Tag: poetry

Looking Back At Devizes Arts Festival 2026

Featured Image: Gail Foster.

Features extracts from reviews by Andy Fawthrop, Ian Diddams and Madelaine Blake.

Does it ever stop?! The weekend is upon us again. I think I might need to skip this one, not getting any younger, and besides I did enough laughing, dancing and meeting interesting people over the past fortnight, thanks to Devizes Arts Festival…..

Celebrating its fortieth anniversary The Devizes Arts Festival really was amazeballs this year, and between our dedicated team of writers we managed to cover a fair chunk of it. Which we will now look back on with a cheap shot clipshow style article, like a nineteen-seventies TV Christmas Special!

So it leaves me to thank all the volunteers at Devizes Arts Festival for such a brilliant job, and making us feel welcome. And our writers, Andy, Ian and our new writer, Madelaine Blake. Thanks also to photographer Gail Foster for her use of the NRWO gig images.

Devizes Arts Festival kicked off like dancing shoes on Friday 31st May with London’s premier salsa orchestra, Salseology. Sacha Dench’ Journeys of the Human Swan and Beatrice Nicholas was showcasing African American classical composers on the following Saturday. Unfortunately we arrived fashionably late, I was busy with Rowdefest, so apologies for missing the opening.

By Monday, Andy is first out of the starting traps, and bangs out three-in-one reviews, all writing related. The first was a new feature at Devizes Arts Festival, the Have-A-Go Workshops, this one by Bath Spa’s Steve Tuffin, of whom Andy reported, “led a very practical class on how to go about writing a personal memoir, or indeed how to approach any form of creative writing. In what could have been a dry, dusty and boring subject, Steve presented a very lively, interesting and, yes, absorbing couple of hours.”

Anthony Horowitz’s “A Life In Murder” came next, to which Andy raved. “Horowitz proved to be a loquacious and captivating raconteur. He had plenty of anecdotes and examples to give, peppering his replies with humour and witty asides.”

And Becky Grey’s “How I Became A Ghost Writer” finished the trio, which Andy called a “sandwich of literary delights.” I couldn’t convince any of our writing team into covering some Sunday walks, and Jemma Brown’s singing country workshop. Not the most energetic bunch, and if you’d hear them sing you’d be thankful!   

By Tuesday I thought I’d better get on the act, and attended a lunchtime recital with Fábio Fernandes. Being honest I didn’t expect much, I mean, it’s just a lunchtime recital, right? How wrong was I?! St Andrews was packed, and Fábio, well I called him “a virtuoso. He came to Devizes to educate as well as entertain, and he did both delightfully.”

Thursday, Andy covered photographer Nick Upton’s Behind The Lens; My Life in Wildlife Film-Making & Photography, saying, “this talk was a great sweep across Nick’s career over 40 years, and covering over 30 countries, but it illustrated not only the man’s undoubted technical and related skills, but also his obvious passion for nature, especially those projects closer to home in the UK.  These included working with hedgehogs, harvest mice, dormice and the re-introduction programmes of cranes, great bustards, otters and beavers.”

While we’re talking beavers…. ermm, I went to see the Scummy Mummies show on that very same Thursday, reporting back that “you’ve never heard so many Prosecco corks popping from the Corn Exchange. It sounded like machine-gun fire in there, aimed directly at testosterone.”

Obviously I had pre-gig reservations, but by the end, I wrote, “as a geezer, you’d be forgiven for assuming this sounds excruciating, and this was certainly my pre-concern too. For if such a format was performed by anyone other than comedy geniuses, I’d still be of that opinion, but it wasn’t. This duo have the timing of The Greenwich Time Ball, are improv masters, and unless you were a subject on Louis Theroux’s Manosphere, wherever your testosterone balance lies, you cannot escape the simple fact that the Scummy Mummies are absolutely and undeniably hilarious.”

If Andy went for the more calming option, Clare Durham and Paul Martin’s “Collecting; An Art, A Hobby Or A Compulsion?” at Wiltshire Museum, reporting it as “a very entertaining session, and another of those little gems that keep the festival running,” he soon donned his gladrags for Robert Vincent, and besides being unaware of his music, Andy called it: “The vocals were soulful, insistent, yearning. The musicianship was spot-on. The songs were meaningful, well-constructed and simply wonderful. It’s been a while since I was this impressed by a band I’d never even heard before, but I was well won over. I was already on 9/10 by half time, and a no-questions 10/10 by the time we got round to the encore.”

They let me out on Saturday, for London-based Celtic folk-punker five-piece Man the Lifeboats. At a gig unlike their usual they might’ve misjudged the crowd. I said, “Man the Lifeboats realised not to judge a book by the cover, the reward for an accomplished and lively band at Devizes Arts Festival, will be these matured attendees rising from their seated positions and gyrating to their irresistible beats like middle-age never happened; and many did, because Man the Lifeboats were stompingly outstanding!” And they were, a great night that one.

Late out to bat, Ian strode confidently to the stumps with Howzat? The Six Sixes Ball Mystery” by Graham Lloyd at Town Hall, calling it “a fascinating talk about _that_ ball, the alleged lies and repeated falsehoods, and the litany of names surrounding it all.” Glad he did that one, I’m not out for cricket.

Andy hit back with a great ball, Bob Holman’s Have A Go: Phone Photography workshop, which was “another one of those little DAF gems which gave our good citizens a chance to actually “have a go”, rather than just sit back passively and be entertained.  And this was definitely not entertainment, much more instructional in nature.”

