Arena Season 1, Episode 295

The Spirit of Lorca · BBC Four · Friday, November 28

Federico Garcia Lorca, perhaps the best-known and loved Spanish poet and dramatist of this century, was brutally executed at the age of 38 during the early days of the Spanish Civil War. Tonight's Arena, in collaboration with the acclaimed Irish writer and Lorca biographer Ian Gibson , evokes his life and unravels the exact circumstances of his death. Close friend of Salvador Dali and Luis Bunuel , Lorca was a charismatic figure - musician, painter, actor, as well as a writer. The roots of his work lie deep in the rich culture, music and landscape of southern Spain. Through the recollections of friends and fellow poets, with singers and theatrical performances, in Spain, Cuba and the United States, this film evokes the passionate and potent spirit of Lorca's work and tragically short life.