Already this year, there has been much excitement about Christopher Nolan's new film, The Odyssey, coming in July, and starring Matt Damon as Odysseus, Tom Holland as his son Telemachus and Anne Hathaway as his wife Penelope.
In the meantime, the writer and classicist Daniel Mendelsohn will discuss his recent translation of Homer's epic at this year’s Classics Now Festival, in Dublin. It’s fair to say that he has been thinking and writing about – and teaching – The Odyssey for a long time.
Daniel also wrote a memoir in 2017 – An Odyssey: A Father, a Son, and an Epic – exploring his relationship with his own father, a retired research scientist, who signed up for his undergrad course at Bard College in New York state. It also recalls a trip they subsequently took to Europe, following in the footsteps of Odysseus.
Daniel Mendelsohn joined Rick in studio for Arena - listen above.
Daniel Mendelsohn will be in conversation with novelist and critic, Belinda McKeon at the Classics Now Festival in Dublin on Sunday, February 1st 2026 - find out more here, and hear more from Arena here