Ian delivered on former world champion poetry slammer Harry Baker, one poem of which “brought a tear to my eye and a lump in my throat as it echoed feelings of my own for over thirty years now.”

Andy went to Swing From Paris, only to find they were actually from Gloucester and Worcester, but still, he said, “we got two highly entertaining sets of jazz, swing, waltz and gypsy rhythms mostly from the 1930s through to the 1950s, but also featuring tunes from as far back in the 1890s and forward into the 1980s.  There was plenty of humour and self-deprecation throughout as Fenner talked us through the provenance of each number.”

Next, though it was my turn again, on the comedy….

“Milton neurotically fumbles with the microphone stand, but not his wordplay. As is his bed hair, any emotional instability or self-doubt is part of the act; he has us under his spell from the off. You couldn’t help but laugh out loud at the absurdity of his thought-process. I’m now of the opinion his manipulation of language and layered humour is second to none currently in comedy. He has nearly as many relatives as jokes, each one with their own punchline funnier than the next.” That was me, I said that. I took all the prestigious gigs, and this one was utterly hilarious, Milton Jones, and Adele Cliff were so, so funny!

Just when Andy, Ian and myself  thought we had this under the thumb, in comes our new writer Maddie Blake to, not only drastically lower the age demographic of our dedicated team, but also provide us with a brilliant review of Bath artist Karen George’s sketching workshop at The White Chalk Gallery.

“What made this workshop so special,” Maddie wrote, “wasn’t just the chance to improve my drawing skills, but the atmosphere that was created within this group. Everyone appeared so eager and inviting, it was such a wonderful experience to create new friendships and share stories with those with similar interests in the arts. Despite varying levels of experience, the workshop felt accessible to everyone, and no one felt out of place. This workshop didn’t pressure you to create something ‘perfect,’ but something that captivates your enjoyment and experience of the workshop.”

Thank you, Maddie, and welcome to our exclusive and sometimes elusive writers team! So good was this review, I invited Maddie to come to the finale, Nothing Rhymes with Orange, but being I had a personal angle on this one, reporting on this finest Devizes musical output since the Hoax, I really wanted to write it myself. What a great finish to one of the best Devizes Arts Festivals yet.

“Last night proved Nothing Rhymes with Orange are at the top of their game, as they switched old with new seamlessly, and strived to become the universal name we locally knew they could from the very beginning.”

Nothing Rhymes With Orange @ The Corn Exchange Image: Gail Foster

I also said, rather a lot, about the future of the Arts Festival. With a matured demographic in attendance, generally, I try to illustrate how diverse and accepting it is for all ages. The Gen Z fanbase turned out for NRWO, the elder Arts Festival regulars did too, and everyone was kind and courteous to everyone else. That is the magic of the festival, and I hope those younger took home the notion that the festival isn’t a Saga Holiday, and welcomes all!

There were obviously a few events we couldn’t cover, and I apologise to those involved for this, but we tried to capture as much as possible. It was a wonderful year at the Arts Festival, and we look forward to seeing how they might top this one!

If writing these was a competition, though it’s not, for the record, the highest hitting review was Andy’s one on Robert Vincent, followed by Andy’s three-in-one writing workshops, I made level pegging for the third best for the NRWO review, with Maddie’s sketching workshop review, then my review of Scummy Mummies pipped Milton Jones to the post for the fourth highest hitting article.

But we don’t worry about hits here; I couldn’t pick a personal favourite, oh, okay, go on then! It had to be between Milton Jones and Nothing Rhymes With Orange, of course. For Andy, who, let’s face it, did most of the hard work, picked Robert Vincent and Swing From Paris. “But I also thought the various have-a-go events were pretty good. Oh. That’s three!” 

That’s okay Andy, have three, or more. Interesting though; Arts Festival team, the workshops did prove to be a welcomed addition. Same again next year?! 

A “Tender” evening of poetry – Harry Baker at Devizes Corn Exchange, DAF June 10th 2026

by Ian Diddams

images by Ian Diddams & Devizes Arts Festival

Harry Baker is a former world champion poetry slammer and German speaker with a mathematics degree. Whether the three are related is open to conjecture but all three feature in one way or another in his work. At the age of twenty he won the world poetry slammer competition in France with what he describes – fair enough – as the world’s best poem “Paper People”. From studying maths rather than medicine at university, to provide him with the time to keep on writing poetry, he is now a full time professional poet with a full diary of tours and performances and four books to his name.

His latest book, “Tender” chronicles the first hundred days of his son’s life and it was this that provided the material for the second half of his performance at the Corn Exchange, Devizes on Wednesday night. The poems ranged from the incredibly short inspired by exhaustion and exasperation, to good sized outpourings of love for his son and his wife, with many other lengths and subjects in between. We leaned how long it takes to look at a horse’s face when you are just weeks old, how Harry becomes accepted as milk provider – eventually, and of the inevitable ejections and projections babies manage from both ends. It is a set of beautiful, amusing and passionate poems the last of which – Day 1 – brought a tear to my eye and a lump in my throat as it echoed feelings of my own for over thirty years now.

Harry’s first half comprised pieces from his earlier books with titles encompassing his German speaking ability about a spoon with which to eat falafel (“falafellöffel”), finding your own way in the world (22 – which I realised immediately is the product of two prime numbers … that maths degree is never far away), a passion for swimming (“Wild”), enduring love (“Dust”) and a philosophical view of inevitable death (“Instructions for a funeral”).

