As you will know if you read my blog posts this week starts to get busy tomorrow and doesn’t really stop much until the end of the month, so over the past few days I have been attempting to reserve some energy.
Last month I discovered the wonderfully talented Michelle Crosbie had her debut headlining performance alongside Jo Bell and Matt Merritt.
Michelle Crosbie is an emerging Midlands poet whose stage presence and rehearsed reading has delighted audiences from Worcester to Wolverhampton, engaging and compelling, Michelle is an irresistible live performer.
It was originally booked for a different night and in my confusion I suddenly found out yesterday it was that evening. I sadly, didn’t make it. Sounds like it was a great night and may be my 2nd big regret of the year…. nights like this take a lot out of me though and with 4 other gigs lined up this week, I know I made the SENSIBLE decision.
Would have been great to go and support Michelle… I am sure there will be more opportunities to.
Gary Longden hosts Poetry Alight, a quarterly spoken word event in Staffordshire. One I hope to attend at some point.
Jo Bell is one of the UK’s leading poets, and the winner of the Charles Causley Poetry Prize 2013, a past Director of National Poetry Day, incumbent National Canal Poet Laureate, a doyenne of the festival circuit when performing, and a stalwart supporter of festivals, not least in her capacity as trustee of the Ledbury Poetry Festival. Jo’s poetry is accessible but never dumbed down, challenging but always within reach.
Matt Merritt is a journalist, historian, ornithologist and poet. He lives near Leicester, England, and writes (and reads lots of) poetry. His new collection, The Elephant Tests, is out now from Nine Arches Press. Pithy and rounded his writing is a delight.
awritersfountain 