September is traditionally a strong month for poetry events, 2013 upholds that tradition. Shindig in Leicester, and Poetry Bites in Kings Heath, both bi-monthly events meet, and I am performing in Shrewsbury at the Coffee House with Julie Boden as well as putting in a performance at the Stafford Arts Festival. Amy Rainbow has Ash Dickinson at Malvern for Confab cabaret and Sarah James launches her new book in Droitwich- what a month!
Friday 4th October – Swindon Festival of Poetry 2013, The Platform, Swindon –7.30, Jo Corcoran
Festivals
Wirksworth Arts Festival 6th -22nd Sept
http://www.wirksworthfestival.co.uk/
Sept Birmingham Artsfest
http://www.artsfest.org.uk/
Sat 7th Sept Stafford Arts Fest
http://stafford-towncentre.co.uk/stafford-arts-festival.htm
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Day by day
Sun 1st Sunday Xpress Fourth Sunday Doors 1500, Start 16:30 Adam & Eve Bradford Street, Birmingham B12 0JD Open mic with special guest performance by Al Hutchins’ The Courtesy Group and (tbc) Louis Campbell’s Citizen X
jameskennedycentral@yahoo.co.uk
Sun 1st Spoken Word Sundays,Cast Bar, Nottingham Playhouse, Wellington Circus, Nottingham NG1 5AF, Tickets: FREE, 5pm
Following the recent success of ‘Say Sum Thin 5 with Lemn Sissay’, we present ‘Spoken Word Sunday with The Mouthy Poets’ a brand new, vibrant, monthly night coming to the heart of Nottingham, where members of the popular Mouthy Poets collective share a part of themselves with words and rhymes.
Come along and see them be a bit ‘Mouthy’ on the first Sunday of every month at CAST Bar and Restaurant (next to Nottingham Playhouse) from 5pm-7pm with the first launch on Sunday 7th July. Come along and enjoy poetry for FREE!!!
Hosted by… (The ever fabulous) Anne Holloway. With Mouthy Poets
Matt Miller:
Matt Miller has been performing poetry and facilitating workshops in Nottingham since October 2011. He has also performed in Newcastle and at the Olympic Park. He is studying Creative and Professional Writing at the University of Nottingham and is into green pesto in a kinda big way.
Jeren Artykova:
Jeren is a student during the week, and an old person on weekends. First performance poetry piece was performed June 2012, and Jeren has been in Mouthy ever since. Girl with many names and cultures, fluent in English, awkward with Russian, learning Korean
Raphael Blake:
Raphael is a Londoner who found the big city enticed him to be seduced by music, leading him astray in a controversial love affair to cheat on his first love, poetry, so it’s not until he came to Nottingham was he able to fall back in love with poetry. He has been faithful ever since.
Joshua Judson:
A former student at Bilborough College, Josh is embarking on a gap year in which he plans to pursue his artistic endeavours on stage, on page and in grimy dive bars with his punk band, Carcass Fit For Hounds
Ioney Smallhorne:
Using the natural world as a voice to confront her dark experiences Ioney is a brave new writer, who is also motivated by the racial stereotypes of black woman, Jamaican culture, African and Caribbean history. Story-telling is an imperative thread interwoven into her poetry and docu-films.
Jim Hall:
Mid- twenties writer, performer and workshopper. Lover of Derby, unique voices and Max Paprika crisps. Thinks he talks more than he says. Writing helps with his. Known to cry at sweeping pop songs and his mother’s kitchen waltz. Dances like his dad. Yes THAT perfect!
Sun 1st Buzzwords, Exmouth Arms,Bath Road Cheltenham, Gloucestershire GL53 7LX, 7pm Workshop, open mic plus Penelope Shuttle
Tues 3rd Word ,Y Theatre, East Street, Leicester LE1 6EY, just opposite Leicester Train Station7pm performers, 8pm, Audience, Open mic plus headliner. £6in
WORD! is the longest running poetry and spoken word night in Leicester. Based at The Y Theatre, Leicester, it takes place on the first Tuesday of every month, between 8.00 and 10.30pm. The evening is composed of an open mic, followed by a booked act. Come to WORD! in September when we’ve got fabulous poet Cherry Smyth as our guest.Cherry Smyth is a poet, novelist, critic and curator, born in Ireland, based in London.Her debut novel Hold Still will be published by Holland Park Press in October 2013. She is currently co-curating Limber: Spatial Painting Practices at the Herbert Read Gallery, Canterbury, September 13th-October 12th. Test, Orange, 2012, her latest poetry collection is available from Pindrop Press. Her previous collection One Wanted Thing is available from Lagan Press.
Cherry writes regularly for Art Monthly, Modern Painters and Art Review. She was a curatorial adviser for Axis online showcase, Open Frequency in 2006. She was guest editor of Magma Poetry Magazine, 2012, and was poetry editor of Brand Literary Magazine, 2006-2011.
Cherry has been teaching writing poetry in the Creative Writing Department of the University of Greenwich since 2004.