The evening sped by, the audience of almost two hundred from far and near sitting spellbound throughout. Harry is a consummate performer, engaging, witty, self-deprecatory with a typically British sense of humour but with a gentle lilting delivery.His works can be bought at the ever excellent “Devizes Books” of course, and for a taste of what we all enjoyed YouTube has many clips of him in action.Huge thanks to DAF for bringing yet another wonderful act to our town, and the festival is not yet over 😊

“Devizes & Beyond” – Poetry & Photography by Gail Foster at St. Mary’s Church, Devizes April 18th – 26th 2026

by Ian Diddams
images by Gail Foster


‘Devizes & Beyond’ is a collection of original poems in traditional forms and digital photography, inspired by life in Devizes and the occasional foray into the world outside. The exhibition covers eight areas of life from shopping to spirituality and is a colourful and poignant snapshot of what it is to be human in this beautiful place and brief moment of time, and the physical and metaphysical journeys we take on different forms of transport and through life itself.
(Gail Foster)

Those are Gail’s own words in her description of her exhibition this week at St. Mary’s; she has become a well known poet and photographic artist in our town, and it is a joy to behold this body of work on public display. There are various sections to peruse and ponder over, smile, weep and reflect upon, from “Shopping” and “Spirituality”, as Gail mentions already, to “Community”, “People”, “Transport”, “Creatures” and “Landscapes”. And the eponymous section “Devizes & Beyond”.

Some areas unsurprisingly cross over … “Community” and “People”, “Devizes & Beyond” and “Landscapes”, but that is no criticism… such is the breadth of Gail’s work and interests this is probably to be expected. What is presented is certainly worthy of at least thirty minutes of anybody’s time, and the calm, serene surroundings of St. Mary’s permits us all to take a while to sit and reflect on what we are witnessing and cerebrally imbibing.

We are treated to some two hundred and eighty two photographs, and eight poems within those eight sections. In the vein of the crossovers mentioned above, some poems lend themselves to being a sisterhood together : The beautiful, heart rendingly poignant “Children of the Avenues” reflecting upon the lives past and future of the offspring of The Avenues, especially the September 2019, immediately pre-Covid, schools’ intakes holds the same gentle and reflective space as “Blink ~ Seven Stanzas for the Seven Ages of Man” harnessing the concepts within Shakespeare’s monologue in “As You Like It”. Similarly “Singing River” and “This Barrow Strewn Land“ share a love for the Wiltshire great outdoors and its magical and wistfully timeless beauty.

Treat yourself to an indulgence with the exhibition of photographs of all sections and you’ll undoubtedly spot someone you know, a beloved place, something or somewhere to make you laugh, smile, weep – or even halt you with a jolt. Gail is not shy to show warts and all either… we live in such a beautiful part of the world and her wonderful photographic eye captures so many shots that are truly stunning, worthy of any great exhibition… but she also grabs the mundane parts of everyday life that are the reality of living in a small town. For every framed shot of a church yard entrance, a shaft of light in the Ginnel, there’s the kebab shop building site, a hearse, a crowded bus.

All of these display Gail’s wonderful eye, and patience, and her lifetime of living in, and love of, Devizes, but if there is one section that truly encapsulates the author and artist that is Gail Foster it is that of spirituality… her inner peace and connections with an ancient land, and organised religion, of ancient chalk-lands, stones and timeless vistas, and pagan and church ceremonies.

This exhibition covers so much, it is impossible to encapsulate it all in mere words. One will still be taking it all in for some while afterwards – I’ve been mulling over this piece for almost two days and I should probably take longer but I am mindful that we need to all experience this display so its imperative I publish this as soon as possible. To paraphrase Peter Quince, a Shakespearean character from “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”….

I entreat you, desire you, and require you to visit Gail’s exhibition this week. Entry is free, open daily 10.00am to 3 p.m. until Sunday 26th April, plus an evening opening opn Friday 24th April from 6pm to 8pm.

And finally… to enjoy Gail’s eight poems from this exhibition in perpetuity, they are included in her next book, “”Singing River – a book of poetry”, which can be bought from Devizes Books from Friday 24th. Get it early on Friday and you may be able to meet the author over the weekend to have it signed!

The Makers Exchange; DOCA Call to the Creative

Thimbles on standby, Devizes Outdoor Celebratory Arts are calling all creative craftspeople and makers to their new project, The Makers Exchange. It’s a new craft market celebrating the South West’s most skilled makers, and it will take place at the historic Devizes Corn Exchange on the 23rd and 24th May…..

The event offers visitors the chance to explore a vibrant marketplace of contemporary craft, meet the makers behind the work, and experience live demonstrations and workshops. 

Across the weekend, the Corn Exchange will be filled with beautifully presented stalls featuring ceramics, textiles, woodwork, jewellery, clothing, and homewares, all designed and made by the makers themselves.

Highlights include live demonstrations by Marion Wright, renowned for traditional signwriting and decorative painting, and Amy Whittingham, whose bold, chunky glass chains feature separate, moving links, cast individually through a fascinating process.

The weekend begins on Friday 22nd May with The Ideas Exchange, an informative evening gathering for creative people featuring a talk and demonstration by knitwear designer and farmer Katie Allen of Cotmarsh Farm, followed by drinks and conversation.

Visitors will also have the chance to engage in hands-on experiences, including a drop-in cyanotype printing area by Bloemen & Blue, with proceeds supporting the marine conservation charity Surfers Against Sewage.

On a crafty mission to bring high-quality, community-focused arts to Devizes and the surrounding area, DOCA presents professional indoor and outdoor arts experiences, creating participatory opportunities working with local, national and international artists. 

