Colm Tóibín

Colm Tóibín

Update: 2025-07-13
Share

Description

Presented by James Crawford, Take Four Books, speaks to the Irish writer Colm Tóibín about his latest novel - Long Island - and explores its connections to three other literary works. Long Island, now out in paperback, is the sequel to the best-selling novel Brooklyn, and we're back with Eilis Lacey. It's the spring of 1976 and one day, when her husband Tony is at work, an Irishman comes to the door asking for Eilis by name. What this man tells Eilis changes her life. And so begins Long Island which sees Eilis return to her homeland after decades abroad.
For his three influences Colm chose: The Mayor of Casterbridge by Thomas Hardy (1886); Victory by Joseph Conrad (1915); and The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton (1920). The supporting contributor for this episode is award-winning novelist and short story writer Jan Carson.

Producer: Dominic Howell
Editor: Gillian Wheelan
This was a BBC Audio Scotland production for Radio 4.

Comments 
In Channel
Melissa Lucashenko

Melissa Lucashenko

2025-08-3128:50

Sarah Hall

Sarah Hall

2025-08-2429:50

Rachel Kushner

Rachel Kushner

2025-08-1729:17

Irvine Welsh

Irvine Welsh

2025-08-1028:40

Denise Mina

Denise Mina

2025-07-2728:39

Gurnaik Johal

Gurnaik Johal

2025-07-2028:42

Colm Tóibín

Colm Tóibín

2025-07-1329:39

Madeleine Thien

Madeleine Thien

2025-06-2929:55

Wendy Erskine

Wendy Erskine

2025-06-2228:28

Elif Shafak

Elif Shafak

2025-06-1528:48

Andrew Miller

Andrew Miller

2025-06-0828:38

Seán Hewitt

Seán Hewitt

2025-05-2529:22

Ocean Vuong

Ocean Vuong

2025-05-1831:01

Ben Okri

Ben Okri

2025-05-1128:55

Vincenzo Latronico

Vincenzo Latronico

2025-04-2728:30

Xiaolu Guo

Xiaolu Guo

2025-04-2028:45

Andrew O'Hagan

Andrew O'Hagan

2025-04-1328:44

Eoin McNamee

Eoin McNamee

2025-03-3030:04

David Szalay

David Szalay

2025-03-2331:22

Eimear McBride

Eimear McBride

2025-03-1628:45

loading
00:00
00:00
x

0.5x

0.8x

1.0x

1.25x

1.5x

2.0x

3.0x

Sleep Timer

Off

End of Episode

5 Minutes

10 Minutes

15 Minutes

30 Minutes

45 Minutes

60 Minutes

120 Minutes

Colm Tóibín

Colm Tóibín

BBC Radio 4