During my weekend stay at Cyprus Well last November, I took many field recordings capturing interesting sounds from the environment and moments of quiet beauty.

As both a poet and audio creator, I’m fascinated by the ways in which sound can define a place, be it the wild swell of the Cornish sea on a mizzly winter’s day, gulls crying out above, or the sound of a deserted town at night, streetlamps flickering and only a few cats wandering about the cobblestone streets, each off on their own adventure. With this in mind, I took my recorder everywhere. During my weekend stay I captured a multitude of sounds, from the glorious sounds of St Mary Magdeline’s church bells ringing on a Sunday morning intertwined with birdsong, to warm notes of Charles’s beautiful piano. He was a multi-talented man, and although he is most noted for his poetry, he was a very competent piano player, playing throughout his life. I recorded the sounds of his mechanical typewriter, a surprisingly cathartic sound, alongside many field recordings of nature and ambience from my wanderings exploring Launceston town.

I recorded these sounds with the purpose of creating a podcast episode celebrating and remembering the work and life of Charles. I wanted to utilise my knowledge of radio and sound art, having produced monthly episodes of my radio show ‘The Wildflower Hour’ for Soundart Radio (Dartington, Totnes, Devon) and Source FM, (Falmouth & Penryn) since 2020. The show explores all things art, poetry, nature and mental health, featuring interviews with a variety of local artists and writers, including poet Ella Frears ‘Shine, Darling’, naturalist and author Brigit Strawbridge Howard ‘Dancing With Bees: A Journey Back to Nature’ and the pioneering sound artist behind ‘Names in The Sky’ Justin Wiggan.

Charles frequently featured on the radio, appearing on BBC Radio as a young man reading his play’s, Runaway (1936) and The Conquering Hero (1937), shortly before the outbreak of World War 2. In later life he featured on BBC Radio 4, and Desert Island Discs. Compiled all the field recordings taken from my stay at Cyprus Well alongside interviews with director of The Causley Trust Nicola Nuttall 2023’s writer in residence poet and editor Rachel Piercy into a podcast. ‘Charles Causley: Exploring a legacy | The Wildflower Hour’

The episode explores his life, his work and his beloved hometown of Launceston. It was fantastic to learn more about the life of Charles, hearing anecdotes about his life, including the time his mother Laura brought home a piano for Charles when they lived on the second floor! And his mischievous adventures with Rupert, his beloved ginger cat.

It was wonderful speaking to Nicola about her connection to Charles and his work and the fantastic work of The Causley Trust in keeping the legacy of Charles alive. I was grateful to learn about Rachel’s experience during her 2023 residency at Cyprus Well and discover how she first discovered and fell in love with the work of Charles Causley.

The full podcast is available to listen to on Mixcloud here.