I am not completely stupid. I know celebrity culture is here to stay. As my children frequently remind me, ‘It … More
Category: Education
The fear of poetry -by Muriel Rukeyser
The Fear of Poetry In this moment when we facehorizons and conflicts widerthan ever before, we want our resources,the ways … More
Lifesaving Poems: Sean O’Brien’s ‘Before’
To safe and almost universal silence I published How Far From Here is Home? (Stride) a few days before Christmas in … More
Saying goodbye
I want to congratulate you on passing this course and achieving QTS in this uniquely difficult and strange year. None … More
A Call Out for Foyle Young Poets
Calling all Winning & Highly Commended Foyle Young Poets 2012 – 2019 If you are a young writer who … More
At the teach out
Today I had one of the most precious teaching experiences of my life. Because we are taking strike action … More
On not striking, Ofsted and British values
Once again I find myself in a place that I hoped never to revisit. In 2018, the union I belong … More
Old (LentBlog5)
That isn’t me in the photo, though it could be. A bald man in vaguely sportif clothing trying to take an … More
Saying goodbye
It’s a funny feeling, almost new each time I experience it, an anticipation of loss that is somehow fresh and … More
Lifesaving Poems: Stuart Pickford’s ‘The Curtain Falls’
The Curtain Falls Suddenly a life is over – Ends with such serious charades The Dean makes lame quips … More
Poetry writing as a socially mediated process
‘Even the poetic world is social’ (Bakhtin, 1981, 300). This time next week, Saturday 23 June, I will be presenting … More
Their Age Now
I went home the other day. I mean home-home, where I was born, and where my parents still live. … More
Some things I learned during the strike
These are some of the things I have learned during the recent industrial action taken by my union, the UCU, … More
UCU Strike Poems 11 -An Horatian Notion, by Thomas Lux
An Horatian Notion The thing gets made, gets built, and you’re the slave who rolls the log beneath the block, … More
UCU Strike Poems 10 – from A New Guide, by Kenneth Koch
from A New Guide 7 Look at this arch. It is part of a building more than seven hundred years old. … More
UCU Strike Poems 9 – from Cats and a Cock, by Muriel Rukeyser
from Cats and a Cock We walk the streets of the dark city, placards at back light in our heads, … More
USS Strike: A list of blog posts and resources
One of the most inspiring things about being involved in the UCU USS pensions strike has been the outpouring of … More
UCU Strike Poems 8 – Five Minutes Of Work 4.23.2009, by Margaret Alice
Five Minutes Of Work 4.23.2009 Attending the PMDS workshop today a 46-page page performance document to be discussed in … More