Category craic

It’s a strange old time to be a poet. On the one hand, it’s the annual shindig which is the Edinburgh Fringe (hooray!). On the other hand, even the most cursory glance at the news headlines suggests we’re heading to…

You can generally bet your bottom dollar that the more I recognise the urgency of something that needs doing, the more I discover an overwhelming need to do something – anything – which is totally unrelated and pushes the needs-doing-this-very-minute…

It’s been a great couple of months, it’s been a while since I wrote a blog, and yes, those two things are related. Time flies when you’re having fun, you see. And I have been having fun. The last month…

We all have little rituals and habits which are woven into our lives. As midsummer approaches, it’s always a fair bet I’ll be packing the camper van and pointing it northwards to Scotland for a couple of weeks of parking…

There’s always something wonderful, as far as I’m concerned, about sitting in an audience and listening to poetry. Every voice is different. Some you may love, some may leave you cold, some will inspire you to go home and write…

Some weeks are ones you want to live long in your memory. For me, this week has been one. First, I learned that the video of my poem Impulse was one of the winners in the Culture Matters spoken word…

In late February, after my set at Orators & Opinions, Worcestershire poet Neil Laurenson interviewed me about why I write poetry, and much else besides. Thanks to him for taking the time to pose some very interesting questions. If you’d…

Less than two weeks ago I posted the news that more bees bigger bonnets had sold out. Now I’m popping up again to tell you that a fine fine place has done so too. My heartfelt thanks to all those…

If you’ve been meaning to buy a copy of my fourth book of poems more bees bigger bonnets, I’m sorry to tell you you’ve missed the boat. The last few copies of the second print run were snapped up at…

It’s only natural – what with this being a website about my poetry – that most of my posts centre on that. Sometimes, though, the focus is rightly wrenched onto other subjects. This is one of those times. My friend…

I’m tempted to use that as the title for my next book of poems, even though it isn’t entirely true. I made it through Dry January, and while I’m looking forward to sitting in a pub and having a drink…

2019. You look away for a moment, and it’s already over a week old, and is busy exploring the world, sticking its pudgy little fingers in the plug sockets, and scribbling all over the furniture with a felt-tip pen. Bless…