As usual we we’llhave a whole lot of talented open-micers-come along at 7pm to sign up with our compere – as well as filming from our resident film-maker, Keith Allott and music from The Y.
£4/£3 on the door
Tues 3rd Night Blue Fruit, Playwrights Cafe Bar & Bistro 4/6 Hay lane, Cathedral Quarter, CV1 5RF, free in, 7.30pm-10pm,Open mic, sign up on the night.
Tues 3rdStories, songs and samosas SNM Centre Gt Western St , Wednesbury, 7.30, first Tuesday bi monthly
Poet and songwriter Brendan Hawthorne has teamed up with fellow poet Surjit Dharmi to host a bi-monthly event at the Nirankari Bhavan in Wednesbury. Stories, Songs and Samosas (Celebrating oneness together through poetic words and music) invites performers and audiences to share in the written and spoken word that reflect our culture and diversity today.
Surjit Dhami said: “This is a great opportunity to celebrate diversity. It’s also a chance to invite the world to share in its stories under one roof.” Brendan Hawthorne added: “By sharing our stories I believe we can build bridges of respect.”We are looking for traditional songs and stories from all cultures as well as newly written ones that record today’s feelings to be performed.”We also need an audience so why not come along and share in this celebration of life!”
Dates for 2013 events at the Nirankari Bhavan in Potters Lane, Wednesbury, are as follows and will take place between from 7.30 – 9.30pm:
7 May
2 July
3 September
5 November
All are welcome. The events are free of charge with light refreshments being available on the night.
Wed 4th Poetic Essence Talk Bar, Priory Queensway, Birmingham City Centre, 7.30pm 1st Wed (Opening 3/7/13)
Poetic Essence home to all spoken word artists, musicians and singers to express themselves freely to a diverse crowd jam packed with networking opportunities and a platform to success!!!
Ready for a different kind of night out in Birmingham? Held at the newly refurbished ‘Talk” bar every 1st Wednesday.
This night promises to speak to your inner soul and whisper to your heart featuring Special Guests Performances, Poetry, Eccentric/Jazz Music and Spoken Word.
Want to show off your talent for music or poetry, then sign up for our ‘Lucky 7′ Competition (Free house drink to anyone who signs up)
There will also be a chance to network (Meet and Greet session) at the beginning of the night so mark your calender, bring a date or ride solo, whatever you choose to do be ready to “Reveal Your Soul”
*like the page to stay update on featured acts*
https://www.facebook.com/poeticbham
Wed 4th SeptOpen Resistance The Vault, Church St, Rugby, CV21 3 PT, 7.30pm, £3 in, Words, music and film shorts, first Weds,facebook- Open resistance,
opneresistance@hotmail.co.uk
Wed 4thWell versed, The Muffin Man, Cheltenham, 7pm free in with Jacqui Rowe, Cliff Yates, Hilda Sheehan, Hilda McCausland,Dan Cooper
Wed 4th Spire Writes , White Swan , 16 St Mary’s Gate Chesterfield,7.45, Free in:
Our special guest for September is the brilliant Brendan Cleary. Originally from Northern Ireland, Brendan launched his poetic career as editor of The Echo Room and went on to publish Tears in the Burger Store (1985), White Bread and ITV (1990), The Irish Card (1993), Stranger in the House (2001), Jackson (2004) and ‘some turbulant weather’ (2008). Tall Lighthouse recently published Brendan’s ‘goin’ down slow: selected poems 1985-2010′. As usual, there’ll be open mic slots available for anyone who wants to read and plenty of real ale on tap downstairs at the bar.
All welcome.
Thurs 5thGood Impressions Spoken Word open Mic, Cafe Impression, Atkins Building, Hinckley, LE10 1QU,7.30pm £5in Hosted by Tom Phillips,
Thurs 5thBlackdrop,Canalhouse bar, Canal Street, Nottm , First Thursday 8-10pm £3 @ NAE,with Mother Hubbard…. And of course YOU in the open mic if you want to brave the final stage at NAE.ALL WELCOME OVER 16. Further info 07977 804 858.
Thurs 5th Coffeehouse Poetry Open Mic, Shrewsbury Coffee House , Castle Gate, Shrewsbury with Liz lefroy, 7.30pm, free in. Special guests Julie Boden and Gary Longden.
Thurs 5th Parole Parlate, The Old Rectifying House, North Parade, Worcester.
The long hot summer is drawing to a close, the kids are going back to school, the nights are drawing in, there is a nip in the air and “Parole Parlate : The Spoken Word” is back on Thursday 5th September 2013 at The Old Rectifying House, North Parade, Worcester.
Parole Parlate is a dedicated spoken word and “music that tells a story” platform. If you would like the chance to read your short stories, poems, prose, try out your performance poetry or music that tells a story, this evening is for you!
Confirmed performers so far include:
Mike Alma
Suz Winspear
Human Voice
Kathy Gee
Liz Hayden-Jones
Shabraz Ahmed
Christopher Kingsley
Sylvia Herbert
Maria Chippendale
Timothy Stavert
Headlining this event is the lovely Al Barz, who will be treating us to some of his poetic talents with his keyboard.