The Makers Exchange is a celebration of contemporary craft in the South West, bringing together the region’s finest designer-makers. The event is designed to connect makers and the public, offering an immersive experience where visitors can see skills in action, try their hand at creative techniques, and take home beautifully made, unique pieces.

Rowde’s printmaker Hannah Cantellow

The makers include, Marlborough knitwear designer Katie Allen, Plymouth glass artist Amy Whittingham, signwriter Marion Wright, Bath Sashiko tutor Jessica Way, Bristol woodworker Geoff Hannis, Bromham’s cyanotype artist Libby Mornement of Bloemen & Blue, Wiltshire Spinners, Weavers and Dyers Guild, and members of the Guild of Traditional Upholsterers.

But, who’d thought it, Rowde is the creative cradle, with three makers featured in the event?! Rowde’s printmaker Hannah Cantellow, lampshade maker Aimée Alice Payton, and cabinet maker Thorn Smith. Seriously, I better polish up on my Fuzzy Felts!

The Ideas Exchange on Friday 22nd May runs from 6:30-9pm at The Peppermill Hotel, and is £10. The Makers Exchange is at Devizes Corn Exchange from the 23rd and the 24th May from 10:30 to 4:30pm, and costs just two pounds, with children going free.  

For full details, workshop bookings, and tickets, visit:

The Makers Exchange

Devizes Sammi Evans in the Shadow of a Debut Single

Being a singer in a tribute or covers band is nerve-wracking. Though tributes can hide behind a mask, a cover band frontperson can be reassured only by the notion that friends are backing them; blame the drummer! But a soloist, singing their mind acoustically is in another ballpark. Stripped back, alone, exposing your innermost thoughts, desires or even personal issues to an audience takes some bottle. It’s a test of courage for the most egotistical, the mental equivalent of standing naked. Yet a majority of those who do, I find, are actually modest and reserved.

In an interview with Peggy-Sue Ford last year, Aberystwyth born now Devizes-based singer-songwriter, Sammi Evans, expressed both her excitement and terror at playing live on the show, opened up about her troubled childhood, ADHD, and being a self-certified “scatter-brain,” and in doing so created one of the most interesting and touching of Peggy’s Don’t Stop The Music shows on Swindon 105.5. 

The last time I met Sammi she was showing me the artwork of her upcoming debut single, explaining how the purple background and gothic font gave it a sense of corporate identity, as well, holding her phone with a subtle tremble, telling me how anxious she was about releasing it. That single, The Shadow, came out a couple of days ago, and thus, Sammi has traversed the local open mic nights, jams at the Southgate, and pub gig circuit, to a recording artist; that thought alone would goosebump the least nervous!

The song’s subject reflects this anxiety, it drags you into a dark closet, and hauntingly honest, questions the listener if they experience similar ghostly fears. Sammi’s vocals are academia aesthetic, rich with a focused ethereal and melancholic soundscape. But it is through an impressive arrangement by Martin Spencer of Potterne’s Badger Set studio, which adds to the other-worldly ambience, with a tinkering piano breathing a touch of gothic horror film score, even subtle classical crossover about the otherwise poignant acoustic guitar marvel. 

Hey look, I’ve been to art college and know about light and shadow. If the shadow depicted in this song is metaphorically actualising foreboding as shadows and monsters lurking within them, the quality of the song contravenes its subject, upon its release. It might have felt that way in Sammi’s mind at the time of writing it, but releasing it might’ve been that face your fear moment of diving off the top board into the pool. And now it’s out there, perhaps more art for art’s sake and prosperity than fame and fortune, she should consider it an exhilaration of accomplishment, because it’s really rather wonderful.

It should then act as the opposite to shadow. This debut single is a light source, beaming directly above Sammi Evans, which casts only a minimal shadow at her footprint, if at all, and, I hope, reduces any seeds of doubt that she can write thought-provoking lyrics and compose them into songs with illuminating results. I look forward to hearing more, Sammi! x

Listen to The Shadow HERE

“Larkin with Women” at the Mission Theatre, Bath, November 25th-29th November.

by Ian Diddams
images by Ian Diddams, Mike Stephens and Next Stage


Ask people what they know about Philip Larkin, and the general best response may well be “a poet”. They may even know he was a librarian at the University of Hull. Some may even know he coined a phrase concerning the effect of one’s parents upon one – a rather rude quote, far too rude to be spelt out here in Devizine obviously. What they – or you – may not know though is that he had thirty plus years polyamorous… arrangements… with three women none of whom were overjoyed at sharing him but couldn’t let him go. Or at least, that is the wonderful picture painted by playwright Ben Brown in his play “Larkin with Women” which Next Stage Theatre Company are performing this week at the Mission Theatre, Bath.


This is a sumptuous work,. Deliciously delivered in a simple in the round setting of office, flats and a weekend cottage with an equally delightful sound track to set it all off. The plot runs through Larkin’s life with his amours Monica a long standing girlfriend and English lecturer, Maeve who comes to work at the library he runs, and Betty his secretary. His persona is of a sharp witted, pithy remarked but not uncaring man, his dialogue stuffed full of ironic responses and jokes. Yet he is egocentric at times seemingly oblivious to his devotees’ desire for monogamy, or at least uncaring, with his rejection of marriage as an institution. This especially causes a barrier with Maeve who as a strict Catholic cannot agree to sex outside marriage and they carry out their unconsummated affair for over a decade until the inevitable happens, Maeve is distraught, and Larkin responds with “You’re forty-six years old. Its not as if you can hang on to it for ever”. Monica is the closest of the three to Larkin’s approach to love but is jealous of the others’ involvements. Betty is last to fall for him and she too wishes him to herself.

