Friday, November 28, 2008

Buzzwords in Cheltenham: Sunday 7th December

Buzzwords: Next Sunday, 7th December

upstairs at The Exmouth Arms, Bath Road , Cheltenham

Guest Poet - Peter Wyton
7pm Workshop led by Peter Wyton
8pm - open mic and Guest poet reading

Please note - as usual for our Christmas event, if you'd like to read a favourite poem of someone else's instead of your own at the open mic, please do!

Entrance £3
Hope to see you there!

LONDON: Kathryn Simmonds

Monday, 8th December, 2008, 7pm, FREE, refreshments
Highgate Library,
1 Shepherds Hill,
N6 5QT.

Tel 020 8489 8773.
Highgate Tube.

Kathryn Simmonds reads from her poetry collection Sunday at the Skin Launderette, shortlisted for the Costa Prize. Phillip Hancock reads poems from his forthcoming collection Hearing Ourselves Think.

LONDON: Hammer and Tongue Open Poetry Slam

Monday, December 1st, 2008, 8pm-11pm, £5/£4
Green Note Café,
106 Parkway,
Camden,
London
NW1 7AN

Hammer and Tongue's last London outing of 2008 brings you the best of slam poetry with an open competition and very special guest, nine time slam winner and festival regular, Byron Vincent.

Byron was (poorly) educated in the cloying conurbation of various northern sink estates. His flowery name and love of language ensured that his journey was a challenging one. Never a defeatist, he fought back with poetry. This was a terrible strategy and he regularly got his head kicked in. He has performed at venues as diverse as London's Whitechapel Gallery and Shambala Festival's Bedouin Tent and will be joining a cabal of very special guests at Camden's Green Note café.

London's newest, shiniest and feistiest open slam is open to all and the first 8 poets to sign up for the slam on the door will compete. Winners will go through to the London final next year and win a place in Hammer and Tongue's UK final, pitted against the finest slammers from Oxford and Brighton.

TO SLAM: Sign up at the door from 7.30pm.
Contact Michelle 07809 236133

LONDON: Bluechrome Poets + Larissa Miller

Friday, 5th December, 2008, 7pm (doors 6.30pm), £4/£3, wine
Trinity United Reform Church,
1 Buck St,
Camden Town
London

Poets from the floor welcome - this is the last chance for poets from the floor to read for the Bluechrome anthology at the Camden venue, although there will be a further chance on 16th December at Lumen.

Please bring two copies of the poem if you wish to be considered for the anthology, which will feature at least 10 major poets including UA Fanthorpe, Fiona Sampson, Marilyn Hacker , Penelope Shuttle and Peter Porter.

LONDON: The Shuffle

Saturday, November 29th, 2008, 7.30pm-9.30pm, £3/£5
The Poetry Café
22 Betterton Street
Covent Garden
London

Featuring sets from Wayne Smith, Katrina Naomi and Joe Duggan, and shorter sets from Sam Riviere, Susan Grindley, Miriam Halahmy and Matthew Brown.

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

LONDON: The Shuffle

Saturday, November 29th, 2008, 7.30pm-9.30pm, £3/£5
The Poetry Café
22 Betterton Street
Covent Garden
London

Featuring sets from Wayne Smith, Katrina Naomi and Joe Duggan, and shorter sets from Sam Riviere, Susan Grindley, Miriam Halahmy and Matthew Brown.

LONDON: Mark Goodwin and Martin Harrison

Tuesday, 2nd December, 2008, 7.30pm, FREE
Swedenborg Hall
Swedenborg House
20/21 Bloomsbury Way
Londo
WC1A 2TH

The latest in the Shearsman reading series will feature Mark Goodwin and Martin Harrison, both of whom have recent volumes from Shearsman Books. Details are at:
http://www.shearsman.com/pages/books/catalog/2008/goodwin.html
http://www.shearsman.com/pages/books/catalog/2008/harrison.html

Biographical details are at:
http://www.shearsman.com/pages/books/authors/goodwinA.html
http://www.shearsman.com/pages/books/authors/harrisonA.html

Disabled access is available, but please let us know in advance if it is required.

LONDON: Rhythm & Muse

Thursday, November 27th, 2008, 8.30pm, £5/£4
The Lion,
27 Wick Road,
Teddington,
TW11
Nearest BR: Hampton Wick, 281 bus, parking

Rhythm & Muse
Open mic all night - poems on theme of 'flight', plus music from the dynamic Acoustic Astronauts.

Contact Alison Hill on 020 8977 4610 or email alison-hill@blueyonder.co.uk
for more details or to book a floorspot.

8.30pm ~ £5/£4

Wolf Launch: Monday December 8th

THE WOLF: LAUNCH OF ISSUE 19 @ THE POETRY STUDIO, 22 BETTERTON STREET, COVENT GARDEN, WC2

MONDAY, DECEMBER 8TH
8.30PM START

FEATURING RUTH PADEL, CLARE POLLARD, MICHAEL McKIMM, -PLUS GUESTS-
HOSTED BY THE WOLF EDITOR, JAMES BYRNE
IN THESE CREDIT-CRUNCHING TIMES THIS IS A FREE EVENT, BUT SPACE IS LIMITED AND EARLY ARRIVAL IS ADVISED!

The Wolf

Ride the Word: Wednesday 3rd December

Ride the Word

On the Road Party Cast:
Vincent de Souza, poetry
Vanessa Gebbie, short fiction
Jane Holland, poetry
Chris McCabe, poetry
Jay Merill, short fiction
also Guest Publication: The Delinquent
Speaker: Jason King, editor
Truckers' Art Exhibition
Speaker: Stefan Roman, artist

The Foundry is at 86 Great Eastern Street London EC2A 3JL
Old Street tube (exit3) t 020 7739 6900 e info at foundry.tv
www.foundry.tv

All events at the Foundry start at 7pm and are FREE!
Wednesday 3rd December

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

LEICESTER: Shindig!

Thursday, 11th December, 2008, doors open 7.30pm, FREE
Friends Meeting House,
Queen's Road,
Leicester.

Open mic and poetry night to celebrate the launch of Under The Radar issue 2, featuring:
Jane Holland - Editor of Horizon Review, reading from her latest Salt collection, Camper Van Blues.
Matt Merritt - Leicestershire poet, shares poems from his first collection, Troy Town.
Matt Nunn - Birmingham's finest poetic export, reading from his forthcoming collection, Sounds in the Grass.
Jane Commane - Warwickshire-based poet reading a selection of her recent work.

Plus open mic slots available - please arrive early to sign up for a place.

COVENTRY: Lady Godiva and Me launch night

Wednesday 3rd December, 2008, 7pm, FREE
The Herbert Art Gallery and Museum
Jordan Well,
Coventry

You are invited to join us to celebrate the launch of Lady Godiva & Me by Liam Guilar, the latest Nine Arches pamphlet.

Lady Godiva & Me is a compelling sequence that lifts a city's archive of voices from the pages, vigorously bringing characters both ordinary and extraordinary to life.

Liam Guilar (Coventry-born, but now living in Australia) will give a reading from the poem in a special UK performance - one that definitely shouldn't be missed. He will be supported by Matt Merritt, whose first collection, Troy Town, was published in 2008 by Arrowhead.

LONDON: Utter! Ajar Mic Grand Final 2008

Tuesday, December 9th, 2008, 7.30pm-10.30pm, £3 before 7.30pm, £5 after
Green Note Club,
106 Camden Parkway
NW1 7AN
London

All winners of the Ajar Mic contest in 2008 return. Your votes decide who wins the 2008 championship belt, £100, a paid writing workshop at the Utter! Writing Group and the right to program and compere their own Utter! in 2009.

