a reminder
We’re one quarter of the way through the 21st century, and it seems that far too many people have allowed themselves to forget that either we all have rights, or none of us have any rights at all. That when…
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Reflections on the mortality of the would-be Titans of the world
after Dorothy Parker
READ MOREReflections on the mortality of the would-be Titans of the worldthis one’s about poetry, kinda
Today, I’m back home and putting my feet up after a weekend driving half the length of the country with fellow pandemonialist Emma Purshouse so we could do a couple of gigs. It’s time to reflect on two very different…
learning my lessons
Yesterday, I made the mistake of reading the News section of the BBC website. I can’t explain why – I’m old enough to know better, and past experience has shown that the chance of them offering accurate and unflinching reporting…
come now, my brothers
my sisters, my friends. It is so easyto pick up the first stone and cast it.To declare proud and righteous, handon heart, that you have never been tempted – standing before a crowd,a host of cameras, with all the eyesof the…
come now, my brothers
If you’ve been living under a rock for the past few days (a sensible choice, given the way the world’s going) then you’ll have missed the inglorious spectacle of Space Karen, at the inauguration of Orange Bloat, making a Nazi…
this year i do not ask for much
not much at all...
READ MOREthis year i do not ask for muchyin, and also yang
It’s becoming something of a tradition for me to start the new year by immersing myself in writing and writing workshops, and once again – because it always does – it’s paying dividends. Some years ago, the poet Jo Bell…
That’s a wrap
On Thursday evening, I did my final poetry gig of 2024, performing a headline set at Caffe Grande Slam, in Dudley. This is a monthly event – and a good one – powered by the dedication and passion of the…
more than a year
We’re over 400 days into Israel’s genocidal assault on Gaza, and still – even after the International Criminal Court has issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu, and Amnesty International has declared that Israel’s actions do amount to genocide – our…
it could happen
to any one of us...
READ MOREit could happenthings that matter
This morning, I got the VW camper van out of the garage – it’s good to keep these old vehicles ticking over, and it needed refuelling, so a trip to the LPG station was in order – and took it for…