Good, Occasionally Rhyming

A celebration of the Shipping Forecast in poetry and prose

By: Rob Stepney, Kathy Clugston

Narrated by: Kathy Clugston, Jim Lee

And now, the Shipping Forecast issued by the Met Office…

Often described as a litany, mantra or lullaby, the Shipping Forecast has long been a favourite of cosy homes on chilly evenings. Its practical use as a precise reading of the marine weather around the British Isles has been largely forgotten by its recreational listeners, who instead value its gentle rhythm and curious wording as a comfort, a charm, or fail-safe formula for inducing sleep.

Its thirty-one areas, cast like a safety net, take us on a virtual voyage that starts between the Shetlands and Norway, zig-zags down the North Sea, scoots westwards along the English Channel, sailing by the coast of France, Spain and Portugal, via both sides of Ireland up to the west coast of Scotland and as far as the nearest shard of Iceland. … Forties, Dogger, German Bight, Humber, Thames, Dover, Wight… These words speak to us like a spell, nonsensical in their substance, but enchanting in their delivery.

Since its first BBC broadcast in 1925, the Shipping Forecast has captured the nation’s heart. Good, Occasionally Rhyming is a love letter in poetry and prose, from Britain's literary landscape to this iconic radio broadcast.

…That’s the end of this shipping bulletin.

© 2025 Rob Stepney and Kathy Clugston (P) 2025 DK Audio