Poetry Matters (15): Cafe Poets in Woodbridge

We joined the Cafe Poets at the lovely venue of Browsers' Bookshop in Woodbridge last night for the first time, and enjoyed an eclectic evening of poetry. The November themes of 'war' and remembrance' ran through the programme, with the chance to focus on works by Edward Thomas (hence my photo above), Siegfried Sassoon, Milton and others. Some members had brought their own work, and a good time was had by all. We enjoyed the coffee and cake, too! Thank you to all concerned.

Fiesta Time (9): Scotland at the Aldeburgh Poetry Festival

We spent a grey November day in Aldeburgh, enjoying the 23rd Aldeburgh Poetry Festival, laid on by The Poetry Trust. We had visited this beautiful east coast town before, but this was our first visit in 'festival season'. 

Aldeburgh is proud of its poet, George Crabbe ... 

We had tickets for the Scottish Islands Reading event in the Jubilee Hall. Poets like Jo Bell, who had not arrived when I took this photo, and Penelope Shuttle joined the audience of local people (like us!) and followers who had come from further afield. There were representatives from the Poetry Society, and it was good to meet Judith Palmer for the first time.   

Words are the building blocks of poetry (see photo above), and it was particularly exciting to hear three poets flitting between languages, namely the languages of Gaelic, Shetlandic and English. Of course, this kind of rich diversity is not new to me, having just moved from the bilingual climate of Wales where the 'dragon has two tongues' (see here).

The three sets of readings were by Robert Alan Jamieson from Lerwick, Shetland; Meg Bateman, a lecturer at the Gaelic college, Sabhal Mòr Ostaig, on Skye - and an honorary lecturer in English at St Andrews University ... and Rody Gorman, who was born in Dublin and also lives on Skye. Rody has translated Cavafy poems into Gaelic.

There were various threads running through the poems, and Jamieson's short poem, 'Welcome to the Folk Museum', struck a particular chord with me, reminding the reader (or listener) just how easy it is to 'romanticise' the Highland and island way of life, glossing over the stark realities at e.g. the time of the Clearances.

Readers of this blog will know that we have a great affinity with Eilean a' Cheò aka the 'Misty Isle'. We also enjoy (if that is the right word) the heart-rending poetry of the Raasay poet, Sorley MacLean, so we were particularly pleased to have the opportunity of hearing some modern Gaelic voices. It was interesting to learn that while Gaelic has a limited lexicon, it has a richness of its own as so many of its words have a plethora of meanings.

Thank you to all took part and to those who gave us fascinating insights into the poetry of the northern isles.  

Aldeburgh ... in November

We spotted the home of a famous Aldeburgh resident ...

Magazine Moment (27): Reach Poetry (and Puffin)

Reach Poetry issue 158 arrived this morning (thank you, Ronnie and Dawn at IDP). There are some great new poems in the magazine - not forgetting a fabulous cover of a certain Border Collie called Soxx.

It was great to find my name in 'The Box' for my 11-syllables per line Sonnet* on - you've guessed - those amazing Yorkshire Puffins. My poem was voted 4th out of those published in issue 157 - so thank you to all who chose it.

Many congratulations to Tina Negus, who took First Place with her brilliant poem, 'A Contradiction of Hoopoes'. 


* Shakespeare's Sonnet XX had 11 lines per line, which was unusual - but I like the rhythm.

Creative Corner (1): Simply ... a Question Mark

Photo © David Gill 2011

There has been a buzz of activity on the Waterfront just outside UCS today. A giant question mark sculpture, constructed in two parts by Langlands and Bell, is causing a wave of excitement as it begins to take shape. It has already aroused a measure of curiosity: what does it mean? What does it 'say' in the context of its location by the university campus?

David prepares to take some 'arty' shots of the installation through the window ...

... while I enjoy the view outside on the Waterfront, Ipswich

I decided to mount this photo on its end to show off the complementary question mark, made by the crane ... The sculpture is now 'under wraps'. One could say that it has been mummified, but I prefer to think of it as a chrysalis, awaiting the moment when it unfurls itself to unveil its full glory. 

Question mark on its side, shielded by ticker tape.

Symbiosis: where does the crane end and the sculpture begin?

All under ticker-tape wraps ... as excitement mounts.

The scene on the Waterfront this evening. What will happen next?

Take a look here and here - and here for more views!

Fiesta Time (8): Aldeburgh Poetry Festival

Sheep on the beautiful Hebridean island of Raasay, birthplace of poet, Somhairle MacGill-Eain/Sorely MacLean

We have just booked tickets for the Scottish Islands event at the Aldeburgh Poetry Festival, run by The Poetry Trust. Meg Bateman, Rody Gorman and Robert Alan Jamieson will be taking part.

A new Sorely MacLean volume, An Cuilithionn 1939: The Cuillin 1939 and Unpublished Poems came out in June this year. Thank you, Sally Evans of Poetry Scotland, for drawing attention to this on FB.

• Further reading: what does it mean to be a Scottish writer?

Publication Pointer (2): Swansea International Poetry Festival Anthology

Swansea's First International Poetry Festival, Summer 2011

This highly engaging festival was organised by Peter Thabit Jones, editor of The Seventh Quarry (mid front row in blue jacket) in association with Stanley Barkan, editor of Cross-Cultural Communications, New York (front row, right).

I am pleased to have a poem in the festival anthology: the publication has just been awarded Second Place by Geoff Stevens in the 'Best Poetry Anthology of 2011' section of the Purple Patch Small Press 'Best of' Lists' for 2011.

Competition Corner (1): A Message from India

I heard this morning from Dr. H. Tulsi, the editor of Metverse Muse (Visakhapatnam, India) that I had obtained 'the FIRST rank' in the 2010 Metverse Muse Poetry Competition, 'having secured a total of 38 points for your two entries together, - 20 pts. for your poem “King of the ‘Kilt Rock’ Cloud” and 18 pts. for “Life’s Silken Thread”.'

A good way to start the day!

Kilt Rock, Isle of Skye