Photo: Derek Adams Some writers influence you through the pull of their imagination on your work, opening up new worlds…
The Day Ted Hughes Died
Ted Hughes died on 28 October, 1998, aged 68. He had been suffering with colon cancer. Just about everyone I…
The Other Life: In memory of Emily Riall
The Other Life in memory of Emily Riall I want to wake up in a house where the…
In Memory of Emily Riall
photo: Gwenllian Riall Last week I posted a blog about entering remission after treatment for cancer. For me this moment…
What I have learned about remission
In February I wrote a blog post on the anniversary of my diagnosis of Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma (NHL), a cancer…
Lifesaving Poems: Cliff Yates’s ‘Boggle Hole’
This has already been a memorable year, for I have seen my old friend Cliff Yates twice, both at poetry-related…
In memory of Jörn Cann
I was deeply saddened to hear ten days ago of the death of Jörn Cann, the ward doctor in the…
Lifesaving Poems: Robert Rehder’s ‘Corminboeuf 157’
I was very sad to read yesterday that the American poet Robert Rehder died in 2009. I had no idea. He…
What the Living Do -by Marie Howe
What the Living Do Johnny, the kitchen sink has been clogged for days, some utensil probably fell down there. And…
Innocent Brilliance: James Schuyler’s Other Flowers by Michael Klein at the the poetry blog
James Schuyler is back from the dead with the lovely “Other Flowers” a posthumous book of his unpublished, uncollected poems. …
Lifesaving Poems: Mandy Coe’s ‘Let’s Celebrate’
I will forever be grateful to Emma Metcalfe from the Bath Festivals’ Write Team for recommending to me Mandy Coe’s…
Philip Gould: I would not wish to have died the person I was
via bbc.co.uk
Lifesaving Poems: Moniza Alvi’s ‘I Would Like to be a Dot in a Painting by Miro’
I first read Moniza Alvi’s wonderful ‘I Would Like to be a Dot in a Painting by Miro’ in…
Poetry and 9/11
I am a little late in writing these reflections prompted by the tenth anniversary of 9/11. What I want…
Lifesaving Poems: Mark Halliday’s ‘The Missing Poem’
A very special thing happened this week: a large delivery of poetry pamphlets fromHappenstance Press arrived. It included the wonderful No…
Lifesaving Poems: Peter Sansom’s K563
In my last blog post I wrote about the importance of following one’s nose in terms of developing a taste…
Lifesaving Poems: Jaan Kaplinski’s ‘This morning was cold’
In my last blog post I wrote about the influence of social contexts upon one’s reading, specifically that of…
Not Cricket
I began writing this poem in 1996 in response to the election of a BNP councillor in Tower Hamlets, the…
Lifesaving Poems 