Peggy Seeger on her husband Ewan MacColl
Great Lives
BBC
4.2 • 1.3K Ratings
🗓️ 7 September 2021
⏱️ 37 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Ewan MacColl sang "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" to Peggy Seeger down the phone.
When they met, Peggy says, he was in the grip of his midlife crisis. "I'm fond of saying the poor boy didn't stand a chance," she tells Matthew Parris.
This programme is her attempt to set the record straight. "I'd like to do a bit of justice to him, because there's an awful lot of myths, an awful lot of bad talk, misunderstandings."
Ewan MacColl was born Jimmy Miller in Salford, which he wrote about in 1949 in his song, "Dirty Old Town."
He made his name in theatre, was married to Joan Littlewood, and after the Second World War he was a powerful force behind the folk revival. Along with Peggy Seeger and Charles Parker, he created the famous Radio Ballads.
With Peter Cox, author of Set Into Song.
Featuring many examples of Ewan MacColl's music and his voice.
Producer: Miles Warde
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in September 2021.
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | Before you listen to this BBC podcast, I'd like to tell you why I love podcasting. |
| 0:04.5 | I'm Sasha Johansson, I'm an Assistant Commissioner for the BBC and I work on making podcasts. |
| 0:11.1 | My real passion is discovering unbelievable unheard stories and working with the biggest |
| 0:16.9 | stars who can really bring those stories to life. |
| 0:20.1 | I love the whole process of making podcasts from the spark of an idea to hearing the final |
| 0:26.0 | edit. |
| 0:27.0 | There's nothing like it. |
| 0:28.0 | What makes BBC podcast special is that we're working for you, so whatever we commission |
| 0:32.6 | has to reflect the things that you care about and love, wherever you are in the UK. |
| 0:37.0 | So if you like this BBC podcast, there's so much more to discover. |
| 0:40.6 | Have a listen on BBC Sounds. |
| 0:42.1 | BBC Sounds, Music, Radio, Podcasts. |
| 0:47.7 | Every year, twice a year, in the corner of a London square, friends and followers of |
| 0:53.0 | you and McCall gather by an oak tree at midday. |
| 0:57.4 | They are there to celebrate the anniversaries of his birth and death. |
| 1:03.0 | This oak tree was planted in recognition of the strength and singleness of purpose for |
| 1:10.2 | the fighter, for peace and socialism. |
| 1:15.0 | You and McCall, 25th of the first, 1915, died on the 22nd of the 10th, 1989, folkloria, |
| 1:24.0 | singer, dramatist and Marxist. |
| 1:27.6 | You can't ask a great deal more out of a human being than that. |
| 1:32.3 | Amongst the gathering, honoring you and McCall, singer, actor, poet and much more besides |
| 1:37.4 | us, you've just heard, you can sometimes find my guest today, Peggy Sieger, who's also |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from BBC, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of BBC and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.