The play draws to the obvious conclusion as Larkin’s life ends at the age he prophesied, his three partners in life visiting him for what may be a last time. Monica has the most heart wrenching line in the play as she answers a question posed by Larkin as he approaches death – as an audience we can see the answer coming, but when it does it is delivered with such great timing, and tenderness that it still brings forth an immediate emotion and reaction.

The cast are sublime, each playing their part superbly to eke out each character’s nuances and foibles. Tania Lyons as Monica, Antonia White as Maeve and Stephanie Hunt as Betty create three distinctly different women… Betty caring, Maeve desperate for marriage, Monica devoted. Brian Hudd fulfils the role of Larkin with panache and even brilliance. Mannerisms, delivery, aura… if this is not how Larkin really was, then he should have been Brian’s portrayal.

A simple set, a gorgeous playlist, subtle yet engaging tech and period clothing throughout from Kris Nuttall, Andy Punt, Vanessa Bishop and Ann Ellison – who also directed this wonderful piece of theatre, more than ably assisted by Andrew Ellison as Stage Manager.

Ben Brown the writer in the program notes is quoted as saying “there is a fine line sometimes between humour and irony”. He is spot on of course, but I’d go one further and suggest there is a fine line between irony and pathos… and Ben delivers that second fine line absolutely perfectly, in this absolutely perfect play. Next Stage have dedicated this performance run to the real life Betty Mackereth, who died this week.

“Larkin with Women” is playing at the Mission Theatre, Bath, until Saturday November 29th November at 1930 each evening, tickets from the theatre itself or from
https://www.missiontheatre.co.uk/whats-on/2025/larkin-with-women

Five Years in the Cotswolds: Lawton & Mack’s Breathtaking Debut Album

When I put together the 4 Julia’s House compilation albums a few years ago I decided I shouldn’t pick favourites out of the eighty-one songs donated, but if I had to, it would’ve indisputably been Atlantic O by Will Lawton and Ludwig Mack. With the ambience of the gods, this track is such a soothing sentimental earworm it makes you go all tingly as it drifts like a lost ship on the sea. Now the duo have released a debut album, matching the sublimity of Atlantic O. The story behind it is of an absorbing coincidence, and its unique marketing is equally as genius as the music….. 

At the time I was aware of the virtuosity and diversity of Malmsbury musical magician, Will Lawton, from solo performances and fronting The Alchemists. At the time he sent the tune for the project he briefly explained Ludwig was an Argentinian musician he had been working with, but their connection is far more complex and is explained in the book to the album, which is in turn, currently the only way to hear it. 

A story of serendipity expressed earnestly through a 36-page hardback, which continues to detail the thought processes of the album, each individual song, and the musicians which accompany them along the titled journey Five Years in the Cotswolds. Then, on the back cover there’s a QR code to scan, leading you to streaming options; I suggest you do, your ears will love you forevermore.

Enticed by the lure of English music, and his European travelling plans cut short by the pandemic, Argentinian musician Ludwig Mack arrived in the UK from Spain a day prior to lockdown. He had already connected with Will via Instagram, not realising when he settled in Hullavington he was coincidently only a few miles away from Will’s home. They jammed together, the song Atlantic O, and within a year produced the EP Heroes.  

Ludwig explored the UK, and found work whether he could, whilst Will continued with family life, his band the Alchemists and his employment as a music psychotherapist. But Ludwig often dropped in to see Will, and it was inevitable this project would blossom like the opening tune, aptly Blossom, a tender springtime daydream contrasting aging with memories. It’s as majestic as the morning chorus, and includes a naturally sourced one too.

The fabric of this album continues on this theme, indeed Songbird follows suit into the most gentle flow of concentrated bliss. It’s the first single released this Friday (10/10) of the goodness of nature rather than society’s machine, unhinged and timeless piano-based folk, and celebratory of the glory wildlife in all its splendour, wrapped in the warmest serenity. By its very composure it defines the sum of all this goodness and shapes a heart in your mind; if an album was a wander through a springtime meadow, this is a stroll to remember.

It comes as no surprise Will is a music psychotherapist, if the vocation is to improve wellbeing, increase happiness and overcome issues. One listen to Five Years in the Cotswolds is the best remedy. Ten solid tunes, all the like to make the little hairs on the back of your neck stand to attention. There’s few artists able to accomplish this, I could cite many, from Bill Withers to John Denver and you will contemplate your favourites when this caresses your senses.

The album lifts with euphoric pace at God’s Plan, and I’m left thinking of Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On as its aperture opens the album to a similar width of beauty. From the guitar chimes of November to the quirkiness of the bluegrass-esque Walk Each Other Home, and from the amorous ambience of Clouds to Freya Everest’s haunting vocal range on I Noticed, this album continues flowing on the theme as a paragon, never meandering off course.

Its production is as crisp as autumn leaves, the arrangements are like sunlight. The composition is a Vivaldi, its versification is W. H. Davies’ Leisure, the musical expression of a Monet, a pilgrimage to a Constable masterpiece, or all of these wonders capturing the beauty of nature equally combined and consumed, it really is this breathtaking. Devizine

Its production is as crisp as autumn leaves, the arrangements are like sunlight. The composition is a Vivaldi, its versification is W. H. Davies’ Leisure, the musical expression of a Monet, a pilgrimage to a Constable masterpiece, or all of these wonders capturing the beauty of nature equally combined and consumed, it really is this breathtaking. 

