this is fantastic Jeremy - love the images and language very much - I've just posted something about 'dusk' myself and hadn't realised you had posted this until I went to the poetry area to make sure mine had posted - hopefully it steers away from most of your fantastic narrative - great stuff
Comment is about Dusk (blog)
Original item by jeremy young
unreal - I've just seen Jeremy's posting - the one before mine - and it's the same subject matter and includes the same title - I swear I hadn't seen it before I posted - I went straight to the poetry blog section - quite spooky really :-)
Comment is about breathing in the dusk (blog)
Original item by Ian Whiteley
Lovely - and the images you evoke tie in beautifully with your profile pic - I'm thinking of the wildness of Kate Bush and Wuthering Heights...
Very enjoyable!
Comment is about Blueberries (blog)
Original item by Marianne Daniels
Thank you Graham.
I wonder how the Urban Dictionary defines hoo-ha? Probably best not to look.
I appreciate your feedback.
Comment is about Dusk (blog)
Original item by jeremy young
Laura's right, the feel good in this is palpable.
Considering the current hoo-ha about rhyme, this shows that done correctly, it works perfectly.
Well done Jeremy,
Comment is about Dusk (blog)
Original item by jeremy young
Marianne Daniels, I do believe you're becoming accessible (at least to me that is).
This is quite lovely.
Graham
Comment is about Blueberries (blog)
Original item by Marianne Daniels
Cannot but agree with Cynthia - and a very short one for you M! But powerful and evocative nonetheless.
Comment is about Blueberries (blog)
Original item by Marianne Daniels
Oh wow. This is just GORGEOUS. So well written, so evocative. I'm right there with them all. I love the sense of stability and security you build in there too with the kids - in jim-jams :) :)
This pleased me greatly. Lovely poem.
Comment is about Dusk (blog)
Original item by jeremy young
<Deleted User> (9882)
Tue 18th Mar 2014 20:59
Hi Neil.Glad you like 'de-friend'Please feel free to use it.Cheers.x
Comment is about Neil West (poet profile)
Original item by Neil West
I think you're right, MC. Humour is entirely personal. Although the icons mentioned above do nothing for me, I only had to look at Tommy Cooper to start giggling.
Tony Benn - Adored for the things he said; my views were tempered by what he did.
Comment is about GRAND OLD DAMES (blog)
Original item by John Coopey
Been clearly enjoyed his role in later life free
from that to which a long-serving Labour MP has referred in a personal appraisal. I quote:
'Only in his later years when all hope of "pelf
and place" were gone, did Bennery come to a
real fruition because his long career in politics went through three phases, from keen young moderniser, through disruptive middle age to socialist icon'.
There is no being "right" to be trumpeted except
when ego is all - but the life and passing of a
politician who, if he had his way, would have
surely encouraged the debate ("encouraged" was
the word he chose for his own tombstone).
Comment is about William Blake and Christian socialism: the poetic side of Tony Benn (article)
Original item by Greg Freeman
There's always room for some black humour - I
like "The Twins". Keep them coming.
Comment is about Disturbing Verse (blog)
Original item by Louise Etheridge
Intriguing and entertaining in equal measure,
with well-formed lines that contain an appealing
rhythm to make their case.
Comment is about She loves me not... (blog)
Original item by Christopher Dawson
Humour is surely a state of mind. I've always
had an affection for the ridiculous type - the
sort that can laugh at its own pomposity/human
failings, and I confess that I enjoy Chaplin at
his most inventive (that comic feast "The Gold Rush") and M&W at their most silly in some of
their sketches. I also like "The Two Ronnies"
for the cleverness of the writing and the joyful performances.
As for Tony Benn: the long-term Labour MP Austin
Mitchell had virtually a full page about him in
the most recent issue of the Sunday Express...
can you imagine a similar occurrence in a left
-wing journal on some Tory grandee?! Mitchell
takes the view that once out of power, Benn
was able to become "an iconic elder statesman,
a man of pure principles". However, in the
struggle for power, he could also be described
as preaching "an impossible form of ultra democracy and became ever more powerful by telling militants, twerps and the perpetually
disgruntled what they wanted to hear".
No laughing matter there then!
Comment is about GRAND OLD DAMES (blog)
Original item by John Coopey
Hello Cynthia :-) I am fairly new to this site - I put some stuff up a while ago and had a little go at updating recently. Certainly will consider changes - I appreciate any feedback. I have other poems on here too
Comment is about The Fountain House (blog)
Original item by Jane Burn
Hi Cynthia Thanks for comments on 'Casablanca', especially for spotting the dodgy apostrophe! 'Casa Branca' in line 3 is corect because I'm referring to the original name.'Casa Blanca' is the hispanicised form that we all now use in the West and goes back to the Spanish protectorate.