ENTRY FEE AND HOW TO PAY
The entry fee for this event is £3.00; payable on the door on the door on the night of the event.
FUTURE PP EVENTS – TAKING PART AND PERFORMING
If would like a slot to perform at this or a future event please let us know by sending a Facebook message to the Event Organiser Lisa Ventura, leaving a post on the wall of this event or visit http://www.facebook.com/paroleparlate and leave a post on the wall.
Performers get free entry for taking part.
ADVANCE INFORMATION
“Parole Parlate : The Spoken Word” is on the first Thursday of every month, so advance dates for your diary will be:
Thursday 3rd October 2013
Thursday 7th November 2013
Thursday 5th December 2013
Look forward to seeing you all at the event!
Sat 7th The FIZZ Poetry and Spoken Word at Stafford Arts Festival.Stafford Gatehouse Theatre/10am – 4pm Poetry
10 am – 12 Noon – Poetry Readings
1pm – 2pm – Poetry readings from candidates for the Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Young Poet Laureate
2pm – 3.30pm – Poetry Readings
3:30pm Reading of the Poem for Stafford by Mal Dewhirst
3:40pm Announcement of the Young Poet Laureate
4:00pm Close.
Saturday 7, 11:00am until 10:00pm.Farm on the Hill, Manor House Farm, Prestwood, nr Alton, Uttoxeter, Staffordshire, ST14 5DD (about 15 mins from Ashbourne in Derbyshire).
Organised in conjunction with Farm on the Hill, (www.farmonthehill.co.uk), the event consists of a day and an evening of storytelling workshops and performances, hosted in and around a beautiful new bell tent, sited in the heart of the stunning environment of their Staffordshire woodland copse and wildflower meadow.
Included in the event is:
– two performance storytelling workshops;
– a special late afternoon tea and tales event;
– full access to the wildflower meadow with nearby walks and Farm on the Hill artist gallery;
– evening candle-lit performance event;
– optional camping Saturday night.
The site is fabulous – small and cosy, quiet and beautiful, and will be decked out with fairy lights to create a truly magical evening storytelling environment.
The workshops are designed to further explore and develop the performance skills of storytellers with some previous experience. So knowledge of basic techniques will be assumed. Other than that, the day is suitable for those experienced to a lesser or greater degree, seeking to explore further as well as devote a full day in the company of other storytellers. The workshops are facilitated by Sophie Snell (www.sophiesnell.co.uk). Content will be geared towards the experience level of those attending, and specifically planned around deepening and exploring aspects of performance technique – expression, language, voice, movement, connecting with the audience, building confidence and engagement both with the story and those listening.
The day is also planned specifically to allow each participant (supported by the group) to work up to a public performance of a story, either as part of the Tea & Tales segment later in the day, or the final evening performance.
So this is an opportunity to try out new material and techniques, to meet and share experience with other storytellers, and to stretch your wings a little in a small, friendly and supportive environment.
Note – the evening event is open to the public, so you can just come to that if you wish!
Partners and friends are very welcome, and we have a special day “visitor” rate for anyone coming along but not doing the workshops.
Timetable:
10 -11am – arrival (if pitching up a tent, early arrival by arrangement)
11 – 1pm – Workshop part 1
1 – 2pm – lunch (bring and share)
2 – 4pm – Workshop part 2
4 – 6pm – afternoon Tea & Tales at neighbouring Manor House Farm tea barn
6 – 7.30pm – free time, pitch up, eat, explore wildflower meadow etc
7.30pm – 10pm – evening storytelling performance, with stories from workshop attendees and invited guest “spots”, MC’d by Sophie Snell.
The Afternoon Tea segment is an easy short (5 mins) walk down hill into the village to the Farm on the Hill, set in a gorgeous “rustic chic” barn. It includes a pot of tea or homemade lemonade / soft drink, served with choice of homemade scones (rhubarb, fruit or whatever is fresh) with jam / cream, and fairy cakes – delicious! The farm also has a delightful artist’s gallery you can browse.
Cost – For the full workshop event £45, including evening performance and afternoon tea. An additional £5 per person for those choosing to camp Saturday night.
If you are bringing a partner or friend, that is fine, they will be most welcome. There’s lots to do locally, the farm to visit, lovely walks, bike hire and a wonderful artists gallery. And they are very welcome to hang out at the site and join us for the Afternoon Tea & Tales segment. The daytime charge for day non-workshop’ees is £13, which includes camping fee, Afternoon Tea & Tales, and Evening Performance ticket. Daytime visitors must come with a workshop attendee, however.
The evening event is open to all, tickets £4 (free to workshop attendees). BYOB
Bookings – contact Sophie Snell via Facebook or email robandsophie@hotmail.com or Tel 01332 840007. Places for the workshop are strictly limited so must be booked in advance. Likewise if you wish to camp.
This should be a really magical event, small and friendly, in a beautiful environment with a chance to immerse yourself in storytelling for a day, amongst friends.
