“The only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything at the same time, the ones who never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders across the stars.” 

Jack Kerouac, On the Road

“The only people f...

Read and leave comments (6)

Football over, mown grass,

heady scent. School photo,

earnest expressions

squinting into sun.

Yearning, inexplicable,

unspoken crush

on a blonde-haired girl

with snub nose and pudgy face.

Winners and losers.

Another girl, dark-haired,

stared moodily after me,

had I but known.

Dusty sang I Just Don’t Know

What To Do With Myself.

...

Read and leave comments (16)

My first and only, indirect encounter with Margaret Thatcher was in 1971, at a demo outside a private girls’ school in Leamington. The “milk snatcher, union basher” – the then-education secretary had introduced some legislation about student unions, but I can’t remember the significance of it now -  was handing out the prizes at speech day. Protesters gathered outside the school gates. I was ne...

Read and leave comments (5)

Once his nose was fixed

a sex bomb was launched

from the valleys all the way

to Vegas. Gospel truth.

Blazened out cheesey ballads,

brazen hips met with

rapid fire of knickers.

With age came self-mockery.

Always more to Jones the voice;

not quite ready to be put out to grass.

Rediscovered soul, became

hip with old and young.

Now he roared abo...

Read and leave comments (4)

Always blew like hell beside the Winter Gardens,

playing havoc with the wives’ hairdos.

Sunny Jim Callaghan and his silly song,

fishermen's tales about catches and the EU.

A little arm-twisting, word in the right ear;

the workers, united, will never be defeated.

Late-night curries and composite motions.

Flying pickets, tactics; that wasn’t my department.

Read and leave comments (4)

That Google thrill;

seeing your name overtake

drain clearers, garage owners,

estate agents, even playwrights.

Habit had to be fed,

became second nature.

Alarmingly easy. Just change

a location, you’re on to a winner.

Imitation built a growing

reputation; flattery,

offers to publish

a first collection. That

MA in creative writing.

Creativ...

Read and leave comments (11)