Festivals and continuing education

So August has been a slower time for me with an emphasis on planning, getting bids and applications in and networking as I gear up for the return of schools in September.

I performed at a lovely festival last weekend near Limavardy, Northern Ireland called Stendhal
This is the first time I have been flown in somewhere to perform so it felt very rock n roll. The weather was kind to us and at about 9pm there was the most gorgeous pink tinge to the sky. You could hear music and appreciative audiences everywhere and it inspires this poem which i dedicate to Ross and the rest of the team who did such a brilliant job putting the weekend together.

Keep writin' and recitin'

Mark x

An August Night

Give me an open sky and let it be Irish;

pregnant with music, magic and
the kisses of angels.

Give me one evening that slows time,

opens hearts until they bond and
share the same beat.

Give me nips of whiskey between songs,
shy smiles from girls I should be too old
to notice, and above all,

Give me a memory of tonight that

will never fade, and one last sweet note
that rings for ever.

A Poem for the Games

A Poem to celebrate the Grand Opening of the Games
(Written under the stringent "Brand Protection" code)

All Hail the *********,
Shining ******* in the
firmament of *****.
Cast in ****, ****** and ******
The ***** show mankind as
****** and ******* and *******!

Run ******!
Jump ******!
Be *******!
And carry us with you to *********
Every four *****, your ***** completes
Like a comet, trailing ***** in your wake

And from there,
we can ***** the *****,
We ******.
We *******,
We *******.

On your *****!
*** ***
and on the B of the ****!
**!!!!!!!

Southwold in the wet!

It’s been a busy time recently, writing poems for Olympic torches etc and before I know it, Latitude festival is upon us and I headed towards Southwold for my favourite large scale festival. Whereas most festivals of this size feature music, music, music with a bit of arts, poetry, comedy etc thrown in, Latitude is definitely an all-round festival with fashion shows, classical concerts, ballet, literature and of course poetry.

I haven’t yet been to Glastonbury to be able to compare and contrast but there seems to be such a range of things to do with comedy, cabaret, live literature and poetry programmes stuffed full of interest, wit and entertainment.

Luke Wright does an amazing job of programming three stuffed-to-the-gills days of poetry which featured headline sets from the likes of Tim Key, John Hegley, John Cooper-Clarke, Benjamin Zephaniah and many more besides. I had the honour of launching the Literature Tent on Friday evening and then introducing Rob Auton and Johnny Fluffypunk. As the festival was just getting going, the tent quickly filled up and it was standing room only and all our sets went really well which was an excellent advert for the poetry arena which opened the next day.

I also took part in the Poetry Takeaway where Poetic “Chefs” prepare poems in fast food style for punters. I ended up writing poems about tiny pets that could be smuggled into school; casting a drama student as Princess in her own fairytale; a poem for a female rugby player and writing poems to celebrate birthdays, first times at Latitude and two poems that encouraged people to make big life decisions without knowing anything about them. I also really enjoyed writing poems to be mean or have a laugh at someone’s expense on behalf of other people (I wrote disclaimers on these poems as one of them was a barrister!)

One of the last poems I wrote on my shift was for a guy who wanted to celebrate the rain because although we all moaned about it (and there was a lot of it to moan about!) he said people had a sense of camaradie as they helped each other (“Be careful! That must be really sticky as there’s an abandoned welly there”) and noted a sense of abandon late at night as people danced in the rain and had a wonderful time. I really liked the poem I come up with and so I’ve reproduced it below. Thanks to Tim Clare who had the idea of Poetry Takeaway and Show and Tell who run it so well.

So, dedicated to everyone who came to the party at Southwold in 2012 I give you

A Little Latitude

In England, we treat the rain

like the lover that drives us crazy

but we can’t live without.

We rail when she’s here,

pine when she isn’t and

ache in times of drought.

As the rain pounds down like

the riffs of 60s’ Rock and Blues,

with a bass line shocking the chest

as a cardiac arrest,

no-one cares, but dances

like the world ends tomorrow.

Lone wellingtons promise us,

if we look hard enough

we will find our Cinderella in the mud.

Keep writin’ and recitin’

Mark

Happy Father's Day

A poem for Father's day but especially those who have lost their Dads in the last year.

Frills

My first Father’s Day without him
and I’m tasting a big
Rocky Road cake of emotions
served on a plate with paper frills;
the soft, the sweet
the crunchy, the zesty
the nutty and the sharp.
There will be brothers to call
and that feels like something
Dad would be pleased I did.
Though he always did kept us
guessing about approval.

His last birthday, we hired a hotel
and held a Yorkshire Cream Tea
(which is like a normal Cream Tea
but with a dozen gobstopper scones each)
and Dad wore the most ridiculous frilled shirt;
a shirt you’d only wear for a bet
or if cast as a low rent Austin Powers,
but it was Dad making an effort
ten years after Mum was around to
guide, hint or simply say
“Over my dead body”!

In review, I now see the first flirts of illness,
the early misfiring of organs
but I missed them at the time
hidden by that shirt and his best teeth.
Dad, proud and independent till the last.
I haven’t tried to forget
but neither have I tried to remember,
until today.

So although he wouldn’t approve
there will be tears;
regrets will be dusted off one more time
and I’ll probably think
about that shirt,
frills on a man who had none.
Love and families are indeed
a rocky road
but worth the effort.

