled his childhood imagination

John Betjeman called Essex 'a stronger contrast of beauty and ugliness than any other southern English county'. But, known recently for the pneumonic blondes and diamond geezers of TV's The Only Way Is Essex, as well as the peroxided 'Essex Girls' of the 80s and the Tory-loving 'Basildon Man' of the 90s, Essex seems to have become a parody of itself. But Billy Bragg thinks otherwise...

Reader and writer: Billy Bragg is a singer, songwriter and activist.

Billy Bragg explores the London-Essex borderland that fuelled his childhood imagination.

Washed Up In Essex

20210126

20221122 (R3)

In the next in a series exploring the joys of Essex, surely the most overlooked and misunderstood of counties, AL Kennedy takes on a watery journey through the rivers, mudflats and reed beds of the county she now calls home.

Known recently for the pneumonic blondes and diamond geezers of television's The Only Way Is Essex, as well as the peroxided 'Essex Girls' of the 80s, Essex seems to have an image problem. John Betjeman called it 'a stronger contrast of beauty and ugliness than any other southern English county'. This series explores the contrasts of this boundary county, this interzone, which has become a parody of itself.

Reader and writer: AL Kennedy is an acclaimed novelist and short story writer.

Writer AL Kennedy takes us on a watery journey through the county she now calls home.

The Refusal Of Place

20210127

20221123 (R3)

In the next in a series exploring the joys of Essex, surely the most maligned and misunderstood of counties, writer and poet Lavinia Greenlaw takes us back to the formative landscape of her childhood - a place that she rejected for so long...

Reader and writer: Lavinia Greenlaw is an acclaimed poet and novelist.

Writer Lavinia Greenlaw takes us back to the formative landscape of her childhood.

Brightening From The East

20210100

20210128 (R3)
20221124 (R3)

In the next in a series celebrating the joys of Essex, surely the most maligned of counties, writer and social historian Ken Worpole explores Essex as a place of retreat and refuge.

Reader and writer: Ken Worpole is an acclaimed writer with books on architecture, landscape, planning, design, and social history. He was a founder-member of openDemocracy, and is a senior professor at The Cities Institute, London Metropolitan University.

Writer and social historian Ken Worpole introduces us to Essex's radical past.

05 LAST

The Essex Way

20210129

20221125 (R3)

In the last programme in a series celebrating the joys of Essex, surely the most maligned of counties, writer Gillian Darley explores the unsung delights of mid-Essex, with a trip along the Essex Way.

Reader and writer: Gillian Darley is the author of Excellent Essex. She is a writer, broadcaster and architectural campaigner, with an OBE for her services to the Built Environment and its Conservation.

Writer Gillian Darley celebrates the unsung and lesser-known delights of mid-Essex.

Episodes

Episode	Title	First Broadcast	Repeated	Comments
01	Metropolitan Essex	20210125	20221121 (R3)	Kicking off the series exploring the joys of Essex, surely the most maligned and misunderstood of counties, singer-songwriter Billy Bragg reflects on the borderland between London and Essex that fuelled his childhood imagination John Betjeman called Essex 'a stronger contrast of beauty and ugliness than any other southern English county'. But, known recently for the pneumonic blondes and diamond geezers of TV's The Only Way Is Essex, as well as the peroxided 'Essex Girls' of the 80s and the Tory-loving 'Basildon Man' of the 90s, Essex seems to have become a parody of itself. But Billy Bragg thinks otherwise... Reader and writer: Billy Bragg is a singer, songwriter and activist. Billy Bragg explores the London-Essex borderland that fuelled his childhood imagination.
02	Washed Up In Essex	20210126	20221122 (R3)	In the next in a series exploring the joys of Essex, surely the most overlooked and misunderstood of counties, AL Kennedy takes on a watery journey through the rivers, mudflats and reed beds of the county she now calls home. Known recently for the pneumonic blondes and diamond geezers of television's The Only Way Is Essex, as well as the peroxided 'Essex Girls' of the 80s, Essex seems to have an image problem. John Betjeman called it 'a stronger contrast of beauty and ugliness than any other southern English county'. This series explores the contrasts of this boundary county, this interzone, which has become a parody of itself. Reader and writer: AL Kennedy is an acclaimed novelist and short story writer. Writer AL Kennedy takes us on a watery journey through the county she now calls home.
03	The Refusal Of Place	20210127	20221123 (R3)	In the next in a series exploring the joys of Essex, surely the most maligned and misunderstood of counties, writer and poet Lavinia Greenlaw takes us back to the formative landscape of her childhood - a place that she rejected for so long... Known recently for the pneumonic blondes and diamond geezers of television's The Only Way Is Essex, as well as the peroxided 'Essex Girls' of the 80s, Essex seems to have an image problem. John Betjeman called it 'a stronger contrast of beauty and ugliness than any other southern English county'. This series explores the contrasts of this boundary county, this interzone, which has become a parody of itself. Reader and writer: Lavinia Greenlaw is an acclaimed poet and novelist. Writer Lavinia Greenlaw takes us back to the formative landscape of her childhood.
04	Brightening From The East	20210100	20210128 (R3) 20221124 (R3)	In the next in a series celebrating the joys of Essex, surely the most maligned of counties, writer and social historian Ken Worpole explores Essex as a place of retreat and refuge. Known recently for the pneumonic blondes and diamond geezers of television's The Only Way Is Essex, as well as the peroxided 'Essex Girls' of the 80s, Essex seems to have an image problem. John Betjeman called it 'a stronger contrast of beauty and ugliness than any other southern English county'. This series explores the contrasts of this boundary county, this interzone, which has become a parody of itself. Reader and writer: Ken Worpole is an acclaimed writer with books on architecture, landscape, planning, design, and social history. He was a founder-member of openDemocracy, and is a senior professor at The Cities Institute, London Metropolitan University. Writer and social historian Ken Worpole introduces us to Essex's radical past.
05 LAST	The Essex Way	20210129	20221125 (R3)	In the last programme in a series celebrating the joys of Essex, surely the most maligned of counties, writer Gillian Darley explores the unsung delights of mid-Essex, with a trip along the Essex Way. Known recently for the pneumonic blondes and diamond geezers of television's The Only Way Is Essex, as well as the peroxided 'Essex Girls' of the 80s, Essex seems to have an image problem. John Betjeman called it 'a stronger contrast of beauty and ugliness than any other southern English county'. This series explores the contrasts of this boundary county, this interzone, which has become a parody of itself. Reader and writer: Gillian Darley is the author of Excellent Essex. She is a writer, broadcaster and architectural campaigner, with an OBE for her services to the Built Environment and its Conservation. Writer Gillian Darley celebrates the unsung and lesser-known delights of mid-Essex.