An interview with Adélia Prado

On the Saturday afternoon of the Aldeburgh Poetry Festival, Festival Director Naomi Jaffa conducted an interew with Adélia Prado, and … More

On generosity

By the time you read this I will be far away from here. It has not happened yet, but I … More

On the basis of these five first collections, there is no reason to assume the careers of the poets who … More

The Burning Of The Houses Tottenham is on fire and I work in an arts centre where the sky is … More

Mark Doty had it. And John Hartley Williams. And Esther Morgan. And Roy Blackman, introducing Mark Doty talking about Whitman. … More

Ellen Doré Watson was a new name to me until recently. ‘Be Here First ‘ is a good example of … More

I have been asked to judge a thing. A good thing. A serious thing. (But this isn’t about that. We … More

I first heard Thomas Lux’s poems before I read them. In the autumn of 2000 I was sent a tape … More

She started as a name. There I was, following my nose, minding my own business, trying to ignore all instincts … More

The other day I was asked what I look for in poetry. Needing to give a quick answer I said: I … More

Below is a collection of my blog posts for the 2014 Aldeburgh Poetry Festival. I will update it as I … More

A poem begins as a lump in the throat, a sense of wrong, a homesickness, a lovesickness. Robert Frost … More

One of the poets I am most looking forward to listening to at the Aldeburgh Poetry Festival in November is … More

Never having succeeded at school, I’ve always thought of poetry as the holidays, not term time. Hugo Williams In November … More

I heard Michael Symmons Roberts give a magisterial reading from his book Drysalter recently. It was exemplary on so many levels, not … More

In the spring of 1999 I got the best education in poetry I have ever had. I was in Suffolk, … More