What an amazing day! Radio 2Day Part 1

It is now five days since I was the “Bard of 2Day” on BBC Radio 2 and the smile is still on my face whenever I think of my time spent as part of the Radio 2 family. I received so many messages of support as I tweeted, facebooked etc. that I felt I owed a fuller version of events to those who were sharing in the experience. I’ve decided to break the blog into two or three episodes as there is so much to share.

The day started bright and early as I set THREE alarms in the hotel (My phone, the TV and I placed an early morning call) to make sure I didn’t sleep in on the big day. As it happened, waking up wasn’t the problem; getting to sleep was! I was so excited and looking forward to the day, I couldn’t sleep so read, watched TV and did some work in between unsuccessful attempts to nod off. In the end I got about three hours sleep but managed to get up at the sound of my first alarm call.

Ablutions and breakfast completed (in that order) I headed off to the studios, a ten minute walk away. On entering the sixth floor there was an immediate buzz about the place as a band new to me called The Musgraves (who are brilliant, please check them out) were sound-checking in preparation for two live broadcasts. A quick tour of the studios and facilities included a brief introduction and handshake with Graham Norton and then to Lynn Bowles (Morning Travel Guru) and Alan Dedicoat. It was a strange being introduced to strangers whose name and voice you knew so well you felt they were already friends. I’m pleased to say that everyone I met was friendly and delightful, in spite of such a big undertaking as 2Day which inevitably caused some disruption to their usual routine. 7am was soon upon us and we were off!

The idea of “2Day” was to give a taste of the breadth and depth of the station whole content squeezed and squashed into one 12 hour period with a different presenter each hour giving you a taste of their show. If you like what you heard, you then know when to tune in to find them next time. I was mainly based in an area that usually acted as the Green Room for visiting guests but for 2Day was the live performance area. The sofas had gone and the Elton John grand piano was pressed into service and as the day was live streamed on the website there were also plenty of cameras which led to the unusual need for a make-up specialist for the radio!

Soon it was time for the Musgraves (http://www.themusgraves.co.uk/) to be the first live performance. I was amazed at the sound they made so early in the morning. They performed their forthcoming single “Comfortable Shoes” as well as a cover version and you can see the performances on the 2Day http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00s8ncn Based in Birmingham, the band consists of Matthew, Tom, Matt and Lesley-Marie and they appear to play dozens of instruments between them. After they performed, I performed a poem for them “The Lozells Prayer” which is about Birmingham and they really liked it. They will be touring soon and I highly recommend you seeing them live.

Graham Norton’s hour finished and he handed over to Zoe Ball whose live singing guest was Clare Teal, a radio 2 presenter herself as well as a renowned jazz singer. Her performance of “Get Happy” was bright and zesty and a great way to carry on the buzz everyone was feeling, especially around the live performances.

It quietened down in London for the next hour as the first of the outside broadcasts took centre stage. Tony Blackburn, live from Blackburn (I bet he’s glad he isn’t called Tony Falklands!) I started to work on the poem that I would be broadcasting whilst listening to the studio feed. I was completely unprepared for the goddess that is Paloma Faith performing live, but that is the next instalment!

Keep writin’ and recitin’

Mark

Manchester Utd poem

Dear Manchester United fans. No offence meant but you've had it your own way for about a dozen or so years so it's time to man up and take a little teasing.

Manchester Untied (sic)

Is there a sight more joyous
Than United in second place,
Or Wayne Rooney’s smug millionaire grin
Wiped off his Mr Potato Head Face?

Review "Wizard" by Dominic Berry

Review “Wizard” by Dominic Berry The Cockpit Theatre, Marylebone 1^st May, 2012

“Wizard” is the first theatre show from Dominic Berry a Manchester-based performance poet. Let me start by declaring an interest in that I’ve met Dominic on the Poetry Slam circuit and we have expressed admiration for each other’s work. However it is a giant leap from poems performed in three minute segments to a 75 minute stage show that features heavy use of rhyme. So, can a poetry-based show engage an audience for an extended period? Well in my opinion, this show doesn’t just engage; it’s a triumph.

“Wizard” starts off as a story of a “normal” person encountering his strange neighbour locked out of his flat. Taking a chance to help him, they form an odd couple friendship where one does the regular 9 to 5 routine which starkly contrasts with Wizard’s world inhabited with talking kettles and magical quests. It is an indication of the strength of writing and performances that the use of rhyme enhances the story without being clunky. Ben Jewell offers an excellent foil in supporting roles that allows Dominic Berry’s central performance as the Wizard to fly.

What starts out as a tale with quirky charm takes a darker turn when you realise we are not in the realms of Harry Potter but in the world of anxiety-induced agoraphobia.  The creation of a world of spells, carpet-goblins and keeping score in quest gaming style is a safe haven from a hectic, violent modern world and who’s to say that isn’t preferable sometimes? Poetry has often been used as part of the healing humanities and in “Wizard” a sensitive subject has been well researched and forms the backbone of a moving and sometimes unsettling story. Life is sometimes unsettling and these episodes are well acted and the feeble attempts at “care” by a stretched to breaking public service highlight the feeling of helplessness that many must feel.

Excellent lighting and sound effects thoughtfully support the changes in mood and tone to produce a great theatrical experience. This is a wonderful show with lots to commend it and it is currently on a limited tour.  You should go and see it while you have the chance. Yes it is that good; in fact it’s wizard!