I produced an illustrated sequence of poems for my father in 2019. This April 13th he would have been 92 had he lived but he has been gone 20 years now. As a tribute I have created a pdf of the sequence that was shown as a series of artworks at the King Billy. Below…
DIESEL ON GRAVEL – 1986-1989 First Flash Fictions
Poems written in London and Oxfordshire. Published in early 1990s in Last Gasp pamphlets. Last Gasp was a poetry open mic I helped run with poets Giles Goodland and Bridget Kursheed in Oxford. From 1986 I was heavily influenced by Raymond Carver and especially his book FIRES. Indeed I attended his memorial readings event in…
NEW SHORT STORY BLOG: SHORT CUTS
In the mid 1980s I worked at a Tottenham Lane public library which had a small fire and books were smoke damaged and to be binned. I salvaged and still own a hardback copy of Fires as above by Raymond Carver. Then I considered myself a Carveresque poet rather than a short story writer. In…
Poetry in England Part 2: Poetry Flies
POETRY FLIES I came from Oxford I didn’t go to OxfordI visited Cambridge once I didn’t go to CambridgeI do not have a nice tidy clique to accept my poetryEven when I write nothing for thirty years I didn’t keep writing when I should haveI didn’t stack chairs for the powers that beOr fawn over…
The Leash: My first short story
My first ever short story. Originally published online January 2015 as part of a failed M.A. in Creative Writing at NTU that I walked away from. The Leash We cannot start from what we do not know we can only start from what we know The leash to the greyhound tightened around her red raw…
POETRY IN ENGLAND
wrote this many moons ago nothing changedthe description of Les Murray reading at the end is true POETRY IN ENGLAND There is something about poetry in EnglandThat is awfully nay terribly Middle ClassSomething not quite right in the hands of a workerSibilants dribbling like snot from the poor man’s nose Wiping its sleeve on the…
POETRY SUBMISSIONS: The Poisoned Chalice
Yesterday evening I submitted to all these with varying degrees of success with the exception of Belle Ombre (which I had never heard of and which seemed a contender for the new Agenda up its own (hare’s) arse award). I got something off to all the rest even the one that I was not supposed…
SELFIE @ 65
Self-regarding Self-effacing Selfie at 65 Teeth – some lost Eyes – scarred Piles- fixed Hernia – fixed Ears – Tinnitus Brain- forgets names Hands – scarred wrinkled Feet – chilblained Hair – grey thinner Optimism – constrained Politics – centrist was left Artwork – little Writing – occasional Music- listen not make Income – pensions…
NORFOLK IN SPRING
The taste of salt on the tongue Kids gone to uni now empty nester Husband in marketing doing well Always wanted to write Met a small press woman Now I got a pamphlet Next year a prize Discovering a new poet every day over coffee in Waterstones Elizabeth Bishop is amazing I really struggled with…
Dark Marilyn
DARK MARILYN Our sweet matter to anti-matterthe gilded cage gridded, blocks, containsepitome of class, pleasure and power Always six paces behind, a life of serviceI brushed by them one east end afternoonAs Charles and Nigella floated by Like peacocks emerging from a stairwellTheir expensive coats azure blue, bejewelledAt a secret view of Conran’s new restaurant…