Frank Finlay's guest appearances

Frank Finlay

Last Word

Thinking with Opera

Settee Seminars

Karl Lagerfeld

Merle Haggard

John McAfee

Garry Marshall

Mary Higgins Clark

Anthony Bourdain

John Butler

Elie Wiesel

Toni Morrison

John Bosco

Larry King

Hosni Mubarak

Katherine Johnson

Jerry Lewis

P.J. O'Rourke

OwlTail

Paul Mason

“What is the tension between this ugly ideology, the beauty of the music, and the agony of the man producing it?”The final podcast of our trilogy focusing on Wagner's epic last opera is a wide-ranging, unflinching discussion between the journalist, writer and filmmaker Paul Mason and Professor Frank Finlay of the University of Leeds.Paul traces the composer’s changing philosophical viewpoints, from his early identification with the Young Hegelians and Ludwig Feuerbach, to the later influence of Arthur Schopenhauer and Buddhism on the themes of suffering and enlightenment through compassion in Parsifal, as well as the more baneful influence of the racial theorist Arthur de Gobineau.Wagner’s antisemitism is discussed in the context of his works and the problems it presents for their audiences. Another tension – between the composer’s anti-modernist, proto-fascist sympathies, and the radicalism in his music – is identified.Parsifal is put in the context of Wagner’s oeuvre as a whole, in particular the Ring cycle and Die Meistersinger, illuminated throughout by Paul and Frank’s deep but complex engagement with the works.Excerpts of the cast, Chorus and Orchestra of Opera North in rehearsals for the 2022 concert staging of Parsifal are heard throughout.Thinking with Opera is produced by the DARE partnership between Opera North and the University of Leeds.

“What is the tension between this ugly ideology, the beauty of the music, and the agony of the man producing it?”The final podcast of our trilogy focusing on Wagner's epic last opera is a wide-ranging, unflinching discussion between the journalist, writer and filmmaker <a href="https://www.paulmason.org/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Paul Mason</a> and Professor <a href="https://ahc.leeds.ac.uk/languages/staff/46/professor-frank-finlay" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Frank Finlay</a> of the University of Leeds.Paul traces the composer’s changing philosophical viewpoints, from his early identification with the Young Hegelians and Ludwig Feuerbach, to the later influence of Arthur Schopenhauer and Buddhism on the themes of suffering and enlightenment through compassion in Parsifal, as well as the more baneful influence of the racial theorist Arthur de Gobineau.Wagner’s antisemitism is discussed in the context of his works and the problems it presents for their audiences. Another tension – between the composer’s anti-modernist, proto-fascist sympathies, and the radicalism in his music – is identified.Parsifal is put in the context of Wagner’s oeuvre as a whole, in particular the Ring cycle and Die Meistersinger, illuminated throughout by Paul and Frank’s deep but complex engagement with the works.Excerpts of the cast, Chorus and Orchestra of Opera North in rehearsals for the 2022 <a href="https://www.operanorth.co.uk/news/parsifal-your-reaction/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">concert staging</a> of Parsifal are heard throughout.Thinking with Opera is produced by the DARE partnership between Opera North and the University of Leeds.

Thinking with Opera 07: Paul Mason and Frank Finlay on Parsifal

Terry Wogan

Lord Lucan

Denise St Aubyn Hubbard

Denise St

Matthew Bannister onSir Terry Wogan - we have a tale of two cities: memories from his home town of Limerick and accolades from his fantasy town of Leicester.Lord Lucan, finally declared dead this week after disappearing in the 1970s. Mystery still surrounds his involvement in the murder of his children's nanny. The actor Frank Finlay, who often played darker characters. His Bouquet of Barbed Wire co-star Susan Penhaligon remembers him. Denise St Aubyn Hubbard who represented Britain as a diver in the 1948 Olympics and sailed single handed across the Atlantic aged 64.And Maurice White the singer and songwriter who founded Earth Wind and Fire.

Matthew Bannister on Sir Terry Wogan - we have a tale of two cities: memories from his home town of Limerick and accolades from his fantasy town of Leicester. Lord Lucan, finally declared dead this week after disappearing in the 1970s. Mystery still surrounds his involvement in the murder of his children's nanny. The actor Frank Finlay, who often played darker characters. His Bouquet of Barbed Wire co-star Susan Penhaligon remembers him. Denise St Aubyn Hubbard who represented Britain as a diver in the 1948 Olympics and sailed single handed across the Atlantic aged 64. And Maurice White the singer and songwriter who founded Earth Wind and Fire.

Terry Wogan, Lord Lucan, Frank Finlay, Denise St Aubyn Hubbard, Maurice White