Highlights

After the very sad passing my friend and bandmate Colin Prior, I, for some reason, decided to write and perform a poem at his humanitarian funeral. I’d never performed or written anything before. I still love that poem. This is where it all began.

2015

My first proper steps in to poetry began after watching the excellent Sleaford Mods documentary Invisible Britain. In the film were A Firm of Poets. I was mighltly impressed, this was not what I knew poetry to be. A couple of weeks later, I was doing their workshop and performing a rubbish poem on stage. That night Matt Abbott and Luke Wright made poetry seem like the most rock n’ roll artform I’d seen. I was in.

2016

The 50th anniversary of the 1966 World Cup. A Firm of Poets asked me to write and perform a piece, as if I was there, in the sixties. I was told I looked like the 5th member of the Kinks, which only eased the nerevs slightly as my 3rd ever gig was to be in front a 100+ football fans. Blimey.

My first foray into the open mic ‘scene’ bagan at Torriano Meeting House. I met a fella there who told me about Poetry Unpugged at the Betsey Trotwood - one of my absolute favorite pubs, but more on that later.

Matt Abbott asked me to perform at the Big Sleepout, where we perform and slept in a car park, along with a few hundred others to raise funds and awareness of the homelessness crisis. It sewed the seed of a publishing idea. I got a selfie with Brandon Block.

2017

I proudly received my first piece on online criticism after having my poem about the mysterious death of a fella near Dovestones published in the Saddleworth Independent. The local free newspaper where I grew up.

I met Chip Hamer at my now new regular poetry haunt, Poetry Unplugged and I joined Poetry on the Picket Line, firstly at the Hackney Picturehouse. I found myself at 8am on a snow covered picketline, performing in Spanish to a group of Colombian cleaners striking for better pay and conditions. Later that year we put on a Cellarful of Solidarity at the Betsey. I’ll be ever grateful to PotPL. I had my poem Shamping 69 published in the legendary Tim Well’s Rising zine. Ernie Burns generously gave me my first 20 minute slot at his Platform 1 night. Some old friends came, I waffled on too long.

2018

I love the Fall, so I joined in the Tribute to Mark E. Smith night at the Poetry Cafe, organised by Paul McGrane. In the audience was someone from Penguin Randon House. A couple of moths later, a poem I wrote in about 10 whisky fuelled minutes after hearing of MES’s death, is published in a harback anthology. Madness. Lots more PotPL action this year. I joined the London Magpie Group, a bunch of Newcastle United fans enthusiastically protesting the ownership of the club by a certain Mike Ashley. As Shaun Wade said, the video of my protest poem performed just off Oxford Street got more views than seats at St. James’s, which is an achievement I suppose (if getting a load of abuse from mackem trolls is an acheivement). 

2019

I started Tonic Sta Press. After seeing regular folks living on the street, in a state of ‘what can I do about it?” I conceived of putting out an anthology and  putting on a night called Poets v Homelessness. Neanderthal Bard got in touch and I’m grateful to him for hooking me up with Crisis, who the funds from both went to. Around 200 quid I seem to remember. 
The cover was based on a 1969 Newcastle United v Benfica programme, which has influenced the inhouse style ever since. My first crack at publishing something and hosting and putting on a night, ably assisted by Julia Smith was a success.
Well pleasing. We repeated the trick later in the year with Poets v Gender Inequality, raising funds for UN Women, which was again, a sell-out night & anthology.
I got a couple of poems in a ‘proper’ poetry magazine, Magma - the work issue. This began a mild submission addiction, very much leading to the acceptance of failure, a healthy thing to learn.

2020

A quite one, obviously. Like many, this was the first foray into zoom poetry. There was still some PotPL action, including the We Shall Overcome Isolation Fest, which I sat and watched, like many, on a laptop in a sunny park. Poor young  Chip Hamer had his treble 20th online too. Not quite the same eh, but I hope we did him proud.

2021

A year of variety, it seems as we shifted in and out of lockdowns. I did a spot for the New Orleans Poetry Festival on a train between Salisbury and London (time-zone calculation was nver my strong suit). I joined Nick Virgillio's Haiku Association after reading Hiroaki Sato’s marvelous On Haiku. Mainly as an excuse to introduce myself to Camden, New Jersey from Camden, London. I performed my first wedding poem, which I wrote for Danielle & Liam, arriving at the venue up on the Wirral approximately 5 minutes before I was on stage. Not ideal. It seemed to go down treat though. Bless ‘em both. 

New artistic avenues opened up. My old artschool mate Iain Douglas got in touch, out of the blue and we started talking about machinima. A whole new world. We made an ambitious film trilogy Facing the Wolf, where Iain made three fims using footage created in the video game Red Dead Redemption 2, narrated with my poetic musings on war redemption and the decline of industry. We’ve gone on to make 7 poetic machinima so far.

I joined Scribbler’s Union, a weekly online writing group, which was most fruitful and has lead to many poetic opportunities and lasting friendships. All hail Kevin P. Gilday.

Inspired by the marvelous band Stick in the Wheel, I was very chuffed to have my poem Scratchers in the Feathers and Pennies for the Matchgirls Memorial and The Cry of the Poor anthology. Giving bands poetry books became a thing.

Jerry, a friend and the most regular of regulars at the Hemmingford Arms, very sadly passed away. I composed and read a poem in tribute at his moving funeral.

The year ended with the online launch of Football is Poetry - the world’s first and only football poetry sticker book. It was a lot of work, but myself and Owen Collins created anthology with an incredible line-up of poets to be proud of.

2022

Russia invaded Ukraine. The last country I had visited back in 2019. In another act of what can I do? - I’ll put on a poetry night, myself, the marvelous Dan March and my wife Ania Stawarska created Slava!, a regular poetic fundraiser at the most excellent pub and my local, The Lamb. I’m very proud of our little night, which is raising good funds for humanitarian aid and blending Ukrainian Poetry, Spoken word from up and down the country together with music, comedy, food, culture and little Dima’s vodka.

I think my first gig outside of London came courtesy of my friend Dee’s night Poets in Paisley. We had a riot that weekend, oh aye.

I hooked up with the Flight of the Dragonfly team in person, after several online nights, which would lead to some exciting projects later, and a great excuse to often pop down south for a pint with top man Darren J. Beaney.

Another year, another poem composed for a funeral. This time, at work for the After Noah shop dog, Archie. Rest in Peace you grumpy lad.

I was asked by my friend Jan Stöver to be live streamed as part of his secondary school's poetry slam in Harburg, Germany. The kids were great! It never ceases to amaze me where I. The world poetry may take you. 

Speaking of which, I got to take my poetry book resplendent with Fuck the Tories sticker to the House of Commons for Voices against War.

Iain Douglas created a physical version of our machinima collaboration Shanks’ 54, where he recreated scenes from the film and had sections of the machinima playing out from tents, shopping trolley tvs, all as an installation piece at the gallery space B93 in Enshede, Netherlands. It looked amazing. Superbly done Iain.

I was honoured indeed to organise and perform at a pair of gigs for Kevin P. Gilday’s Anxiety Music Tour, which were great fun and an excellent experience.