Finalists confirmed:
James Campbell - High energy comic poet from Essex.
George Chopping - Shelf replenishment technician from Oxford (has done gigs for Apples and Snakes and Sainsburys).
Julia Bird - Debut Hannah and the Monk (Salt) is rightly described by Annie Freud as "brimming with lust for life".
Lucy Leagrave - Headmistress of the Issues and Innuendoes night with her first book forthcoming on Black Box
Duke Hancock - Funny and intense middle class rebel verse.
Leora Ronel - Utter! writing group protege, light-footed rhymes dancing with the devil in suburbia.
Vinnie Gibbons - 'Bastard attack poet' and zookeeper of the year.

SPECIAL GUEST: PolarBear, the ultimate spoken word artist fresh from wowing crowds UK-wide, including sell-out gigs at the Purcell rooms, with his one-man show If I Cover My Eyes You Can't See Me.

Your hosts are Richard Tyrone Jones, David Floyd and Sarah Verrinder. Returning from internal exile, for one night only, to read his unique take on the Night Before Christmas is Utter!s very own Father Christmas, Lee Nelson.

Monday, November 24, 2008

LONDON: The Wolf Issue 19 launch

Monday, December 8th, 2008, 8.30pm, FREE
The Poetry Studio,
22 Betterton Street,
Covent Garden,
WC2
London

The UK's best alternative poetry magazine invites you to the launch of Issue 19, featuring Ruth Padel, Clare Pollard, Michael McKimm plus guests. Hosted by The Wolf's editor, James Byrne. Space is limited, so early arrival is advised.

LONDON: Hammer & Tongue Open Poetry Slam

Monday December 1st, 2008, 8pm-11pm, £5/£4
Green Note Café,
106 Parkway,
Camden,
NW1 7AN

Hammer and Tongue's last London outing of 2008 brings you the best of slam poetry with an open competition and very special guest, nine time slam winner and festival regular, Byron Vincent.
Byron was (poorly) educated in the cloying conurbation of various northern sink estates. His flowery name and love of language ensured that his journey was a challenging one. Never a defeatist, he fought back with poetry. This was a terrible strategy and he regularly got his head kicked in. Byron has performed at venues as diverse as London's Whitechapel Gallery and Shambala Festival's Bedouin Tent and will be joining a cabal of very special guests at Camden's Green Note café on the 1st.

London's newest, shiniest and feistiest open slam is open to all and the first 8 poets to sign up for the slam on door from 7.30 will compete. Get there early! Winners will go through to the London final next year and win a place in Hammer and Tongue's UK final, pitted against the finest slammers from Oxford and Brighton and then…. on to international stardom.

TO SLAM: Sign up at the door from 7.30, call Michelle on 07809 236 133.

CHELMSFORD: I Scream Sunday

Sunday, December 7th, 2008, 7pm, FREE
The Barhouse,
16 Victoria Road,
Chelmsford,
Essex

I Scream Sunday is, like the dessert, a mixture of all things good. It is a spoken-word open mike event, with music from Astral Circus, and an art-exhibition/auction by APRA-ONE, amongst others, as flavoursome additions.
Art auction at 10-10.30pm.

LONDON: Lumen Poetry Series

Tuesday, November 25th, 2008, 7pm (doors open 6.30pm), £4/£3, wine
88 Tavistock Place,
London,
WC1

Reading will be Barbara Hardy and Ruth O'Callaghan. Poets from the floor are very welcome and there will be double the usual minute spots (please bring two copies of the poem if you wish to be considered for the Bluechrome anthology. There are at least 10 major poets who will also be contributing to the anthology including UA Fanthorpe, Fiona Sampson, Marilyn Hacker, Penelope Shuttle and Peter Porter.

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

MANCHESTER: Free Poetry Event

Wednesday, December 3rd 2008, 7pm, FREE
The Other Room
The Old Abbey Inn,
61 Pencroft Way,
Manchester
http://theotherroom.wordpress.com/

Tony Trehy, Scott Thurston and Carol Watts

Scott Thurston's most recent book is Hold (Shearsman, 2006). He lectures in English Literature and Creative Writing at the University of Salford and has published on Allen Fisher, Adrian Clarke, John Wilkinson, Maggie O’Sullivan, Ulli Freer, Ira Lightman, Geraldine Monk and Tony Lopez. He edits The Radiator, a little magazine of poetry and poetics, and recently edited The Salt Companion to Geraldine Monk. See his pages at Archive of the Now. A new sequence of ninety poems called Momentum, is out now with Shearsman.

Tony Trehy is an international curator and writer and Director of the Text Festival. Publications include Text, Vertigo, 50 Heads and Reykjavik. Ron Silliman writes: "A techno descendant of someone like Prynne, a concept that strikes me as very odd indeed. And a sign that Trehy isn’t really like anyone else at all. Trehy is an eminently readable poet, though you have to pay attention as you proceed through each work."

Carol Watts lives in London. She is the author of Wrack (Reality Street Editions, 2007), brass, running (Equipage, 2006), and alphabetise, a book of prose chronicles exhibited in the Text Festival at the Museum of Art, Bury, Manchester in 2005, now an eBook (Intercapillary Editions). She teaches at Birkbeck, University of London, where she co-directs the Centre for Poetics.

MERTHYR TYDFIL: Open Mic

Thu 20 Nov 08, 7.30 pm
Imperial Hotel
Merthyr Tydfil.

Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council: Open Mike Night with David Johnson. For further details contact Gus Payne: gus.payne@merthyr.gov.uk / 01685 725382.

GALWAY: Over The Edge

Thursday, November 20th, 2008, 6.30pm-8pm, FREE
Galway City Library,
St. Augustine Street,
Galway

Leading poet-critic John Goodby is reading at November's Over The Edge. Other featured readers are Elizabeth Power and Gordon Hewitt.

Elizabeth Power was born in East Cork but now calls Galway home. She completed an MA in Writing at NUIG in 2007. Her poetry has appeared in a wide variety of magazines, including Crannóg, Force 10 and Tribes ‘n Vibes. Elizabeth’s work also featured in the anthology Writers Seeking Lovers. Currently she works as a librarian and is writing a novel about a time travelling witch.

Gordon Hewitt initiated the Belfast Poets Touring Group, a group of performance poets who toured Ireland, the US, New Zealand and Australia in 2006 & 2007. The group, now known as Scream Blue Murmur, performed recently in Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, and at the Electric Picnic. Gordon is active in di-Verse (Poets against Racism) which oversees the annual Love Poetry Hate Racism event which is held in over 60 cities worldwide each April. Gordon’s style is a unique blend of spoken word, performance poetry, song and chant.

John Goodby is a poet and translator who lectures at the University of Swansea. His poetry has been described by Sean O'Brien as ‘bold and sensuous ... it reads like a chowder of names laced with methedrine ... at once lush and abrasive.’ He has translated Heine's Germany: A Winter’s Tale (2005), the contemporary Algerian poet Soleiman Adel Guemar, and is currently translating the work of Pier Paolo Pasolini. Among his latest publications are the first anthology of translations of Irish women poets into Spanish, No Soy Tu Musa and uncaged sea (2008), a cut-up version of the Collected Poems of Dylan Thomas. He is the author of the influential Irish Poetry Since 1950: From Stillness into History (Manchester University Press) and founder of Wales’s only poetry performance group, Boiled String.

As usual there will be an open-mic when the Featured Readers have finished. This is open to anyone who has a poem or story to share. New readers are always especially welcome. For further details phone 087-6431748.