Some feedback from previous workshop attendees:
“Very helpful, learned loads of new things, lots of tips, tried new things – very supportive and fun.”
“I loved the skilful way you teased “the storyteller within” out to be released on the Great British Public!”
“The day was very helpful, letting me look at the story more dynamically rather than getting locked into one set way of telling it.”
“Each session …. enlightened me, challenged me, encouraged me… The ideal setting and atmosphere for a workshop… I’d like to thank you for being a lovely hostess…”
“Feeling on top of the world after a day’s advanced storytelling with Sophie Snell!”
Mon 9th Pure and Good and Right with Sean Kelly, The Warwick Arms ( formerly the Sozzled sausage),144 Regent St Leamington Spa, CV 32 4NX; 7.30pm: £3 in,Every second Monday of the month (except December) This month we are excited to welcome back the one and only… Sean Kelly
Since founding PGR in 2006 and running away to the North East in 2008, Sean has continued to assume an air of maturity in the real world, whilst releasing his pent-up inner child on the poetry stage. He recently won a Love vs Lust Slam in Newcastle, despite turning up with a fistful of poems he thought were about Love, and being asked to switch to the topic of Lust at the last minute.Sean has promised to bring one serious poem, though he hasn’t promised to read it…DEFINITELY AN EVENING NOT TO BE MISSED! You can book an Open mic slot on the night!Admission £3 (£2 Student/OAP) From time to time we are located upstairs, so please let us know if you require disabled access before the event.
If you would like to know more about the night email: pgrpoetry@gmail.com
Mon 9th Pub Poetry Nottingham The Canal house, 48-52 Canal Street, Nottingham, NG1 7EH,8pm, 2nd monday : Free in, Open micContact Nick on pubpoetry@nottscomedyfestival.co.uk
Mon 9th Open Mic, the Bowery, Devonshire St Sheffield, 7.30pm, free in, with William Blake.
Tues 10th City Voices City Bar King Street, Wolverhampton WV 1ST Second Tuesday 19:30, booked poets simon.fletcher@wolverhampton.gov.uk
Wed 11thSpam at Bad Edit,Bad Edit Venue, The Old Post Office 12 Wedgewood St, Stoke on Trent, ST 6 4JH ,Open mic with Tracey Henham, 2nd Wed
Tues 10th Scribal Gathering The Crown Stony Stratford:7.30pm,
Tues 10th Mouth & Music 6,Boars Head Gallery, Kidderminster 8pm, £3 in:The 6th in our monthly series of totally & utterly acoustic spoken word & music nights! Presented by Heather Wastie & Sarah Tamar for kaf creatives
Still reeling from a spectacularly successful Festival special, Mouth and Music opens its doors again to poets, storytellers and musicians for an evening of spoken word and music.
This month’s featured poet is CATHERINE CROSSWELL, whose quirky performances have been described as “delicious and delicate…..feisty and fun”.
Featured singer/songwriter BRETT HUCKFIELD is promoting his album, “City Blue” which is packed with beautiful melodies and soulful songs.
There is a theme running through the evening … can you spot WhAt iT is? ER where was I …. ah yes …
After ripping the opposite sex to shreds in the GLOVES OFF! boxing ring, Sarah Tamar promises to be a kind MC.
Sign up on the night for a 5 minute spot (spoken word) or 2 songs. Do get there early to be sure of a slot.
Mouth and Music is the second Tuesday of every month presented by KAF Creatives.
Tues 10th Tales at the Edge, White Lion Inn, Bridgnorth, Shropshire,Tales at the Edge is one of the country’s oldest and most established storytelling clubs, meeting in Bridgenorth on the 2nd Tuesday of every month (except August) at 8 pm.
Tues 10th Scribal Gathering,The Crown, Market Square Stony Stratford MK11 1BE, 8pm, free in
Now summer is just a fading dream, Scribal Gathering returns to take you back to school – welcoming in the new term with a host of poor excuses, lost PE kits and shattered visions of a failing future.
It has been an exciting summer season, with Scribal Gathering hosting open mic music and poetry events as part of the Waterside Festival, the World Picnic, The Bardic picnic and MK Calling. We have revelled in Halcyon days of careless creativity, casual hedonism and kipping in mud. But aren’t we all glad that the holidays are over and we can return to the crushing, soul-destroying drudge of our normal lives for a bit of a rest?
And what better way to count down the days to next summer than with a fantastic evening of the finest music and spoken word talent available? Scribal Gathering returns to bring you the best entertainment of a Tuesday evening now that sex-shop planning applications have been declined by the council. We have the usual open mic, welcoming performers of all kinds to share whatever they choose to bring and invoke the spirit of gathering, along with a special featured performance from our headline act Tina Sederholm, organiser and host of the Oxford Hammer and Tongue poetry slam! Open mic slots are available to all. Join us… Second Tuesday of every month.
Wed 11th Flying Donkeys, Voicebox, Forman St Derby:8pm:storytelling.
Tickets on the door or phone Sophie on 01332 840007 or email robandsophie@hotmail.com..