Comment is about Cynthia Buell Thomas (poet profile)
Original item by Cynthia Buell Thomas
A poem to keep close at hand for frequent revisiting. Brilliant conclusion. A great contribution, Jane. Are you new to this site? I will check back for other work.
Would you consider two minor changes - mostly for 'rhythmic flow' - 'Churchill flicking his two-fingered salute' and 'coloured marbles half-pushed into eye sockets'.
Comment is about The Fountain House (blog)
Original item by Jane Burn
Hello Andrew and welcome to Write Out Loud. I’m really looking forward to reading some of your work. I know that you will be warmly welcomed by fellow WOL-ers on the site. If you haven’t already added a picture to your profile please try and do so. It’s good to see what our fellow poets look like.
Have a good browse around the site, there’s lots going on and if you have the time to make some comments about the work of other poets please feel free. It’s the best way to get some constructive feedback about your own work too.
Any problems, please ask. There’s always someone who’ll get back to you. It’s a friendly place, so welcome once again.
Graham Sherwood
Comment is about Andrew Lawson (poet profile)
Original item by Andrew Lawson
CUH&GS = Cambridge University Heraldic and Genealogical Society; pronounced "cue hags". I was (much to my surprise at the time) president of it in the 1998-9 academic year. Last weekend was the Society's sixtieth anniversary banquet, and they commissioned this poem for the occasion. You can see me reading it at the link above.
Comment is about And the sky-blue shall overcome (blog)
Original item by Marnanel Thurman
And lastly a performance at Bolton WriteOutLoud! Hi Neil, great to hear from you, blimey it was a few years ago, and definitely time to come down and share your work with us!
Enjoyed your ditty here & yes next one is 20 April at the Brooklyn, 7.30 for 8pm start, be great to see you, best wishes Jeff
Comment is about a list of last things (blog)
Original item by Neil West
Hi Cynthia, yes we're definitely on the same lines here! your description has explored the tragic times faced time and again, lets hope its avoided this time, thanx for your comment on Divided Land :-)
Comment is about Beloved (blog)
Original item by Cynthia Buell Thomas
<Deleted User> (11984)
Mon 17th Mar 2014 18:26
Thank you! I absolutely like that some expressions got your attention! I know my words are simple because English is not my mother language but I know that my thoughts are complicated enough! Thank you for understanding what I wanted to say! Will keep writting if you keep reading!
Comment is about David Blake (poet profile)
Original item by David Blake
<Deleted User> (11984)
Mon 17th Mar 2014 15:34
Thank you for passing by my humble profile! Please read my 'Death Wish' on the blogs wall! will be highly appreciated to hear your comments on it!
Comment is about David Blake (poet profile)
Original item by David Blake
Ian - no worries. I know a little of Tony Benn, but enough to know just how strong he was as a political personality - certainly someone not afraid to speak their mind. I can imagine him being a hero to many, not least to those of a poetic voice.
You are blatantly a rock star. One of the biggest on here, if I may be so bold. It's clear to see and shouting itself out loud :)
Comment is about Ian Whiteley (poet profile)
Original item by Ian Whiteley
I would thoroughly support his taste in poetry and song.
Comment is about William Blake and Christian socialism: the poetic side of Tony Benn (article)
Original item by Greg Freeman
thanks for the comments on 'all that is left' David - pleased that you liked it - he was a hero, of sorts, for me.
also pleased you liked the videos - I enjoyed the wakefield piece - it's special performing something on the streets where you were born (not literally - ha)and to your 'neighbours' - I also enjoyed the 'with backing' tracks - the dormant rock star in me coming out at long last :-)
Comment is about David Blake (poet profile)
Original item by David Blake
thanks for the kind comments on 'silverback inn' Cynthia - very observant of you - the switch from first person is deliberate -an acknowledgement that if we ignore the warning signs, those old men could be us - thanks once again
Comment is about Cynthia Buell Thomas (poet profile)
Original item by Cynthia Buell Thomas
thanks for the comment on 'silverback inn' Dave - yes it's dark - but written as observed - human nature is all to often dark :-(
Comment is about Dave Bradley (poet profile)
Original item by Dave Bradley
it beggars belief that anyone would think that the death of a politician, albeit a poetry loving politician, would not bring party loyalties out into the open or elicit 'the usual ping pong'. It is that ONE point of contention that Chris is digging his heels in about - not the rest of Greg's interesting and thought provoking piece. I have to say that I totally agree with Chris and his right to object - comparing Tony Benn to Margaret Thatcher - simply because they were extremists - is like comparing oil with wine - after all they are both liquid!