Over The Edge acknowledges the financial support of Galway City Council and The Arts Council http://overtheedgeliteraryevents.blogspot.com/

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

DARLINGTON: Lindsay Balderson reading

Wednesday, November 19th, 2008, 7.30pm, £4/£2
Garden Bar,
Darlington Arts Centre

Launch readings for:
Stripping the Blackthorn - Lindsay Balderson "This is a remarkable collection as it reminds us that terror and beauty live in the same world. Stripping the Blackthorn opens our eyes to the shadows in our lives, none darker than the vaults in the minds of torturers. Love is celebrated as the fruit of the thorn, as it should be." -S J Litherland

Collecting Stones: an anthology of poems and stories inspired by Harehope Quarry, by Vane Women and Others with illustrations by John Longstaff." A disused lime quarry reclaimed by nature and invested with new human activity containsa deep bed of metaphor. These writings and images are the riches won by working it." - Steve Dales.

Tickets available from Darlington Arts box office on 01325 486 555.

Galway "Over the Edge" Readings & Open Mic this Thursday

Leading poet-critic John Goodby for November Over The Edge

The November Over The Edge: Open Reading will take place in Galway City Library, St. Augustine Street, Galway on Thursday, November 20th, 6.30-8pm. The Featured Readers are Elizabeth Power, Gordon Hewitt & John Goodby.

As usual there will be an open-mic when the Featured Readers have finished. This is open to anyone who has a poem or story to share. New readers are always especially welcome. For further details phone 087-6431748.

Over The Edge acknowledges the financial support of Galway City Council and The Arts Council Over the Edge

Monday, November 17, 2008

GLASGOW: Written In The Stars

Thursday, 20th November 2008, doors open at 7.15pm for a 7.30pm start, £4.95.
To book please call Glasgow Science Centre on 0871 540 1000.
The lines are open 9-5 on weekdays and 10-3 at weekends

For centuries, writers have been inspired by the night's sky and the twinkling lights above them. Stars are the focal point of many written works, from nursery rhymes and fairy tales to film and books. Glasgow Science Centre is celebrating the celestial presence in the written word by holding a poetry reading in the Scottish Power Planetarium.

Poets Liz Lochhead and Jim Carruth and the astronomy staff at the Glasgow Science Centre will host a compelling mix of poetry and science as they travel through time and space to pick and read their all time favourite star poems.

The setting of the ScottishPower Planetarium will offer guests the chance to see a night sky as it should be seen, with thousands of points of light above them. Most city-dwellers have never seen a clear night sky, as light pollution is now a serious problem throughout the Western world.
Visitors to the Written in the Stars event will be able to hear the star themed poetry whilst relaxing under the the twinkling night sky in one of the finest planetaria in the world.

LONDON: Pascale Petit and Carol Rumens

Tuesday, November 18th, 2008, 6.30pm, FREE
The Gallery at Foyles
3rd Floor
113-119 Charing Cross Road
London

Seren: Launch of The Treekeper’s Tale by Pascale Petit and Blind Spots by Carol Rumens.

For further details contact Tori Kirwan Taylor: torikt@seren-books.com / 01656 663018.

Friday, November 14, 2008

LONDON: Rhythm & Muse

Thursday, November 27th, 2008, 8.30pm, £5/£4
The Lion,
27 Wick Road,
Teddington,
TW11
Nearest BR: Hampton Wick, 281 bus, parking

Rhythm & Muse
Open mic all night - poems on theme of 'flight', plus music from the dynamic Acoustic Astronauts.

Contact Alison Hill on 020 8977 4610 or email alison-hill@blueyonder.co.uk
for more details or to book a floorspot.

8.30pm ~ £5/£4

Thursday, November 13, 2008

CHORLTON: Manky Poets with Jeffrey Wainwright

Friday, November 21st, 2008, 7.30pm-9.30pm, £2/£1
@ Chorlton Library,
Manchester Road
Chorlton
M21 9PN

We start before 8pm, when floor poets read. Anyone can, so bring a poem. After a break, the guest poet reads. At about 9.30pm, most of us retire to the Spread Eagle for drinks and discussion.

Jeffrey Wainwright was born in Stoke-on-Trent in 1944. He was educated at the University of Leeds and has taught in the University of Wales, in New York, and for many years at Manchester Metropolitan University, where he was Professor of English until 2008. He has translated French drama for the Royal Shakespeare Company and BBC Radio and been a theatre critic for the Independent. He is the author of Heart's Desire (1978), his Selected Poems (1985), The Red-Headed Pupil (1994), Out of the Air (1999) and Clarity or Death! (2008), all published by Carcanet.

Manky Poets is a continuation of South Manchester Poetry Group, and Manchester Poets, that have provided readings since 1978. It happens every month in Chorlton Library.

copland smith

LONDON: Apples & Snakes, featuring Murray Lachlan Young

Wednesday, November 26th, 2008, £8/£6
Soho Theatre,
21 Dean Street,
London
W1D 3NE

APPLES & SNAKES IN SOHO - Rogue spoken word and maverick poetry

To some, he will always be the poet who signed a £1m record deal with EMI. Others will recall him as the Britpop Lord Byron who kept popping up on MTV and supporting the Pet Shop Boys. We're happy to report, though, that Murray Lachlan Young is well and truly back. Not only that, but winning new fans with his reassuringly daft children's shows and his snappy stints as resident rhymer on Radio 4's Saturday Live. So if you want to see the man who's scaled heights that most poets can only dream of, better book a ticket post-haste.

Stacy Makishi is another artist who's constantly exploring new areas – in her case, the uncharted corners of her own mind. In Stacy's world, the spoken word is as stretchy as the pair of tights she utilises on stage to such good effect. And once you've seen her, you'll never look at a Brussels sprout in the same way again. Joining Murray and Stacy will be the footstompingly feisty Chanje Kunda, with her upfront mix of poetry and hip-hop beats. Socially committed and hard to ignore, Chanje is so feelgood that you'll just want to take her home and stick her on your hi-fi. And if she's remembered her CDs, you can do just that.

With compere Joshua Idehen manning the mic, it looks like being London's liveliest night this side of New Year's Eve.

Booking: 020 7478 0100 / www.sohotheatre.com

GLASGOW: Last Monday at Rio

Monday, November 24th, 2008, 8pm, FREE
The Rio Cafe,
27 Hyndland Street,
Glasgow
G11

The spoken word cabaret that drops its h's to put the 'ectic into eclectic. Headline act this month is Robert Ritchie, a poet who has applied his formidable intellectual powers to the task of translating the Bible - into gibberish! He has also made some telling stylistic and technical improvements to the work of Robert Burns. Don`t ask why, just laugh til you cry!

First hour of the evenming is open mic, so let's have some exponents of free speech stepping up and saying their piece. Five minute spots available.

www.robincairns.com

ABERGAVENNY: Patrick Jones

Fri 14 Nov 08
7.30 pm
Melville Theatre
Abergavenny

Poetry Reading with Patrick Jones. For further details go to www.patrick-jones.net.

NEATH / PORT TALBOT: Andrew Motion

Fri 14 Nov 08
3.00 pm
Neath Port Talbot College

Neath Port Talbot Libraries: Talk and Poetry Readings with Andrew Motion. . For further details contact Paul Doyle: 01639 860000.

