Lifesaving Poems

I was struck by a remark of Seamus Heaney in an interview he gave some years ago now. He was … More

On Martin Stannard and Paul Scholes

‘If he had been Spanish then maybe he would have been valued more.’ -Xavi Hernandez (Spain and Barcelona) … More

Love Listen Let’s love, listen, take time when time is all we have. Let’s be unafraid to be kind, learn … More

Andrew Motion is my hero because he set up the Poetry Archive with Richard Carrington. He has nothing left to prove. As … More

Of Mutability, Jo Shapcott (Faber) Really good books about cancer are rare. Really great books about cancer, the ones that … More

‘Whenever I work with people – no matter what their age – I try to run a checklist through my mind: are … More

I hate end-of-year roundups. But I was so impressed by five books of poetry this year that I felt I … More