Tag: london

Readings/

Reading at the Poetry Cafe this evening

Stanza Bonanza

Stanza Bonanza

Six of us from the Brighton Stanza are reading this evening alongside six Forest Poets (Waltham Forest) in a ‘Stanza Bonanza’. I don’t think it’s a competition, more like a friendly mingling of Stanzas. Anyway we are definitely the away team. And Paul McGrane of the Poetry Society won’t be there supporting his own Stanza (Forest) because he’ll be at the Orient. Ah! So it takes a bit of footie to find out where people’s priorities really lie!

As a special ‘thank you’ for sitting through yet another poetry night, I’m treating my long suffering husband to drinks in the bar at the top of the Gherkin beforehand. Hurrah!

So now all I need to do is decide whether to read one of my new ‘poem a day’ efforts, or whether it needs a bit of cleaning up first.

Really looking forward to hearing what my fellow Brightonians come up with, and also the Forest Poets who are all new to me. If you’re in London, do come along and give us a cheer – 7pm at the Poetry Cafe, Betterton Street.

Mags & Blogs/

Ambit at the Betsey Trotwood

Took Lucy along to an Ambit poetry night yesterday at the Betsey Trotwood pub, a little island of old London tahn amidst the chaos and cacophony of Farringdon Road and on the edge of Clerkenwell Green.

We weren’t prepared for the evening to start on time, but it did, so we missed a little of Kevin Crossley-Holland, and the upstairs room was COSY, but we really enjoyed the evening. Loved Jim Burns. Three headline poets and an entertaining short story from Eley Williams, plus an interesting open mic (with only one woman reading, most unusual).

Lucy did her bit riding the faders and even mopping up someone’s spilt beer (she likes to muck in!) and I bought a copy of Ambit, after hurling all sorts of unveiled hints about when I might hear about my submissions (I should never have had that, um, 2nd glass of wine). With a 9pm end we sauntered back to the station and had a very civilised ride home bypassing Victoria. And I didn’t get rained on. Result!