Supported by Academi (contact 029 2047 2266 for information on funding for events).

and at 6.30 pm
Pontardawe Arts Centre

Pontardawe Arts Centre: Andrew Motion, An Evening with the Poet Laureate. For further details contact Nerys Griffiths:n.griffiths1@neath-porttalbot.gov.uk

LONDON: Shoestring Press

Friday 14th November, 2008, 7pm (doors open 6.30pm), £4/£3, Wine
Trinity United Reform Church,
1 Buck Street,
Camden Town,
LONDON

Ruth O'Callaghan presents Shoestring Press - Alistair Eliot, Kate Foley and Caroline Price. Poets from the floor welcome (please bring two copies of the poem if you wish to be considered for the Bluechrome anthology - there are at least 10 major poets who will also be contributing, including UA Fanthorpe, Fiona Sampson, Marilyn Hacker, Penelope Shuttle and Peter Porter).

LONDON: Live Canon

Friday 14th November
1pm. All tickets £5
Greenwich Theatre,
Crooms Hill,
London SE10 8ES

Dynamic actors bring five hundred years of British poetry to life in vibrant performances. A gallery of characters and an explosion of words create a brilliant way to see, hear and experience these canonical poems.
14 Nov 2008 - War Poets, including Sasoon, Owen and Douglas.
to book call 020 8858 7755 or visit www.greenwichtheatre.org.uk. For more information email livecanon@btinternet.com. To join the mailing list email livecanon@btinternet.com with 'Mailing list' as the subject.

LONDON: Brixtongue

Friday 14th November 2008
Tickets are £7/£5 conc. brixart@brixtonartgallery.co.uk.
8 pm,
Diverse Gallery
62 Atlantic Road
Brixton SW9
(07913072052) Brixtongue

South London's premier poetry and performance event for local and international performers. Held bi-monthly at Diverse Gallery Brixton. Performers this month includes, Nikesh Shukla (Yam Boy), Angela Morgan, Najjah Edwards, James Mckay, MC Mr Gee, Open mic performers.

LONDON: Ruth O'Callaghan Presents ...

Friday 14th November 2008
7.00 (doors open 6.30)
Trinity United Reform Church
1 Buck St, Camden Town.
1-2 minutes Camden Town tube.
Entry £4/£3 Wine

Ruth O'Callaghan presents: Shoestring Press
Alistair Eliot
Kate Foley
Caroline Price


Poets from the floor welcome
(please bring two copies of the poem if you wish to be considered for the bluechrome anthology. There are at least 10 major poets who will also be contributing to the anthology inc. UA Fanthorpe, Fiona Sampson, Marilyn Hacker, Penelope Shuttle, Peter Porter to name but a few. )

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Caernarfon: Patrick Jones

Fri 21 Nov 08
7.30 pm at the Cafe Bar
Y Ddraig Goch, Caernarfon.

Poetry Reading with Patrick Jones. For further details go to www.patrick-jones.net.

Gwynedd: Poetry Cafe

Wed 19 Nov 08
Theatr Harlech

Literature Promotion for Gwynedd: Poetry Cafe in the company of Jan Morris and Twm Morys. For further details contact Gwen Lasarus: gwenlasarus@gwynedd.gov.uk / 01286 679465.

MANCHESTER: Words on Film, with Simon Armitage

Thursday, November 13th, 2008, 6.30pm, FREE
MMU Geoffrey Manton Building,
Lecture Theatre 1 or 6
(opposite the Commonwealth Aquatics Centre on Oxford Road, Manchester).

Words on Film at MMU
Simon Armitage launches his latest book, The Not Dead. It explores the human cost of fighting and killing through the stories of three soldiers who relive their experiences of the Gulf, Bosnia and Malayan wars. At the launch, poet he will use the film to discuss how he wrote the script after listening to interviews with the veterans, all of whom suffered post-traumatic stress.


WORDS ON FILM - MMU festival showcasing cutting edge film poetry.
The Writing School in association with Trauma Film and ACWE

LONDON: Don't Shush Me: Poetry in the Library, featuring John Hegley

Thursday 13th November, 2008, 7.30pm, £7 (£5 concs)
Bishopsgate Institute,
230 Bishopsgate,
London EC2M 4QH

A unique chance to hear John Hegley girding up his rhymes in the intimate setting of Bishopsgate Library. With support from some of the poetry scene's hottest young pretenders.
In partnership with Apples & Snakes.
For tickets or information call 020 7392 9200 or email events@bishopsgate.org.uk

LONDON SW7: Poetry and Space

Thursday 13th November 2008, 6:30 pm, FREE
Sir Alexander Fleming Building,
Imperial College London,
South Kensington Campus,
London SW7 2AZ

Poetry and Space - part of Poet in the City's 'Escaping the Matrix' series.
Isobel Dixon will be reading poems on astronomy and space. Other featured poets are Diana Syder, Mario Petrucci and Inua Ellams.

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

LONDON: Lumen Poetry Series

Tuesday, November 25th, 2008, 7pm (doors open 6.30pm), £4/£3, wine
88 Tavistock Place
London
WC1

Reading will be Barbara Hardy and Ruth O'Callaghan. Poets from the floor are very welcome and there will be double the usual minute spots (please bring two copies of the poem if you wish to be considered for the Bluechrome anthology. There are at least 10 major poets who will also be contributing to the anthology including UA Fanthorpe, Fiona Sampson, Marilyn Hacker, Penelope Shuttle and Peter Porter.

LONDON: Shearsman Reading Series

Tuesday, 18th November, 2008, 7.30pm, FREE
Swedenborg Hall
Swedenborg House
20/21 Bloomsbury Way
London
WC1A 2TH

Reading will be Linda Black and Nathan Thompson, both of whom have recently published their first collections with Shearsman Books.

http://www.shearsman.com/pages/books/catalog/2008/black.html
http://www.shearsman.com/pages/books/catalog/2008/thompson.html

Biographical details may be found here:
http://www.shearsman.com/pages/books/authors/blackA.htmll
http://www.shearsman.com/pages/books/authors/thompsonA.html

Disabled access is available, but please let us know in advance if it is required.

CARDIFF: Patrick Jones

Wednesday November 12th, 2008, 7pm, FREE
Waterstones Bookshop
The Hayes
Cardiff

Patrick Jones launches his latest poetry collection Darkness Is Where The Stars Are, published by Cinnamon Press. Described as “very strong stuff” by Harold Pinter and, “thoughtful, provocative and challenging” by Peter Tatchell, the latest poetry from Patrick Jones continues to expand his reputation as “the voice of opposition for the 21st Century” (Rachel Trezise). With work ranging from ecology to education; from domestic abuse to the effects of war, this is poetry at its most engaged, performed to move, enrage, but also to leave a sense of hope.

Free entry and wine will be served. A warm welcome to all. For more information contact Jan Fortune-Wood: jan@cinnamonpress.com

Monday, November 10, 2008

Merthyr Tydfil: Open Mic

Thu 20 Nov 08
7.30 pm
Imperial Hotel
Merthyr Tydfil.

Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council: Open Mike Night with David Johnson. For further details contact Gus Payne: gus.payne@merthyr.gov.uk / 01685 725382.

MANCHESTER: Poets & Players present...

Saturday, November 22nd, 2008, 2.30pm, FREE
The Whitworth Art Gallery,
Oxford Road,
Manchester
M15 6ER

Alicia Stubbersfield will be joined by newer poets Annie Clarkson, Gavin Hudson and Janette Stowell in another of our wonderful afternoons at the Whitworth in the south gallery. This combination of poetry and music (including, for the first time, Rhian Evans on harp) promises to be a truly sublime event.

POETS
Alicia Stubbersfield has published three collections of poetry to excellent reviews, the most recent being Joking Apart (The Collective Press 2006). After seventeen years away from the north-west she has come home to lecture in creative writing at Liverpool John Moores University.

