Songs For All Seasons

In the run-up to Armistice Day, I have two songs to share. The first, for Remembrance Sunday, is a setting of a thought-provoking poem by G. K. Chesterton (1974 - 1936), called "For a War Memorial". Chesterton was a huge figure, both literally—standing 6 feet 4 inches (1.93 m) tall and weighing around 20 stone 6 pounds (130 kg; 286 lb)—and figuratively, in British late 19th and early 20th century literature. He wrote around 80 books, several hundred poems, some 200 short stories, 4,000 essays (mostly newspaper columns), and several plays. He was a literary and social critic, historian, playwright, novelist, journalist, BBC broadcaster, Catholic theologian and apologist, debater, and mystery writer. He was a columnist for the Daily News, The Illustrated London News, and his own paper, G. K.'s Weekly; he also wrote articles for the Encyclopædia Britannica, including the entry on Charles Dickens and part of the entry on Humour in the 14th edit...

Today's Song of the Day is, unsurprisingly, a song about Guy Fawkes Night , aka Bonfire Night, aka  Fireworks Night aka Gunpowder Treason Day. Unless you slept through primary school (or happen to be from outside the UK)  you're likely aware that today marks the day when the nation comes together to celebrate the thwarting of the Gunpowder Plot devised by Guy Fawkes and his fellow conspirators, who aimed to obliterate Parliament and King James I back in 1605. This day is traditionally filled with dazzling fireworks displays and roaring bonfires, where we cast an effigy of Guy Fawkes himself into the flames, though, in more recent years, other notorious figures have taken his place. What you might not know is that in the aftermath of the Plot, the government enacted an Act of Parliament mandating an annual public day of thanksgiving for the plot’s failure. We all know the verse: Remember, remember! The fift...