Perhaps those who do not want to argue the political on this piece should actually raise some comments about the rest of the well written article and leave the 'politico's' to make whatever comments they wish about the rest of it - after all, as Tony Benn himself would have argued, everyone has the right to comment and free speech whether you/they like it or not - thanks - Ian
Comment is about William Blake and Christian socialism: the poetic side of Tony Benn (article)
Original item by Greg Freeman
Thanks for your kind words on 'Rain/Sun/Rain' Jeremy. I find your sample poem intriguing. Looking forward to reading more of your work.
Comment is about jeremy young (poet profile)
Original item by jeremy young
And thanks for the kind words on my latest. Means a lot :)
Comment is about Cynthia Buell Thomas (poet profile)
Original item by Cynthia Buell Thomas
Those who can see/write non-sense usually have a great understanding of sense/sensitivity/sensibility. This is a lovely poem, and skilfully structured with much complexity of rhyme pattern. Which sonnet form does it follow, if any? Or do I have the wrong format entirely?
I love formal verse also. How could I not, if I profess to be a poet?
Comment is about Epiphany (blog)
Original item by Marnanel Thurman
Clever, and brief, and up-to-date. Like those earlier bards who jingled off topical lines that set the common folk howling with glee. With considerable skill too.
Comment is about Though I'm not a Shropshire lad (blog)
Original item by Marnanel Thurman
Mr. Thurman, I must catch up with your posts. My computer is a bit more co-operative these days. Powerful point here, sharply expressed.
Comment is about tealice (blog)
Original item by Marnanel Thurman
A very skillful poem, well-constructed. So what is CUH&GS? It's probably even more impressive if I know the background and can better appreciate the humour. It feels 'sly' but I'm not sure.
Comment is about And the sky-blue shall overcome (blog)
Original item by Marnanel Thurman
You have a deft touch with diction, an ear for sound and the poetic sensitivity of seeing unusual relationships.
IMO, all good poets have a thesaurus at hand - you know - 'le mot juste'.
Line turns/breaks are also a major poetic skill and yours read well with both eye and voice .
Comment is about Rain/Sun/Rain (blog)
Original item by David Blake
A good, right-thinking man: the world is the poorer for lack of him.
Comment is about William Blake and Christian socialism: the poetic side of Tony Benn (article)
Original item by Greg Freeman
Greg,it's a shame this thread has been high jacked by the politicos who as usual are stripping the bones of a single point made in your piece. I thought it was about the man's poetic preferences, but sadly it has been swiftly transformed into yet another overblown ping pong tirade.
Nick Robinson is right when he says that TB will be best remembered as a chronicler of an era.
Comment is about William Blake and Christian socialism: the poetic side of Tony Benn (article)
Original item by Greg Freeman
Well, according to some theories of literature, it is what you see in it-- so yes, it presumably is :)
Comment is about And the sky-blue shall overcome (blog)
Original item by Marnanel Thurman
Not Coventry City Football Club, then?
Comment is about And the sky-blue shall overcome (blog)
Original item by Marnanel Thurman
"Like Marargate Thatcher, at one time he was regarded as bitterly divisive"
The above and nothing more, is what I have rallied against. I wont apologise for that whether it is two onto one, three onto one - or ten onto one.
Let's us see who is right!
Let us see what the British public thinks when it comes to his funeral.
Let's see if we have the same widespread reactions across the country as we did for her.
Let us see if you are right Greg/MC, let us see if I am right.
It is as simple as that.
P.S
Other people might not find that comparison worth fighting against - I happen to think it is rather important. Unless free speech has had its day...
Comment is about William Blake and Christian socialism: the poetic side of Tony Benn (article)
Original item by Greg Freeman
I don't think Tony Benn's death or the tone of this article warrants us all going to war over politics on WOL.
It's a good article Greg and it's interesting to hear of Benn's connection with poetry - I hadn't realised he was such a sensitive soul.
And at last - someone notable who shared your interest in trains!
Comment is about William Blake and Christian socialism: the poetic side of Tony Benn (article)
Original item by Greg Freeman
<Deleted User> (11984)
Sun 16th Mar 2014 19:29
A very delicate and well executed poem.
Comment is about Rain/Sun/Rain (blog)
Original item by David Blake
Checked your stuff on Youtube, thanks for the link. Really quite impressive, actually! Especially 'The Westgate Run' on the Wakefield Word Walk.