Annie Clarkson is a poet and short story writer living in Manchester. Her first chapbook of prose poems Winter Hands was published by Shadow Train Books in 2007. She recently worked with artist Gemma Lacey on a handmade book. Her short story Lindy published in Brace (Comma Press) is being made into a short film by filmmaker Vera Juliusdottir.

Gavin Hudson is a young poet from Sheffield. His poems have appeared in Fire, Avocado and Cadaverine magazines; his reviews in Roundtable Review and PN Review. He works full-time co-ordinating a victim awareness programme for adult offenders across South Yorkshire.

Janette Stowell lives in Liverpool where she teaches Creative Writing at John Moores University and on the Continuing Education Programme at Liverpool University. Her first full collection of poetry The Midnight Horror Tree will be launched at the end of November by Headland.

MUSICIANS
Chris Davies is a freelance performer, musician and composer based in Manchester. Most of his commissioned work is with theatre and dance. He has worked with Poets and Players as Musical Director since its beginning in 2004.

Rhian Evans, a recipient of the 2008 Oglesby Bursary, is currently in her second postgraduate year at the RNCM. She has been awarded several harp scholarships enabling her to pursue her musical studies. She was Principal Harpist with the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra, South Africa.

CARDIFF: Shot in the Dark

Tuesday, November 11th, 2008, 8pm
at Shot in the Dark Cafe
City Road, Cardiff

Shot in the Dark: Square Launch 3.

Poetry Readings with Roberto Pastore, Jacqueline Jones, Jim Bartlett, Stuart Thomas, Rhys Williams and Alun Rees.

LONDON NW1: UTTER! GINGERS ALL GINGER SPOKEN WORD SPECTACULAR

Tuesday November 11 2008
7:30-10:30pm,
Green Note Club
106 Camden Parkway
NW1 7AN
Nearest tube: Camden Town, overland: Camden Road

UTTER! GINGERS ALL GINGER SPOKEN WORD SPECTACULAR: AF Harrold, RT Jones, Tamsin Kendrick, John Anstiss, Heather Phillipson, Mark Neil and host Richard Tyrone-Jones
07912539098 richardtyronejones@googlemail.com

CAMBRIDGE: CB1 Poetry

Tuesday, November 11th, 2008, 8pm (doors open 7.30pm),

CB1 Poetry @ Michaelhouse
The new series of poetry readings at Michaelhouse in Cambridge continues with the fantastic Patience Agbabi, well known for her electrifying performances of her work. She has won many awards and was amongst the 2004 Next Generation of Poets named by a prestigious group of poets chaired by the poet laureate Andrew Motion. She will be supported by Martin Figura who is fast making a name for himself in the East Anglian and national poetry and live literature scene.
There will be a short open mike after the interval. There is disability access and a hearing loop available.
Come and support Poetry in Cambridge and meet other poetry-minded people. There is a bar and coffee available.
For more information visit www.cb1poetry.org.uk

Saturday, November 08, 2008

London: Pascale Petit and Carol Rumens

Tue 18 Nov 08
6.30 pm
in the Gallery at Foyles
3rd Floor
113-119 Charing Cross Road
London

Seren: Launch of The Treekeper’s Tale by Pascale Petit and Blind Spots by Carol Rumens. For further details contact Tori Kirwan Taylor: torikt@seren-books.com / 01656 663018.

Friday, November 07, 2008

Abergavenny: Patrick Jones

Fri 14 Nov 08
7.30 pm
Melville Theatre
Abergavenny

Poetry Reading with Patrick Jones. For further details go to www.patrick-jones.net.

Wales: Andrew Motion

Fri 14 Nov 08
3.00 pm
Neath Port Talbot College

Neath Port Talbot Libraries: Talk and Poetry Readings with Andrew Motion. . For further details contact Paul Doyle: 01639 860000.

Supported by Academi (contact 029 2047 2266 for information on funding for events).

and at 6.30 pm
Pontardawe Arts Centre

Pontardawe Arts Centre: Andrew Motion, An Evening with the Poet Laureate. For further details contact Nerys Griffiths:n.griffiths1@neath-porttalbot.gov.uk

Cardiff: Patrick Jones

Wed 12 Nov 08
7.00 pm
Waterstones Bookshop
The Hayes
Cardiff.

Cinnamon Press: Patrick Jones launches his latest poetry collection darkness is where the stars are, published by Cinnamon Press. Described as “very strong stuff” by Harold Pinter and, “thoughtful, provocative and challenging” by Peter Tatchell, the latest poetry from Patrick Jones continues to expand his reputation as “the voice of opposition for the 21st Century” (Rachel Trezise). With work ranging from ecology to education; from domestic abuse to the effects of war, this is poetry at its most engaged, performed to move, enrage, but also to leave a sense of hope.

Free entry and wine will be served. A warm welcome to all. For more information contact Jan Fortune-Wood: jan@cinnamonpress.com

Cardiff: Shot in the Dark

Tue 11 Nov 08
8.00 pm
at Shot in the Dark Cafe
City Road, Cardiff

Shot in the Dark: Square Launch 3.

Poetry Readings with Roberto Pastore, Jacqueline Jones, Jim Bartlett, Stuart Thomas, Rhys Williams and Alun Rees.

LONDON SW5: Seren Poetry Triple Bill

Saturday 8 November 2008
7pm, Admission free
The Troubadour
263-267 Old Brompton Road,
London SW5 9JA.

Seren invites you to a triple poetry bill
Sarah Corbett reads from Other Beasts; Kathryn Simmonds reads from Sunday at the Skin Laundrette; Meirion Jordan reads from Moonrise.
RSVP torikt@seren-books.comVisit www.seren-books.com for more information.

LONDON: The Transgalactic Interwoman Poetic Expressway

Saturday, November 8th, 2008, 7.30pm, £5/£4
The Poetry Cafe
22 Betterton Street,
Covent Garden,
London

THE TRANSGALACTIC INTERWOMAN POETIC EXPRESSWAY, brought to you by La Langoustine Est Morte

Hosts: Anthony Joseph and Sascha Aurora Akhtar.
Representation from all distant and not-so-distant planets:
Jamika Ajalon (U.S.A by way of London by way of France)
Olumide Poopola (Nigeria/Germany)
Valeria Melchioretto (Switzerland)
Shanta Acharya (India)
Frances Kruk (Canada)
Ziba Kirbassi (Persia)
Sophie Robinson (the most exotic of them all – Old Blighty!))
Frances Kruk lives in London in the presence of cats, moss, glue, scissors, oil pastels, and dark chocolate, all of which make for an unspeakable atrocity. She does not write real poetry.
The Nigerian German writer and performer Olumide Popoola has performed her poetry internationally, collaborating with many different artists and musicians. Currently studying for a MA in (creative) writing, she won the May Ayim Award for Poetry in Germany 2004 and has seen her work published in anthologies, journals and newspapers as well as featured on radio and documentaries.

Valeria Melchioretto is a London-based artist and award-winning writer. Her poems have appeared in many prestigious magazines and anthologies. The End of Limbo is her first full collection, for which she received a bursary from the Arts Council. It was published by Salt in 2007. In 2008 she became a Hawthonden Fellow.
Ziba Kirbassi is a rara avis. Seen only sometimes for short periods of time if you are lucky.
Her work is visceral, hallucinatory at times and from the passions and conflicts of being
born into a country where violence has caused her untellable strife. Her work will be read in Persian and translated by Stepehen Watts.
Shanta Acharya was born and educated in Orissa, India. In 1979 she won a scholarship
to Oxford, and completed her doctoral thesis in 1983. Between 1983-85 she was a Visiting Scholar, as well as a Teaching-cum-Research Assistant at Harvard University. She is currently Executive Director, Initiative on Foundation and Endowment Asset Management at London Business School. Her four books of poetry are Shringara (Shoestring Press, UK; 2006), Looking In, Looking Out (Headland Publications, UK; 2005), Numbering Our Days' Illusions (Rockingham Press, UK; 1995) and Not This, Not That (Rupa & Co, India; 1994). For more information, visit her website: www.shantaacharya.com
Sophie Robinson was born in 1985, and lives and works in London. She has an MA in Poetic Practice from Royal Holloway, and is currently working on a practice-based PhD at Royal Holloway. Her first chapbook, Killin' Kittenish!, was published by yt communications in 2006.
Since 2005 she has performed at numerous events in the UK and the US. Her critical and creative work has been featured in Dusie, How2 and Pilot, and her book is forthcoming from Les Figues press in Los Angeles in November 2008.

