大象传媒

鈥淭he evening hour gives us the irresponsibility which darkness and lamplight bestow. We are no longer quite ourselves.鈥� 鈥� Virginia Woolf

Glenn Gould would 鈥渆merge along with the bats and the raccoons at twilight鈥�. Franz Kafka wrote entire stories before sunrise. Hotel pianos distracted Duke Ellington until dawn. George Sand, James Baldwin, A L Kennedy, Marcel Proust鈥� countless writers and artists come alive at night. Why?

In this composed feature we encounter self-proclaimed 鈥渘ight owls鈥�, past and present 鈥� authors, musicians, painters, performers and thinkers 鈥� to discover what can be achieved before daybreak. We eavesdrop on nocturnal artists at work, at home, through whispered and intimate conversations, discovering why they feel most suited to these hours.

Is this really the time to achieve their best work? How do night atmospheres affect their energy? Do they consider the impact on their health?

The naturalist Chris Yates, who has written extensively about the night, rarely sleeps before dawn. His fascination with the world around him often peaks after dark 鈥渨hen perceptions of time slow down, senses heighten, and the powers of imagination widen鈥�.

As well as Chris, we spend the night with artists across the UK and beyond, including 鈥楽hadow鈥� (a trans femme graffiti writer), the novelist and performer A L Kennedy, and the writer Sukhdev Sandhu, as they embark on their creative overnight excursions.

Sleep expert Dr Aliyah Rehman explores why creativity comes at certain hours. Researcher Mason Currey brings tales of night owls long departed. Timekeeping historian David Rooney considers who put clocks in charge 鈥� and people鈥檚 acts of resistance.

Includes an eclectic music soundtrack from Chopin to Schoenberg, Matt Berry to Morton Feldman, Nightmares On Wax to Doris Day鈥�

Narrator: Laura Bauld
Producer: Steve Urquhart

A Far Shoreline production for 大象传媒 Radio 3