Poetry highlights of 2014

I have so much to be grateful for in 2014. The year began in one of my temporary fits … More

Standing up to cancer?

I am not completely stupid. I know celebrity culture is here to stay. As my children frequently remind me, ‘It … More

I am at a thing. Not a famous thing, but an important one nevertheless. People are there, people you and … More

Medicine The black hair of my Chinese doctor gleams like combed ink as he leans over his desk, with quick … More

A year ago I had a relapse of my cancer. Except I didn’t. For a week or so I knew … More

This is Jörn Cann. He was my ward doctor at the haematology unit where I was treated for non-Hodgkin’s … More

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

I am taking a break from writing brand new blog posts over the summer. Instead of posting new work I … More

I am taking a break from writing brand new blog posts over the summer. Instead of posting new work I … More

My friend and colleague Anna Craft has died. She was famous -if that is the right word- as a researcher … More

I am taking a break from writing brand new blog posts over the summer. Instead of posting new work I … More

I am taking a break from writing brand new blog posts over the summer. Instead of posting new work I … More

It all started with two remarks, one by a friend, the other by a stranger at work. ß The friend’s … More

Seven years ago I published The Year of Drinking Water, a pamphlet of poems, about my experience of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (Exeter … More

A scan, with different initials. The train journey to it, biting nails; the one back pretending not to be radioactive. … More

The ward is a void without him. Football blares in the corner, the monotonous roar of the crowd unleavened by … More

Jörn Cann wasn’t my friend. He was my doctor. He was famous before we even met him as the doctor … More

The way it starts. With an ending. Just before our love got lost. We have all been here: the wit … More