All Blogposts

  • Ten Thoughts on a Friday Evening

    Sipping a glass of wine when you’re cooking is one of life’s pleasures. Making a big fish pie and adding leaks, sweet potato and spinach, (it’s scrumptious, truly), and asking your 14 year old son to wash up while it’s in the oven, means that there is a delicious, nutritious meal on the way and there’s only Read more

  • Launch of ‘Cur’ by Martin Malone

    Just to say I’ll be reading a poem or two at the Albion Beatnik Bookshop (34 Walton Street, Oxford OX2 6AA) in Oxford this Friday, 16th October, 7pm, for the launch of Martin Malone‘s new book ‘Cur’, fresh off the press at Shoestring Press. Other poets reading include Hilda Sheehan, Richard Skinner, Roy Marshall, Robin Houghton Read more

  • In other news

    I’ll come right out and say that my husband, Andrew, has been diagnosed with prostate cancer. We’ve known for a short while and have been coming to terms with the news.  I’m not going to go into all the personal details but I will say that I married a beautiful man, full of love, energy, Read more

  • A few links for National Poetry Day UK

    Yes, it’s that’s time of year again.  It’s National Poetry Day in the UK.  Here are a few posts I’ve read this morning which you might also enjoy. A gentle, interesting, contemplative post from Anthony Wilson who seems to be countering the imperative mood of the beautifully designed slogans from this year’s National Poetry Day campaign with Read more

  • On not blogging and putting your poems first

    I’ve been absent from here of late, really since I got back from my holiday in Portugal, and it’s mainly because I’m trying to plough on with my poetry writing, especially as I’m taking a break from paid work.  I feel that I need to make the most of my free time as I’m never too Read more

  • On continuing to read with your kids

    Like many parents, my husband and I have always read with our children.  When they were babies, we read fairy stories and nursery rhymes to them and gave them board books to chew and dribble over.  Touch-and-feel books were popular, as were lift-the-flap books (usually reinforced with triple layer sellotape to cater for even the most boisterous of Read more