Bath’s producer and musician, Rob McLeod, aka Mac Lloyd, Spanish multi-instrumentalist Guillem Mitchel, London based jazz singer-songwriter and producer Freya Everest and drummer Tony Partridge who met Will at Schtumm in Box, are the other collaborators behind this enchanting project, alongside composer and arranger Benjamin Lawton, Will’s son.

Streaming platforms are held off until next year on this, the book to Five Years in the Cotswolds is the album’s only current access point, and is available on their website, and at upcoming gigs, The Castle, Swindon on 16th October, and Pound Arts in Corsham on 6th November, details of which are also on their website.

Will Lawton & Ludwig Mack

Trending……

McDonalds Coming to Devizes?!

Okay, it was the April Fools joke I broke the Internet with in 2021, but it’s not the 1st of April today….. Bishop’s Cannings Parish…

Using Fulltone as a Proper Noun

To most, “full” and “tone” are two separate words, but around here it’s been a portmanteau and a proper noun since 2019, conveying a unique…

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REVIEW – The Pump Acoustic Club @ The Lamb, Trowbridge – Friday 8th August 2025

Pump Acoustic Nights Are Back! 

Andy Fawthrop

For those weird enough among us to be of an acoustic bent, particularly on the folkie side, the time since the Covid lockdowns has been a bit of a desert.  Several local clubs which once thrived before 2020, never actually opened again – Devizes Folk Club, Corsham’s Acoustic Oak, Bradford Folk Club and Trowbridge’s Village Pump being amongst them.  Last year the Bradford club finally stuttered into life again, first at the now-closed Swan Hotel, then at other venues, but only as a very low-key weekly sing-around.  The proper full fat Open Mic nights and Guest Nights seemed to have disappeared from the local scene completely.  Some of this was due to the “retirement” of the previous hosts, and some of it (unfortunately) due to the passing of their once-leading lights. 

The venue itself, known as the Village Pump, at the rear of Wadworth’s The Lamb in Trowbridge, and the mothership of the hugely popular Village Pump and Trowbridge Festivals, recently found a new entrepreneur in our good friend and music promoter Kieran J Moore.  Kieran has performed wonders in re-opening the venue, in overhauling its sound and lighting infrastructure, and in attracting a whole new range of artists over the past couple of years.  Audiences have grown, drawn by the inventive programming, and the support for many local up-and-coming new indie bands. 

And now, at last, a light has re-emerged from the gloom for the folkies with the start of The Pump Acoustic Club as a new pop-up venture at the venue.  Running every second Friday of the month, the club promises a welcoming night whether you want to come and play or just rock up and listen.  The format is pretty similar to the old VP folk club:  the first half is dedicated to acoustic-only (unplugged) floor spots, and the second half to a booked guest.  For the Open Mic part, you have to sign up in advance (first come, first served via comments on their Facebook page), and you get time to sing two or three songs each.  The running order allows for about ten or eleven acts.  Then, following the break, and the inevitable raffle, the second half is a 45-60 PA-supported slot dedicated to a booked artist.   

Last month, on the first outing for the Club, we were treated to a great set by local duo Lorna and Darren, playing as Fly Yeti Fly.  Anyone there would agree it was a great night and a fabulous start to this new venture.   

Last night, for August’s booking we had Wings and Whispers, an all-female duo from Bristol. Both classically trained, both admitted to preferring the folkier side of things.  Using harp, guitar, whistle and voices, the pair played some fascinating, ethereal music based in folk legends and myths and in the natural world.  They wove original compositions together with re-arranged folk classics and covers into a mesmerising set. Superb stuff. 

The new Club, set up by Bradford-on-Avon’s Simon Taylor (lately of Water Thieves Trio and Dr. Zebo’s Wheezy Club) and Matt Cook, looks as if it’s hit just the right formula.  Both last month’s affair and last night were pretty busy, with most seats taken both upstairs and down. It’s £4 to get in, and £1 for a strip of raffle tickets, so you’re all done and dusted for a great night out for a fiver – what more could you want? Let’s hope that now it’s back, folks will continue to support it and make it into the success it surely deserves to be. 

Future gigs, as stated, will be the second Friday of each month.  See their Facebook page for individual events, but here’s a preview: 

Friday 12th September Andy Skellam 

Friday 10th October Lorikeet 

Friday 14th November Brian Stone & The Masters Of None 

Friday 12th December Dr. Zebo’s Wheezy Club 

Help DOCA Win Funding for the Confetti Battle

From carnival to the Winter Festival, DOCA stages so many great events in Devizes, most of them for free, but the most unique is the Confetti Battle. This year it’s coupled again with the Colour Rush, on Saturday 14th September. TicketSource are offering £1,000 to help fund a winning community event, all you have to do is click on this link, and vote for DOCA….

Devizes Confetti Battle has been happening since 1955, it is free to attend but not free to put on. People of all ages come and participate in a mock battle, throwing tons of confetti at each other, leading to a firework finale. It’s a lot of fun!

There are a lot of costs that come with this event. The cost of road closures and the big clean up afterwards. DOCA would use the money to help buy confetti supplies. It’s hard to get the event funded as it isn’t a traditional art or heritage event so this award would be a great help.

So, please click on this LINK to vote for them, it will take you seconds and costs nothing, ta!

Trending…..

Carrie Etter’s Poetry Workshop at Devizes Arts Festival

By Helen Edwards

American poet, Carrie Etter has been a resident in England since 2001, and a reader in Creative Writing at Bath Spa University. She published four collections, most recently, The Weather in Normal, and numerous chapbooks. On Saturday Carrie gave a poetry workshop and reading at Devizes Town Hall, as a fringe event of Devizes Arts Festival…..