Wed 11 th The Quad Derby QUAD, Market Place, Cathedral Quarter, Derby, DE1 3AS Second Wednesday 19.30 Free in, A monthly night of performed poetry for everyone, new performers always welcome or just come and listen, More details from QUAD or contact Les on T: 01332 206 734, http://www.derbyquad.co.uk
Thurs 12 Heln Mort launches her new collection Divison St at the University Arms 197 Brook Hill, Sheffield, South Yorkshire S3 7HG, 7.30pm, free in.
Thurs 12thPoetry Breakfast, Tea on the Square, Much Wenlock, Shropshire.Cost is £6 to include coffee and croissants. Every second Thursday (except August) at 9am at We read published poetry on a different theme each month and have occasional guest readers (Chris Kinsey in July, Jean Atkin next month, October)
Fri 13th Wednsesbury Art Gallery, Open mic, 7.30pm: Free in
Sat 14th Notes From the Underground, Hollybush PH, Newtown lane, Cradley Heath, 8pm Start, Free in, Poetry and music Open Mic with Jack Edwards
Saturday, 14, Park’s Café, 4 Victoria Square, Droitwich, WR9 8DS,7:00pm until 9:00pm.Be[yond] Launch
Sarah will be launching Be[yond] (Knives, Forks and Spoons Press) at Park’s Café, Droitwich, on Saturday, September 14, as part of this year’s SaltFest celebrations.
The evening, from 7pm – 9pm, will feature an hour of poetry, including readings from Sarah, as well as short slots from guest poets:Claire Walker, Andrew Smardon, Heather Wastie, Maggie Doyle, Polly Robinson, Jenny Hope and Gary Longden. *
The event is free and open to the public as well as invited guests. Park’s will be open for food as well as drink. But for those who’d like to make more of a social night of it, the plan is to go on for a curry at the Dilshad, Droitwich, afterwards. (Numbers for this by August 31, please, as I think we’ll need to book. More info on the menu etc in a status/photos on this page.)
* About Beyond and the launch guests:
Sarah’s second full-length poetry collection Be[yond] is published by Knives, Forks and Spoons Press, July 2013.
Love & lust, betrayal & endurance, disturbance & peace, life & loss, nature & modern society, language & what lies in the shadows between lines delight and tantalise in Sarah’s latest work.
Following on from her prize-winning first collection, Be[yond] combines Sarah’s characteristic crafting and eye for detail, imagery and metaphor with a new, more probing, approach to language and poetics.
The three sections of this collection – Against Air and Water, Through the Ether and From Earth and Fire – guide readers past the beaches of Birmingham, through meditations on water, a dreamworld strangeness, mezzanine memories of France, de-familiarised cityscapes and gorse wildlands to the edges of everyday life, love and language.
In the words of other poets:
“Moving on from her very successful first collection, Sarah James shows that she is not afraid to take risks. Experimenting almost scientifically with form and language, ‘Be [yond] ‘ is innovative and adventurous and at the same time accessible and enjoyable.” – Jacqui Rowe
“An inventive voice emerging out of the entwined interstices of the domestic and the relational: precisely observed, embodied, thick with language.” – Scott Thurston
“Sarah James’s background in Linguistics makes for exceptional poetry. The rhythm is beautifully handled at a phonological level, and the imagery is striking. Here, though, the imagery is not just an adornment, it is drawn from various semiotic systems to convey hidden meaning, as if each poem were a text version on Sir Thomas Tresham’s Triangular Lodge.” – Alec Newman, Knives, Forks and Spoons Press editor
Claire Walker’s work has appeared in print and online publications including Ink Sweat and Tears, Hearing Voices, Be: Magazine, PIYE and the poetry trail at Avoncroft Museum.
Andrew Smardon is a talented, published Oxfordshire poet.
Heather Wastie is a multi-talented poet and musician based in Kidderminster. She is Writer in Residence at the Museum of Carpet and her work is witty, often funny and poignant.
Maggie Doyle was Worcestershire Poet Laureate 2012-2013. She is on the Worcestershire Literary Festival committee and is the festival’s Poet Emeritus.
Polly Robinson published her own collection of poetry last year. She has also been published in various anthologies and magazines in print and online.
Jenny Hope is a woman with a tree-thing. Her poetry collection Petrolhead was published by Oversteps Books in 2010 and she is involved in a range of poetry projects and workshop facilitating.
Sun 15th Open mic sundays, La Reference Bar,160 Hockley hill, Birmingham B18 5AN: 5pm till late.07445231492 free in Get in touch before it’s too late!
strong>Sun 15th Poems and Pints The Swan Inn,18 Stafford Street Town Centre, Stone ST15 8QW, 4-6pm, Third Sunday
Mon 16th Shindig, Western PH, Leicester:7.30pm, free in:Crystal Clear Creators and Nine Arches Press present Shindig! Open-Mic Poetry Evening: Free and Open to All.
Sign up for open-mic slots on the door.
Email Jonathan Taylor (crystalclearjt@hotmail.co.uk) for further details.
