In my last blog post I wrote about the influence of social contexts upon one’s reading, specifically that of … More
Tag: Poetry
Not Cricket
I began writing this poem in 1996 in response to the election of a BNP councillor in Tower Hamlets, the … More
Lifesaving Poems: ‘Prayer’ by Marie Howe
The most recent addition to my list of Lifesaving Poems is ‘Prayer’ by Marie Howe. I read it for the first time … More
Lifesaving Poems: Tomas Tranströmer’s ‘Alone’
Alone I One evening in February I came near to dying here. The car skidded sideways on the ice, out … More
Poetry Exhaustion
If you write poetry (and I assume that if you do, you are also actively engaged in reading … More
Lifesaving Poems: William Blake’s ‘The Divine Image’ (via Lies Damned Lies)
The Divine ImageTo Mercy, Pity, Peace, and LoveAll pray in their distress;And to these virtues of delightReturn their thankfulness.For Mercy, … More
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 bave been valued more.’ -Xavi Hernandez (Spain and Barcelona) on Paul … More
Letter to a young poet -by CK Williams in The Young Poets Network
I’ll begin by promising that there’ll be times in your life as a poet when the problems that are a … More
The People of the Other Village -poem by Thomas Lux
The People of the Other Village hate the people of this village and would nail our hats to our … More
A new poem: The Ring
The Ring for Pete and Ana James And if I said a part of me leapt from a … More
Love Listen -A new poem by Ann Gray
Love Listen Let’s love, listen, take time when time is all we have. Let’s be unafraid to be kind, learn … More
To my cancer
To My Cancer When you left me I did not say goodbye. I kissed you then carried you outside. You … More
Why Andrew Motion is my hero
Andrew Motion is my hero because he set up the Poetry Archive with Richard Carrington. He has nothing left to prove. As … More
Book Review: Of Mutability by Jo Shapcott
Really good books about cancer are rare. Really great books about cancer, the ones that offer new perspectives and … More
Ways With Words: Teachers’ Metalinguistic Understanding of Poetry
This is the powerpoint of the paper I am giving with Debra Myhill at the Writing Across Borders II conference … More
On Cliff Yates’ Poetry Workshop
‘Whenever I work with people – no matter what their age – I try to run a checklist through my mind: are … More
My recent research: Teachers’ metaphors of poetry writing pedagogy
Download now or preview on posterous Teachers’_Metaphors_presentation_Poetry_Matters_Jan_2011.ppt (93 KB) I was pleased to present the attached paper at the ESRC-funded … More
Lifesaving Poems 