‘Carrie’s workshop was absolutely fantastic, a distilled overview of prose poetry with many examples to show the variation in style and our own time to create (with no pressure).  Carrie was inspiring, impassioned and quick as a whip.

Her students at Bristol University are very lucky to have her as a teacher (as were her many past students from at Bath Spa University). The open mic at the end was inclusive, supportive and fun. Carrie’s final poem saw me wiping away tears; beautiful.

I wish I could write a longer review but I am doing this one-eyed with a poorly optic nerve. I’m effervescing with words which will have to wait or be dictaphoned, when they come I now have many tips as to how to form them better.  Thanks Carrie, your generosity is abundant – I’ve a feeling you’ll get a roomful’s worth of follow up messages. Helen.

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Manning Lifeboats, In Devizes!

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Helen’s Poem on BBC Upload

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Listen here from the BBC website, or Soundcloud link, here. I love writing, but poems, hum, something about bacon, not to mention I’m an absolute bag of nerves on radio! The article on the Bournemouth Writing Festival Helen mentioned is here too, and this one worked both ways, also inspiring Helen to write. Well done you, and we look forward to hearing some more soon!  

Trending….

Mindful Stitching Workshop with Dollies Dimples

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REVIEW – Devizes Arts Festival– “Collecting – An Art, A Hobby Or A Compulsion?” with Clare Durham and Paul Martin @ Wiltshire Museum (Friday 5th June 2026)

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REVIEW – Devizes Arts Festival– “Behind The Lens – My Life in Wildlife Film-Making & Photography” with Nick Upton @ Assembly Room (Thursday 4th June 2026)

It’s Not As Easy As It Looks by Andy Fawthrop The Devizes Arts Festival continued on a very wet Market Day this Thursday, and continues to throw up some real little gems.  Here was another piece of interesting and imaginative programming from the committee….. If you’ve ever watched a David Attenborough wildlife programme, or read…

Local performer Grace Sheridan to Share Stage With Jason Donovan at Fulltone Festival

A talented local performer from Devizes is set to share the stage with international star Jason Donovan this summer as part of Fulltone Festival ’26. …. Grace Sheridan, who will appear alongside Jason Donovan during his headline performance with The Fulltone Orchestra, first began performing in local productions in Devizes as a child. Those early experiences inspired her to pursue…

A Devizes Arts Festival Lunchtime Recital with Fábio Fernandes

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Pride Where Pride is Needed

Pride month finds me wondering if Pride events are actually needed more in our smaller market towns where awareness and acceptance is perhaps lesser than in larger towns where diversity is tolerated more, but Prides are already established. Then I ponder deeper, if that’s even an accurate statement, and if it is, why many small…

Devizes Arts Festival Reviews: Steve Tuffin’s Have-A-Go Workshop on Memoir-Writing, Anthony Horowitz – “A Life In Murder”, and Becky Grey’s “How I Became A Ghost Writer”

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PREVIEW: Bullshot Crummond [*], Rondo Theatre, Larkhall, Bath June 17th – 20th 2026

by Ian Diddams images by Josie Mae-Ross If you have been fortunate enough to have experienced the four hander parody version of “The 39 Steps”, “North By Northwest” in similar vein, Michael Palin’s “Ripping Yarns”, “The Comic Strip Presents”, and the likes of the vaguely straight but ridiculously over the top “Dick Barton – Special…

National Treasure: Henry Normal Brings New Tour to Devizes

Featured Photo: Richard Davies

Writer, poet, TV & Film producer, founder of the Manchester Poetry Festival (now the Literature festival) and co-founder of the Nottingham Poetry Festival, Henry Normal brings his new tour, Collected Poems and Other Landfill, to The Assembly Rooms in Devizes on Friday 3rd November.….

In June 2017 he was honoured with a special BAFTA for services to Television, credits roll like the ultimate résumé. He co-wrote and script edited the multi-award-winning Mrs Merton show and the spin off series Mrs Merton and Malcolm. He also co-created and co-wrote the first series of The Royle Family. With Steve Coogan he co-wrote the BAFTA winning Paul and Pauline Calf Video Diaries, Coogan’s Run, Tony Ferrino, Doctor Terrible and all three of Steve’s live tours and the film The Parole Officer.

Setting up Baby Cow Productions Ltd in 1990, Henry executive produced all and script edited many of the shows of its 17-and-a-half-year output during his tenure as MD. Highlights of the Baby Cow output during his time include the Oscar nominated film Philomena, I believe in Miracles, Gavin and Stacey, Moone Boy, Uncle, Marion and Geof, Nighty Night, The Mighty Boosh, Red Dwarf, Hunderby, Camping and Alan Partridge.

Since retiring in April 2016, Henry has written and performed eight BBC Radio 4 shows combining comedy, poetry, and stories about family. His tenth show A Normal Home will be recorded on the 18th November 2022 for transmission on the 20th December.

In April 2018, Two Roads publishers released his book of memoirs ‘A Normal Family’ which was written with his wife Angela Pell, drawing on his family experience. It immediately became a best seller on Amazon and has already been reprinted.

Henry performs poetry at Literature Festivals around the UK and has eleven poetry books available from Flapjack Press including the latest entitled Collected Poems Vol.2.

He was recently given an honorary doctorate of letters by Nottingham Trent University, another by Nottingham University and has a beer and a bus named after him in Nottingham!