Wed 18th Templar Poetry, Lamb & Flag, The Tything, Worcester, 8pm; Open mic, third Wednesday, Alex officiates contact:Alex McMillen, Alex McMillen,Templar Poetry, PO BOX 7082, Bakewell, Derbyshire, DE45 9AF,Tel: 01629 582500, Mobile: 07918166975
info@templarpoetry.co.uk
Wed 18th Storytlling Cafe, Kitchen Garden Cafe, Kings heath, 7,30pm £5in, reyurn to Lyonesse with Mike O Connor and Barbera Griggs
Thurs 19th Birmingham Poetry Festival
Thursday, 19th Edward Boden Thomas’s Garden Poems at 7.30 p.m. at the Eco Centre, Wirksworth, Simon Hobbs will give a talk on Edward Boden Thomas’s Garden Poems.It’s free and is a Wirksworth Festival fringe event. Simon Hobbs is the author of the Reflections magazine article given out at the December stanza meeting.
Edward Boden Thomas is the poet who wrote The Twelve Parts of Derbyshire .
Thurs 19th Hit the Ode,The Victoria, 48 John Bright St, Birmingham B1 1BN
Tickets: £5
Hit the Ode brings the most exciting poets from the region, the country and the world to the heart of Birmingham. Join us! We have poems. Poems you’ve played tag with when you were younger; poems dug up by puzzled archeologists; poems seen racing down the ringroad on big wheel tricycles. Good poems. Come and get them.
A very few open mic slots will be available on the door (the pre-bookable slots have all been claimed). For more info, contact bohdan@applesandsnakes.org.
Info: http://www.thevictoriabirmingham.co.uk / Facebook
Booking: on the door
Open mic: half of the open mic slots available via email (bohdan@applesandsnakes.org), the other half can be claimed on the door on the day of the event.
Fri 20th Spoken Worlds 19:30 The Old Cottage Tavern , Byrkley St,eet, Burton-upon-Trent DE14 2JJ Open mic gajwriter@btinternet.com
Sun 22nd Rhyme and Tells at the Six Bells in Bishops Castle, Shropshire,Meets every 4th Sunday of the month (except for public holidays) at 8 pm – 10.30 pm. It is free admission and an open session for poetry, prose and storytelling.
For further details please contact Mike on 01588 680685.
Tues 24th The Telling Space, Mythstories, *NEW VENUE* (relocated from Wem) Mythstories,The Shrewsbury Coffeehouse,5 Castle Gates, SY1 2AE,Wem, Shropshire,The club meets on the 4th Tuesday of every month unless otherwise stated. Please check the website under ‘opening hours and events’ http://www.mythstories.com or contact Dez or Ali on 01939 235500 for further information.
Meet at 7 pm for refreshments (bring food to share) or at 7.30 pm for stories. A chance to listen or an opportunity to tell. Admission is free.
Tues 24th Kitchen Graden cafe, Kings Heath, Poetry Bites with Jacqui Rowe, Dave Reeves and Andrew Barnes headline
Tues 24th Word Wizards Buckingham Hotel Buxton 19.30. Open mic three minute slam format More info Poetryslamuk@aol.com
Tuesday 24th Pub Poetry, Canalhouse, 48-52 Canal Street, Nottingham, NG1 7EH, 8pm, FREE
A fun, free and informal night of light hearted and down right comic spoken word and poetry in pubs with Real Ale: without beer, literature is nothing.
Bring your own poems,short stories, songs ‐ whatever you have, aslong as iti nvolves words and might be funny. If you don’t want to read your own, bring someone else’s.
Starts at 8pm with periods of reading, drinking and writing limericks. All jolly good fun. See you there!
Tues 24th Confab 4, recon, Malvern
Roll up, roll up for the hairiest ConFab Cabaret yet!
We have Ash Dickinson Poet, Fanny Libido, Shambollix, Adrian Mealing, Loungetoad, Myfanwy Fox’s Fox Pops and MORE! All brought to you by Amy Rainbow, Catherine Crosswell and the letter H.
Be ready for your own TWO MINUTES of fame in our Prepare To Share sessions and be ready to rejoice when you win one of our glorious prizes in The Silliest Raffle.
All this for FREE or whatever you kindly choose to give us 🙂
Put the date in your diaries, tell your mates, grow some hair and come to ConFab Cabaret!
Wed 25th “42″ Open Mic Night (Gothic, Horror, Sci-Fi & Fantasy) Lunar Bar, New St Worcester, 7.30, Free in:last wed monthly E-mail: 42openmicnight@42genrearts.co.uk
Wed 25th marcus Moore and Sarah will be performing poetry spontaneously throughout the day in the Touchwood Shopping Centre and the Arts Centre Complex for Solihull Festival’s Spiel Spontaneity Day.