Jamika Ajalon is a charismatic American poetess, film director and long time Zenzile collaborator based in London. Anyone who has followed her work with Zenzile since the late nineties, will already be familiar with her phenomenal energy and sensual delivery, which has seen her dubbed "the female Tricky" and the "underground Grace Jones" by some reviewers. Born in St Louis Missouri, Jamika has lived in London for ten years.

Thursday, November 06, 2008

London: the Fire Poet


DARLINGTON: Lindsay Balderson reading

Wednesday, November 19th, 2008, 7.30pm, £4/£2
Garden Bar,
Darlington Arts Centre

Launch readings for:

Stripping the Blackthorn - Lindsay Balderson
"This is a remarkable collection as it reminds us that terror and beauty live in the same world. Stripping the Blackthorn opens our eyes to the shadows in our lives, none darker than the vaults in the minds of torturers. Love is celebrated as the fruit of the thorn, as it should be." -
S J Litherland

Collecting Stones: an anthology of poems and stories inspired by Harehope Quarry, by Vane Women and Others with illustrations by John Longstaff.
"A disused lime quarry reclaimed by nature and invested with new human activity contains
a deep bed of metaphor. These writings and images are the riches won by working it." - Steve Dales.

Tickets available from Darlington Arts box office on 01325 486 555.

GALWAY: Over The Edge

Thursday, November 20th, 2008, 6.30pm-8pm, FREE
Galway City Library,
St. Augustine Street,
Galway

Leading poet-critic John Goodby is reading at November's Over The Edge. Other featured readers are Elizabeth Power and Gordon Hewitt.

Elizabeth Power was born in East Cork but now calls Galway home. She completed an MA in Writing at NUIG in 2007. Her poetry has appeared in a wide variety of magazines, including Crannóg, Force 10 and Tribes ‘n Vibes. Elizabeth’s work also featured in the anthology Writers Seeking Lovers. Currently she works as a librarian and is writing a novel about a time travelling witch.

Gordon Hewitt initiated the Belfast Poets Touring Group, a group of performance poets who toured Ireland, the US, New Zealand and Australia in 2006 & 2007. The group, now known as Scream Blue Murmur, performed recently in Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, and at the Electric Picnic. Gordon is active in di-Verse (Poets against Racism) which oversees the annual Love Poetry Hate Racism event which is held in over 60 cities worldwide each April. Gordon’s style is a unique blend of spoken word, performance poetry, song and chant.

John Goodby is a poet and translator who lectures at the University of Swansea. His poetry has been described by Sean O'Brien as ‘bold and sensuous ... it reads like a chowder of names laced with methedrine ... at once lush and abrasive.’ He has translated Heine's Germany: A Winter’s Tale (2005), the contemporary Algerian poet Soleiman Adel Guemar, and is currently translating the work of Pier Paolo Pasolini. Among his latest publications are the first anthology of translations of Irish women poets into Spanish, No Soy Tu Musa and uncaged sea (2008), a cut-up version of the Collected Poems of Dylan Thomas. He is the author of the influential Irish Poetry Since 1950: From Stillness into History (Manchester University Press) and founder of Wales’s only poetry performance group, Boiled String.

As usual there will be an open-mic when the Featured Readers have finished. This is open to anyone who has a poem or story to share. New readers are always especially welcome. For further details phone 087-6431748.

Over The Edge acknowledges the financial support of Galway City Council and The Arts Council http://overtheedgeliteraryevents.blogspot.com/

HOVE: Lee Harwood

Friday, November 7th, 2008, 6.30pm, £6
The Old Market,
Upper Market Street,
Hove

Lee Harwood has lived in Brighton since 1967. Associated with The British Poetry Revival, he has 22 volumes of poetry to his name. He will be reading from his recently published Selected Poems (Shearsman Books). His Collected Poems was published in 2004. Not the Full Story: Interviews with Kelvin Corcoran was published earlier this year. He has also published four books of prose and has translated the work of the Dada poet Tristan Tzara.

Ticket price includes free glass of wine and a reduction on books purchased, and is available from City Books, 23 Western Road, Hove, tel: 01273 725 306.

DEPTFORD: It's My Life, Innit?

Friday 7th November 2008
8pm, Tickets: £10 / £8 conc
The Albany,
Douglas Way,
Deptford, SE8 4AG
Booking: 020 8692 4446

It's My Life, Innit?

ZENA EDWARDS is well-known as a poet, storyteller and musician and tonight she's teamed up a crew of class A musicians and spoken word artists who'll be taking it to the bridge and beyond. Featuring jazz-rap hero SOWETO KINCH and East London's favourite poet ADISA alongside fast-lane verbal talents LEETO THALE and LUCID. Expect a flow of freestyle, acappella and lyrics, all backed up with a tighterthan-tight band and a shed load of positive attitude.
To top it off we're holding an OPEN MIC SESSION. Calling poets AND musicians who wish to come and contribute. Sign up from 7.30pm - 1st come, 1st serve, so suggest you come early!
info: www.applesandsnakes.org

SUFFOLK: Twentieth Aldeburgh Poetry Festival

Friday 7 - Sunday 9 November
various times and venues: various
tickets from £6-£14
(please book for events in advance)

44 events in various locations: Clive James does a close reading of a favourite poem, Radio 4's 'Saturday Live' regular Matt Harvey responds to anonymously published poetry, plus workshops led by Michael Laskey and Jeni Smith, and readings from Tiffany Atkinson, Mimi Khalvati and George Szirtes.
Visit www.thepoetrytrust.org for more information and to book tickets.

Please note: in a change to the programme, Ian Duhig has had to withdraw from the festival. George Szirtes will now read on 7 November, and deliver the talk on Martin Bell on Saturday 8 November. Matt Simpson will lead the "craft talk" on Sunday 9 November.

Wednesday, November 05, 2008

BRIGHTON: Mark Gwynne Jones

Thursday, November 6th, 2008, 7.30pm-11pm
Komedia,
Gardener Street,
Brighton

Hammer and Tongue, with special guest Mark Gwynne Jones and local support, plus open poetry slam – first eight to sign up at the door compete.

BELFAST: Kei Miller and Daljit Nagra

Thursday 6th November, 2008, 7pm
Lecture Theatre G9,
Queens University
Lanyon North,
Belfast QUB

The young Jamaican poet and novelist Kei Miller will be reading at Queens University Belfast next Thursday with Daljit Nagra, author of the acclaimed collection Look We Have Coming to Dover!.

Kei Miller was born in Jamaica in 1978. His poetry collection There Is An Anger That Moves was published in 2007 by Carcanet; his first novel, The Same Earth, appeared from Weidenfeld & Nicolson earlier this year.

