Beowulf

A New Translation

Preview

Failed to add items

Sorry, we are unable to add the item because your shopping cart is already at capacity.

Add to basket failed.

Please try again later

Add to wishlist failed.

Please try again later

Remove from wishlist failed.

Please try again later

Adding to library failed

Please try again

Follow podcast failed

Unfollow podcast failed

£0.00 for first 30 days

LIMITED TIME OFFER

Get 3 months for £0.99/mo

Get this deal

Try Premium Plus free

Offer ends 29 January 2026 at 11:59PM GMT.

Prime members: New to Audible? Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.

Just £0.99/mo for your first 3 months of Audible.

1 bestseller or new release per month—yours to keep.

Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, podcasts, and Originals.

Auto-renews at £8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.

Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.

Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.

Access exclusive sales and deals.

£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically.

Beowulf

By: Seamus Heaney

Narrated by: Seamus Heaney

Get this deal

Try Premium Plus free

£8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly. Offer ends 29 January 2026 at 11:59PM GMT.

£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £13.99

LIMITED TIME OFFER | £0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Premium Plus auto-renews at £8.99/mo after 3 months. Terms apply.

About this listen

Seamus Heaney’s new translation of Beowulf is a work that is both true to the original poem and an expression of something fundamental to Heaney’s own creative gift.

One of the great classics of English literature, it tells the story of a hero who wins glory and learns wisdom and is then called upon to face a final test against the monstrous.

There are obvious parallels to be found in the history of the 20th century, and Heaney’s Beowulf cannot fail to be read partly in the light of his Northern Irish upbringing. But it also transcends such considerations, revealing psychological and spiritual truths that are both permanent and liberating.

Classics

Heartfelt

Listeners also enjoyed...

Seamus Heaney II Collected Poems (published 1979-1991) cover art

Roman Mythology: Captivating Roman Myths of Roman Gods, Goddesses, Heroes and Mythological Creatures cover art

Classic BBC Radio Shakespeare: Romances cover art

Heart of Darkness: A Signature Performance by Kenneth Branagh cover art

Critic reviews

"Heaney's intelligence, fine ear and obvious love of the poem bring Beowulf alive as a melancholy masterpiece, a complex Christian-pagan lament for duty, glory, loss and transience. Heaney has done it (and us) a great service." (Claire Harman, Evening Standard)

"A wonderfully unfazed and unfussy riding round the great barrow of the text itself." (Paul Muldoon, Times Literary Supplement)

"The whole performance is wonderfully intermediate - poised between the Bible and folk wisdom, between the Light Ages and the Dark Ages - and at the same time pulverisingly actual in its language. He has made a masterpiece out of a masterpiece." (Andrew Motion, Financial Times)

Most relevant

I loved this, a great folk tale, narrated in the rich tones of Seamus Heaney - altogether sublime.