Comment is about Ian Whiteley (poet profile)
Original item by Ian Whiteley
As a matter of fact I held no "brief" for the
politics of "Left or Right for a lifetime's
career - my work and its demands saw to that.
But, for example, I'm mindful of the fact Lord
Attlee spoke for our allies in the readily abandoned Commonwealth countries when MacMillan
was pushing to join the (then) Common Market...
and that Heath, ignoring the words of Geoffrey
Rippon, knew full well that he wasn't telling
the British people the whole truth about the direction of that political creation - deceit
and want of truth marking its progress ever since.
Since retirement I have taken more interest in
politics and its players - past, present and
future. It is all very well to talk about "history" but, as someone observed, it is usually written by the winners - and ignored,
challenged or derided by those of opposing views!
Chris Co seems to regard every view that takes
a mildly questioning line as a challenge to be
"seen off" (at length!) if it appears at odds with his own.
People in politics are neither saints nor sinners but those who take their chance to use
their views to affect the rest of us - from whatever side of the political spectrum they
emerge.
Comment is about William Blake and Christian socialism: the poetic side of Tony Benn (article)
Original item by Greg Freeman
You think my feelings on Benn are not mixed Greg...Mmm.
I tell you ehat I shall post here my reactions from facebook. The post is long and detailed. It contains the nuance that seems to be otherwise lacking here.
P.S there was nothing mild in M.Cs comments - there never is!
Benn can't be regarded in one way, his time in politics and his positions and roles are so considerable. As such I think it better to consider different phases of his political life. Benn of the 1960s was dynamic, a brilliant debater and orator and he was a very good minister, particularly as minister for technology. His battle over his peerage and remaining in the house of commons, like his wish to have nothing to do with inherited titles was admirable. In the 1970s his principles led him into disastrous confrontations with his own party and helped seal labours fate and Thatchers continued success, i say helped. We shouldn't overplay it, given the upturn in the economy, partly down to reform, partly down to a upward return to the mean, and given the Falklands effect - she was never really going to be defeated. Labour winning an election, well, it was never going to happen back then. The split simply made the party look bad and bad publicly...though granted it did delay a return to power post Thatcher.
He was quite wrong in his dealings with militant and his command economy was never going to happen, never even remotely accepted by his own party let alone the country. So in terms of logistics, and reality his cause was unrealistic and deeply damaging.
Whether it could have worked politically if allowed is debatable and of course depends upon your politics. My politics, that of a social democrat, a mixed economy of relatively free trade, to the back-drop of a refusal to privatise things that I believe/believed to be too important to leave to the profit motive - hospitals/NHS, Railways (sadly gone) Energy (national interest - gone or going)...well In my opinion, and that is all it is...I think such a command economy would fail. Well meaning though it was or is, I think such economies deny human nature, and in that stifle economic growth.
Whatever the rights and wrongs, Benn was principled and committed as ever. He was also a very compassionate man and if there was a blind spot, it was in hoping people would be better than they actually are.
Yes he backed Scargill, but what choice did he have? Even Norman Tebbit came out and said that Thatchers pace and direction of closures was probably too much and that it Tebbit speaking! At a time when Scargill and Thatcher were playing political games and the miners suffered to the extent they did - Benn had no choice but to back the miners. In terms of other industries, when he was in office prior to Thatcher, the use of subsidy in clearly failing, economically challenged industries - here like labour he was more at fault.
All said and done though, he can never be compared to Thatcher. Not only did he go on to be a great humanitarian voice and authority, leading figure in the Anti-war movement, proponent for gay rights and black people etc, he simply never had enough power to make any mistakes on the level that Thatcher did. That is why we will not see a number one song celebrating the death of Benn, or Crowe for that matter. Neither Benn nor Crowe can be mentioned in the same breath as Thatcher when we use the word divisive. They were colourful and controversial figures, loved and loathed in equal measure, but not in Thatchers league. She occupies an entirely different stratosphere. The speed of her reforms committed great swathes of the country to the scrap heap, she ruined lives in great number. She was socially repressive and had more in common with the outgoing Ukrainian president, than she did with modern western ways of treating a population.
Thatcher had her effigy burnt across the country, was reviled by many opponents in parliament. Benn and Crowe on the other have been eulogised by colleagues and opponents alike...there is good reason for this, the logic is there.
Comment is about William Blake and Christian socialism: the poetic side of Tony Benn (article)
Original item by Greg Freeman
jeremy young
Wed 19th Mar 2014 20:04
I enjoyed your poem, it has a wonderful air of stillness.
Comment is about breathing in the dusk (blog)
Original item by Ian Whiteley