Tuesday, November 04, 2008

HOVE: Lee Harwood

Friday, November 7th, 2008, 6.30pm, £6
The Old Market,
Upper Market Street,
Hove

Lee Harwood has lived in Brighton since 1967. Associated with The British Poetry Revival, he has 22 volumes of poetry to his name. He will be reading from his recently published Selected Poems (Shearsman Books). His Collected Poems was published in 2004. Not the Full Story: Interviews with Kelvin Corcoran was published earlier this year. He has also published four books of prose and has translated the work of the Dada poet Tristan Tzara.

Ticket price includes free glass of wine and a reduction on books purchased, and is available from City Books, 23 Western Road, Hove, tel: 01273 725 306.

Liz O'Donoghue launch in Galway

Poetry Launch - Liz O'Donoghue
10th November @ 7pm
The Long Valley Bar

The Munster Literature Centre is delighted to be associated with the publication of Liz O'Donoghue's debut poetry collection "Train to Gorey" issuing from Arlen House, Galway. On Monday November 10th there will be a gathering to celebrate the publication of the book at 7pm upstairs in the Long Valley Bar, Winthrop Street (connecting Oliver Plunkett Street with Patrick Street near the Head Post Office).

All are welcome.

First forty people to arrive will receive a free drink courtesy of the Munster Literature Centre. Afterwards Ó Bhéal takes place at the same venue with readings by featured poets John Mee and Mary Noonan.

Poetry Bites Open Mic with guest Jon Morley

Jacqui Rowe presents:
POETRY BITES AT THE KITCHEN GARDEN CAFE WITH JONATHAN MORLEY

Jonathan Morley runs The Heaventree Press in Coventry and is a PhD researcher in Caribbean literature at the University of Warwick. His current and forthcoming books are a new edition of Sir Walter Ralegh’s Discoverie of Guiana (1596), the Collected Early Poems of Derek Walcott, and Geminar, an anthology of younger British poets in Portuguese translation. His first collection of poems, Backra Man, will be published in November by Perdika Press. An extraordinary, powerful set of poems, with flashes of brilliance and disturbing, dark currents of perverse and righteous emotions – David Dabydeen

Poetry Bites also includes floor spots where you can share your own poetry with an appreciative audience. Please arrive early to book a spot.

7.30pm, Tuesday 25th November 2008 (Food available from 6.30pm)

Kitchen Garden Café
17 York Road
Kings Heath
Birmingham
B14 7SA
£5 (£4) To reserve a place email jacquirowe@hotmail.co.uk or pay at the door.
www.jacquirowe.com

Monday, November 03, 2008

BRIGHTON: Mark Gwynne Jones

Thursday, November 6th, 2008, 7.30pm-11pm
Komedia,
Gardener Street,
Brighton

Hammer and Tongue, with special guest Mark Gwynne Jones and local support, plus open poetry slam – first eight to sign up at the door compete.

OXFORD: Mark Gwynne Jones

Wednesday, November 5th, 2008, 8pm-11pm, £5/£4
Baby Simple,
Cowley Road,
Oxford

Hammer and Tongue, with special guest Mark Gwynne Jones and local support, plus open poetry slam – first eight to sign up at the door compete.

LONDON: Mark Gwynne Jones

Monday, November 3rd, 2008, 8pm-11pm, £5/£4
Green Note Café,
106 Parkway,
London,
NW1

Hammer and Tongue, with special guest Mark Gwynne Jones and local support, plus open poetry slam – first eight to sign up at the door compete.

LONDON: Shoestring Press

Friday 14th November, 2008, 7pm (doors open 6.30pm), £4/£3, Wine
Trinity United Reform Church,
1 Buck Street,
Camden Town,
LONDON

Ruth O'Callaghan presents Shoestring Press - Alistair Eliot, Kate Foley and Caroline Price. Poets from the floor welcome (please bring two copies of the poem if you wish to be considered for the Bluechrome anthology - there are at least 10 major poets who will also be contributing, including UA Fanthorpe, Fiona Sampson, Marilyn Hacker, Penelope Shuttle and Peter Porter).

LONDON: Hammer and Tongue

Monday, November 3rd, 2008, 7.30pm-11pm, £5/£4
Green Note Cafe,
Parkway,
London,
NW1 7AN
Tel: 020 7485 9899

Michelle Madsen presents the ‘brilliant, captivating and ever so slightly mad’ Mark Gwynne Jones and Flaming Poet Carol Coiffait, fresh from darkest Hull, at Camden’s warmest den of word-trickery and rhyme, the Green Note Cafe.

Described by The Independent as being to poetry what ‘the League of Gentlemen is to TV scheduling’, Gwynne Jones covers the whole gamut of human experience in his poetry, from lost tortoises to the finer points of fake tanning and everything else in-between. Carol Coiffait brings her unique voice to London, asking political questions through the music of the Beatles and quizzing life, love and happiness.

OPEN SLAM! The audience judge in this warm, friendly and top quality slam. WE WANT YOUR POEMS! The first 8 poets to sign up at the door from 7pm perform and GET IN FOR FREE. And cake.

Sign up from 7pm for the slam or for more details call Michelle on 07809 236 133
www.hammerandtongue.co.uk
www.psychicbread.org

Sunday, November 02, 2008

LONDON SW5: Coffee House Poetry at the Troubadour

3rd Nov, 2008
8 to 10 pm,tickets £6 concessions £5
263-267 Old Brompton Road
LONDON SW5
nr. junct. Earls Court Rd & Old Brompton Rd
nearest Tube station: Earls Court (District & Piccadilly Lines)

Coffee House Poetry at the Troubadour
Readings from Anne Berkeley, seam poetry magazine editor, with Michael Laskey, Helen Ivory, Chris Beckett, Katy Evans-Bush, John Greening, Esther Morgan, Jane Holland, Peter Howard and Hisham Matar.

LONDON EC4A: PoeJazzi!

Tuesday, 4th November
6pm doors; start 8pm, £10 Ticket reservations only.
Volupte Bar,
No 9 Norwich Street,
off Furnival Street,
EC4A 1EJ(Close to Chancery Lane tube , after McDonalds)

PoeJazzi!
Special offers!
Two for one on cocktails till eight; £8 for one course meal, two for £14

John Berkavitch: Spoken Word Giant, Slam Winner, Piller Of The Community, Breakdancer, Urban Quarter Member. Also from Leicester. John Berkavitch returns to Poe.
Elvis Mcgonagall: One of the finest political comic poets in all of England on the night of the Presidential Election? Coincidence?
Gywneth Herbert: A PoeJazzi first; Blue Note signed artist will be performing at our humble stage, totally validating the 'jazzi' part of poe. 'Superb music... Brilliantly original, full of space and isolated detail.' - MOJO 'With her bewitching voice, the jazz-folk star was never just your standard covers singer. And here is the proof' - Observer Music Monthly Observer Music Monthly
Theo Bard: Grand New Talent Alert! Spotting this genius on myspace, and now that our schedules have aligned we are proud to have him on board. Singer Storyteller, i.e, doesn't just talk about himself, and really good.

BELFAST: Kei Miller and Daljit Nagra

Thursday 6th November
7pm, , 2008
Lecture Theatre G9,
Queens University
Lanyon North,
Belfast QUB

The young Jamaican poet and novelist Kei Miller will be reading at Queens University Belfast next Thursday with Daljit Nagra, author of the acclaimed collection Look We Have Coming to Dover!.

Kei Miller was born in Jamaica in 1978. His poetry collection There Is An Anger That Moves was published in 2007 by Carcanet; his first novel, The Same Earth, appeared from Weidenfeld & Nicolson earlier this year.

DEPTFORD SE8: It's My Life, Innit?