Wed 25th the Lych Gate Tavern, 44 Queens Square Wolverhamtpton, it’s down the walkway by Barclays bank the leads to the Civic Centre. .It’s a great little pub last Wednesday ts@tonystringfellow.com
Thur 26th Bilston Voices Cafe Metro 46 Church Street, Bilston WV14 0AH Fourth Thursday 19:00 Only booked poets perform: emmaasif@hotmail.com
Thur 26th Find the Right Words, Embrace arts, Behind Regent college, Lancaster Rd.Leicester LE1 17A, 7.30 pm,last Thursday
Ten open mic spots available, 5 before hand and 5 on the door.
£5/£4 conc entry
Sun 29th Sunday Xpress Fourth Sunday Doors 1500, Start 16:30 Adam & Eve Bradford Street, Birmingham B12 0JD Open mic ,jameskennedycentral@yahoo.co.uk1st
Mon 30th Gorilla poetry Slam, the Bowery, Devonshire St, Sheffield 7.30pm, with William Blake, free in.
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Notes for the future
Wed 2nd Oct Well versed, The Muffin Man, Cheltenham, 7pm free in with dan Sluman and Michael Scott
Thurs 3rd Launching the Festival and Birmingham’s New Poet Laureate,Studio Theatre, Library of Birmingham,
Centenary Square, Broad Street Birmingham,B1 2DN @ 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm
|Free, Join Library of Birmingham and Birmingham Literature Festival on National Poetry Day 2013 for an hour of poetry and promise as we whet your appetite for the ten days of events, workshops and discussions ahead.
After a few words from the Festival and Library teams to mark the moment and the flourishing partnership it represents, we will hand the stage over to some of the city’s own poets: Birmingham poets laureate past, present and future.
We will be announcing the 18th Birmingham Poet Laureate who will be the first ever laureate for the Library of Birmingham.
The new Poet Laureate will be expected to play a vital role in promoting the enjoyment of reading and writing of poetry whilst also taking forward the work of previous Poets Laureate and engage with diverse audiences to make poetry accessible and available to all.
With poetry from Stephen, including responses to the final stages of the three year library construction process, and appearances from some of the other great poets who have held the city laureate title during its seventeen years.
Thurs 3rd Carol Ann Duffy & Imtiaz Dharker:Library Studio, Library of Birmingham,
Library Studio, Library of Birmingham, Centenary Square Birmingham,B1 2ND United Kingdom a National Poetry Day Celebration,@ 7:30 pm – 9:00 pm
|£10 / £8
To celebrate National Poetry Day we are delighted to present this gala performance by two of our most inspiring and entertaining poets.
Carol Ann Duffy is UK Poet Laureate. Her poetry is both dazzlingly witty and deeply moving. In her widely read poems of public life she voices the concerns of the many – about how our country is run and civic life. And in her poems of love and personal reflection she so often finds the words we all need to keep on keeping on. Her poetry performances – perfectly paced and poised – remind us why poetry needs to be heard in public spaces.
Carol Ann will be joined by Imtiaz Dharker. Born in Pakistan, raised in Scotland and working for many years in India, Imtiaz Dharker’s childhood provides the material for many of her poems; exile, journeying, home and religious strife. Finding the universal in the particular, her poetry transports readers while offering wit in abundance. Audiences love her warmth and generosity and her performances are truly captivating.
Tues 5 West Midlands Poets: Joel Lane, Charles Wilkinson, Nick Pearson & Emma PurshouseRoom 101, Library of Birmingham,
Centenary Square, Broad Street Birmingham,B1 2DN @ 5:00 pm – 6:30 pm, £8
An evening of contemporary poetry curated by Flarestack Poets and Offa’s Press, hosted by Flarestack Poets. These four poets represent the high quality and variety of poetry being created and published in the West Midlands by two of the region’s best loved poetry publishers. Emma Purshouse is a poetry slam champion and performs across the UK. Her appearances include The Cheltenham Literature Festival, Ledbury Poetry Festival, Much Wenlock Poetry Festival, Bang Said the Gun, Manchester, and Solfest.
An evening of contemporary poetry curated by Flarestack Poets and Offa’s Press, hosted by Flarestack Poets. These four poets represent the high quality and variety of poetry being created and published in the West Midlands by two of the region’s best loved poetry publishers.
Emma Purshouse is a poetry slam champion and performs across the UK. Her appearances include The Cheltenham Literature Festival, Ledbury Poetry Festival, Much Wenlock Poetry Festival, Bang Said the Gun, Manchester, and Solfest. She has undertaken poetry residencies for Wolverhampton Libraries and The New Vic Theatre in Stoke-on-Trent. Emma has been published in a variety of small press magazines and poetry anthologies. Her CD Upsetting the Apple Cart appeared from Offa’s Press in 2010.
Nick Pearson is a Forward Prize nominated poet who has been widely published in magazines and anthologies. Made in Captivity is a collection that draws together work written over the last ten years. Urban, sharply observed and often humorous his poems catch some of the voices of contemporary disconnection and the search for certainty. Readers will recognise day to day characters and confusions. He lives in Shropshire.
Joel Lane is the author of three full-length poetry collections, The Edge of the Screen, Trouble in the Heartland, The Autumn Myth (all from Arc) and Instinct (Flarestack Poets). His other work includes two novels, a novella, a booklet of crime stories and three collections of ghost stories. He lives in Birmingham, where he works as a journalist.