Friday 7th November 2008
8pm, Tickets: £10 / £8 conc
The Albany,
Douglas Way,
Deptford, SE8 4AG
Booking: 020 8692 4446

It's My Life, Innit?

ZENA EDWARDS is well-known as a poet, storyteller and musician and tonight she's teamed up a crew of class A musicians and spoken word artists who'll be taking it to the bridge and beyond. Featuring jazz-rap hero SOWETO KINCH and East London's favourite poet ADISA alongside fast-lane verbal talents LEETO THALE and LUCID. Expect a flow of freestyle, acappella and lyrics, all backed up with a tighterthan-tight band and a shed load of positive attitude.
To top it off we're holding an OPEN MIC SESSION. Calling poets AND musicians who wish to come and contribute. Sign up from 7.30pm - 1st come, 1st serve, so suggest you come early!
info: www.applesandsnakes.org

THE TRANSGALACTIC INTERWOMAN POETIC EXPRESSWAY

November 8th 2008
7:30pm, £5/ 4 concessions
Poetry Cafe
22 Betterton Street
Covent Garden tube

brought to you by La Langoustine Est Morte ONE TIME ONLY!!!!

HOSTS: Anthony Joseph and Sascha Aurora Akhtar

Representation from all distant and not-so-distant planets
Jamika Ajalon (U.S.A by way of London by way of France)
Olumide Poopola (Nigeria/Germany)
Valeria Melchioretto (Switzerland)
Shanta Acharya (India)
Frances Kruk (Canada)
Ziba Kirbassi (Persia)
Sophie Robinson (the most exotic of them all Old Blighty!)

LONDON SW5: Seren Poetry Triple Bill

Saturday 8 November 2008
7pm, Admission free
The Troubadour
263-267 Old Brompton Road,
London SW5 9JA.

Seren invites you to a triple poetry bill
Sarah Corbett reads from Other Beasts; Kathryn Simmonds reads from Sunday at the Skin Laundrette; Meirion Jordan reads from Moonrise.
RSVP torikt@seren-books.comVisit www.seren-books.com for more information.

SUFFOLK: Twentieth Aldeburgh Poetry Festival

Friday 7 - Sunday 9 November
various times and venues: various
tickets from £6-£14
(please book for events in advance)

44 events in various locations: Clive James does a close reading of a favourite poem, Radio 4's 'Saturday Live' regular Matt Harvey responds to anonymously published poetry, plus workshops led by Michael Laskey and Jeni Smith, and readings from Tiffany Atkinson, Mimi Khalvati and George Szirtes.
Visit www.thepoetrytrust.org for more information and to book tickets.

Please note: in a change to the programme, Ian Duhig has had to withdraw from the festival. George Szirtes will now read on 7 November, and deliver the talk on Martin Bell on Saturday 8 November. Matt Simpson will lead the "craft talk" on Sunday 9 November.

LONDON: ZENA EDWARDS' SECURITY

Mondays - Saturdays 10-29 November 2008
8pm,
Battersea Arts Centre
Lavender Hill
Clapham Junction
London, SW11 5TN

Zena Edwards' Security 'confronts the issues of security and identity through a fusion of poetry, theatre, movement and song.'

SWANSEA: The Dylan Thomas Festival

Ends Monday 10th November 2008
The Dylan Thomas Centre
Swansea
Various prices

11th Annual Dylan Thomas Festival, Swansea 08

Gillian Clarke on Monday 3rd November and the different shortlisted writers for the Dylan Thomas Prize Shortlist on the 5th, 6th and 7th November, including poet Caroline Bird.
Visit www.dylanthomas.com, call 01792 463 980 or email dylanthomas.lot@swansea.gov.uk

LONDON NW1: UTTER! GINGERS ALL GINGER SPOKEN WORD SPECTACULAR

Tuesday November 11 2008
7:30-10:30pm,
Green Note Club
106 Camden Parkway
NW1 7AN
Nearest tube: Camden Town, overland: Camden Road

UTTER! GINGERS ALL GINGER SPOKEN WORD SPECTACULAR: AF Harrold, RT Jones, Tamsin Kendrick, John Anstiss, Heather Phillipson, Mark Neil and host Richard Tyrone-Jones
07912539098 richardtyronejones@googlemail.com

Don't Shush Me: Poetry in the Library, featuring John Hegley

Thursday 13th November,
7.30pm, Tickets £7 (£5 concs)
Bishopsgate Institute,
230 Bishopsgate,
London EC2M 4QH

A unique chance to hear John Hegley girding up his rhymes in the intimate setting of Bishopsgate Library. With support from some of the poetry scene's hottest young pretenders.
In partnership with Apples & Snakes.
For tickets or information call 020 7392 9200 or email events@bishopsgate.org.uk

LONDON SW7: Poetry and Space

Thursday 13 November 2008
6:30 pm,
Sir Alexander Fleming Building,
Imperial College London,
South Kensington Campus,
London SW7 2AZ

Poetry and Space - part of Poet in the City's 'Escaping the Matrix' series.
Isobel Dixon will be reading poems on astronomy and space. Other featured poets are Diana Syder, Mario Petrucci and Inua Ellams.

London: Live Canon

Friday 14th November
1pm. All tickets £5
Greenwich Theatre,
Crooms Hill,
London SE10 8ES

Dynamic actors bring five hundred years of British poetry to life in vibrant performances. A gallery of characters and an explosion of words create a brilliant way to see, hear and experience these canonical poems.
14 Nov 2008 - War Poets, including Sasoon, Owen and Douglas.
to book call 020 8858 7755 or visit www.greenwichtheatre.org.uk. For more information email livecanon@btinternet.com. To join the mailing list email livecanon@btinternet.com with 'Mailing list' as the subject.

BRIXTON: Brixtongue

Friday 14th November 2008
Tickets are £7/£5 conc. brixart@brixtonartgallery.co.uk.
8 pm,
Diverse Gallery
62 Atlantic Road
Brixton SW9
(07913072052) Brixtongue

South London's premier poetry and performance event for local and international performers. Held bi-monthly at Diverse Gallery Brixton. Performers this month includes, Nikesh Shukla (Yam Boy), Angela Morgan, Najjah Edwards, James Mckay, MC Mr Gee, Open mic performers.

London: This Week at the Poetry Cafe ....

22 Betterton St.
Covent Garden
London
WC2H 9BX
Tel: 020 7420 9887

3rd November
8:00PM - 10:15PM
£6/4

Bloomsbury Voices

In Your Element: An evening of new, seasonal poems and songs of earth, air, fire and water with poetry from Stephanie Gerra, Wendy Shutler and music by Steve Dagleish and Ivor game. plus open mic after interval.


4th November
7:30PM - 10:30pm
£4/3

Poetry Unplugged

London's premier open mic night. Come and sign up between 6 and 7pm to be on the line up. Hosted by Niall O'sullivan.


6th November
8:00PM - 10:30PM
£4/2

Night journey/Book launch

Come and join us to listen to Josephine Dickinson 's new collection. Bar open all night.

Camden Town: Ruth O'Callaghan Presents ...

Friday 14th November 2008
7.00 (doors open 6.30)
Trinity United Reform Church
1 Buck St, Camden Town.
1-2 minutes Camden Town tube.
Entry £4/£3 Wine

Ruth O'Callaghan presents: Shoestring Press
Alistair Eliot
Kate Foley
Caroline Price


Poets from the floor welcome
(please bring two copies of the poem if you wish to be considered for the bluechrome anthology. There are at least 10 major poets who will also be contributing to the anthology inc. UA Fanthorpe, Fiona Sampson, Marilyn Hacker , Penelope Shuttle, Peter Porter to name but a few. )