Charles Wilkinson was born in Birmingham. His publications include The Snowman and Other Poems (Iron Press) and The Pain Tree and Other Stories (London Magazine Editions) and Ag & Au, (Flarestack Poets), the latter an exploration of the history of Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter and the qualities of the elements of silver (Ag) and gold (Au) illustrated by students from Birmingham Institute of Art and Design.
Mon 7thArc World Poets ,Room 101, Library of Birmingham,Library of Birmingham, Centenary Square, Broad Street Birmingham,B1 2ND, @ 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm £8
An evening of poetry from across continents: Cheran (Sri Lanka), Ludwig Steinherr (Germany) and Michael Hulse (England). From civil war to fatherhood, climate change to love, this evening ranges widely geographically, culturally and emotionally. A one-off event bringing these extraordinary poets together that will leave you energised and inspired. Michael Hulse was born in England and lived for twenty-five years in Germany before returning in 2002 to teach at the University of Warwick.
An evening of poetry from across continents: Cheran (Sri Lanka), Ludwig Steinherr (Germany) and Michael Hulse (England). From civil war to fatherhood, climate change to love, this evening ranges widely geographically, culturally and emotionally. A one-off event bringing these extraordinary poets together that will leave you energised and inspired.
Michael Hulse was born in England and lived for twenty-five years in Germany before returning in 2002 to teach at the University of Warwick. His poetry has won first prizes in the National Poetry Competition and the Bridport Poetry Prize (twice), and Eric Gregory and Cholmondeley Awards from the Society of Authors.
Ludwig Steinherr lives in Munich. He is a freelance writer and lecturer in philosophy at the University of Eichstätt and has written his way into the front rank of contemporary German writers. His poems have received a number of awards, including the’ Leonce-und-Lena-Förderpreis (1993), the Buchpreis des Verbandes Evangelischer Büchereien (1999) and the Hermann-Hesse-Förderpreis (1999).
Cheran is one of the best known Tamil poets, born in Jaffna in Sri Lanka in 1960. He worked for Saturday Review, an English language weekly known for its stand on press freedom. Cheran refused to align himself with any of the several Tamil militant groups active in Jaffna at the time and as a result was harassed both by the Sri Lankan army and, later, by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. In 1987 he left for the Netherlands and now lives in Canada. In a Time of Burning charts the civil war in Sri Lanka of more than three decades, and its aftermath, as well as displacement, exile and the experience of diaspora.
Wed 9th Postcard Poets: Home-made, Home-grown, Room 104c, Library of Birmingham, Centenary Square, Broad Street Birmingham,B1 2DN, @ 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm Free,
Twenty poets were commissioned to write poems on the theme Home-made, home-grown. Six have been chosen to appear on specially-designed postcards, with thousands of copies in libraries throughout the West Midlands. This year’s chosen poets, Fergus McGonigal, Roz Goddard, Emma Purshouse, Spoz (Giovanni Esposito), Jane Seabourne and Brenda Read-Brown will be appearing at the launch of the Poetry on Loan postcards – and they’ll all be performing their work for you.
Wed 9 October 2013 Brendan Hawthorne,
Streetly Library
10.30am-11.30am
Come celebrate National Poetry Day with
popular Performance Poet and Songwriter,
Brendan Hawthorne who will be reciting poetry from
his books, singing and engaging with his audience.
Brendan is also a Poet in Residence at Wightwick
Manor, Wolverhampton and The Crystal Tea Room,
Stourbridge. Signed copies of his books will be
available.
Free Event
12th OctoberTHE UK ALL STARS POETRY SLAM, Cheltenham.The annual mother of all UK poetry slams, the All Stars Slam, is all set to happen at Cheltenham Literature Festival on Saturday 12th October, 8.15pm, The Salon in Montpellier Gardens, £8. Fifteen brave bards will be champing at the bit to perform championship poetry for a chance to win the ultimate accolade.The winners of all the slams we have hosted in the past year will join qualifying poets from the Slam Qualifier held in the afternoon on the same day, 4pm, The Salon in Montpellier Gardens, £5. To be a member of the applaudience, visit the Cheltenham Literature Festival website for more details or Box Office information. It will be a night to remember. Be sure to book early for the evening event, which has been a sell-out gig in recent years.
Fri 18th Oct Spoken Worlds , Old Cottage Tavern, Burton DE14 2EG, 7.30pm, free in, open mic with “three halves”.Hosted by Gary Carr, all welcome
Friday 1st November. 5th Malvern Slam plus Atilla the Stockbroker is to be
This years slam will again be a 2 round affair followed by a set from Attila.
Wed 6th NovWell versed, The Muffin Man, Cheltenham, 7pm free in with Angela France
Fri 15th Nov Spoken Worlds , Old Cottage Tavern, Burton DE14 2EG, 7.30pm, free in, open mic with “three halves”.Hosted by Gary Carr, all welcome
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