Support for Henry Normal’s show comes from very special guest British actor, comedian, musician, novelist, and playwright Nigel Planer, perhaps best known for his role as Neil in the BBC comedy The Young Ones and Ralph Filthy in Filthy Rich & Catflap. He has appeared in many West End musicals, including original casts of Evita, Chicago, We Will Rock You, Wicked, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

Doors at 7.30pm, on Friday 3rd November. Tickets (£17.50 + booking fee) are available now HERE.

Trending….

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Poetika Open Mic Night The Winchester gate, Salisbury. Tues 21st March 2023

By Helen Edwards

A few weeks ago whilst scrolling through social media an advert for this event came up.  Intrigued and having never been to a poetry night before I popped it into my calendar.  The date soon came round and I nearly bailed… too much to do, too far to drive, too dark, cold, lazy.  But before making the final call I did some research.  My main discovery was that the 21st March is in fact, World Poetry Day.  So that was that, decision made and done.  I was on my way to have poetry fun (yep, I know).

I arrived at the pub adjacent to Salisbury’s ring road, went to the bar, and found myself standing next to a very tall Queen of Hearts. A huge auburn beehive wig added to her intimidating height.  The theme (I remembered) was ‘Through the Looking-Glass”.  Already feeling out of place with my usual jeans, sweater, and trainers garb, I tentatively walked into the intimate and warm side-room. Twenty or maybe thirty people sat, perched, or stood near tables decorated with playing cards and jam tarts, all facing the low stage embellished with tinsel and a large mirror reflecting their expectant faces.

Watching the final stragglers squeeze in, it became clear that most of the audience knew each other or of each other. Because of this the atmosphere felt supportive and inclusive.  I sipped my wine, relaxed and opened my mind. Then BAM.  The Queen of Hearts, Alice and the Rabbit, ‘I’m late, I’m late!’ jumped on stage and performed a semi-rehearsed intro show. Scripts in hand and costumes adorned, the passion and dedication to Poetika came across to all.  My initiation into the poetry night proved louder, brasher and way more fun than anticipated.

With the ice, and not the mirror, broken the poets took to the mic.  The Queen of Hearts, Nikki (I learnt at the interval that Nicki is the chief organiser of Poetika) stepped up to read her fast paced, caustic, funny lines. It wasn’t solely the poems that had me chuckling; Nicki’s striking resemblance in looks and mannerisms to the eclectic and talented Sue Pollard amused me throughout. When I told her in the break that her poems reminded me of John Cooper-Clarke, the famous punk poet and I was informed that she was his support act for part of a past tour. How cool.  It’s obvious that JCC has been a huge influence on her work. I was offered a slot on stage in the second half to read my own stuff and responded by nodding whilst shaking my head simultaneously unsure as to whether I’d just enthusiastically agreed or vehemently declined.

Back to the first half. After Nicki came a succession of amateur poets, including Poetika’s Alice (Ria) with her clever plot and sweet but sharp delivery and the Rabbit (Jamie).  I sat consumed, listening deeply, trying not to miss the, at times, lightning quick word concoctions. It became clear that this was theatre. This was not a read-off-the-page poetry recital but a pure and raw exposure of one’s writing, wit, and inner workings. Deep and true – as poetry can be … with a big dose of stage presence.  

Two of the next performers achieved a stand-up comedic delivery with inspired words and accompanying audience participation. Ripper’s ‘Cider’ poem, a fun crowd pleaser, was read with an air of self-deprecating, drole, deadpan humour. Move over Romesh Ranganathan.  The other, Craig, is a born comedian. He evoked laughter throughout his set but brushed aside each short poem with a ‘and that’s that one!’ remark, his poetry performance tic.

My favourite act of the night allowed all present to dive right through the looking-glass and into the authors heart. Echo, a beautifully presented human with self expression etched on every inch of clothing, jewellery, exposed skin and hair was outstanding. I cannot compare the writing to any other: FYI my current education level in poetry is pretty low so to me it was totally unique.  A mirror to the soul was shared and if I hadn’t heard another all night, the poem, ‘T1’ alone was worth hauling my butt to Salisbury for. Softly delivered, a hard-hitting exposure to drug use walked us around a squat and Echo’s mind.  A beautiful shock of a poem.  The lines, ‘I glance up, I see myself in the mirror malnourished, dying.  I look away quickly to convince myself my reflection is just simply lying’ speak for themselves.  I wouldn’t be surprised if Echo’s words are bouncing off much bigger venues’ walls in the future.

The event’s special guest came next, the professional poet, Claire H from Bournemouth. Claire began with a capsule lesson on poetry agreeing with another writer (sorry, source unknown) that poetry ‘isn’t a hiding place it’s a finding place’.  Claire H, a self-branded witch poet, told her transfixed guests that ‘poetry saved her life’. ‘That old chestnut’ I hear you smirk but I believed every word. And judging by the reflective silence that followed it seemed many were concluding similar, that words had performed a transformative magic on them too.

Claire’s stage presence, from her downright natural, cool-as demeanour to her dance-like arm movements marked her out as ‘the professional’ on the night. Even her poems had their own stand to be read from. I immediately connected both with Claire’s honest, clear and charged poems and her generous and kind personality. She told me at the interval that she reads tarot cards but apart from this and her signature black fingerless gloves I wasn’t really feeling the broomstick vibes. Maybe the reference to ‘burning effigies of all those women I wasn’t’ was the giveaway.

Claire’s ‘England’ poem was excellent: political, clever, personal and relatable. But my preferred piece was ‘Forty’ describing what it can be like to be a woman in the fourth decade of life right now. Spot on.  The snippet that has stayed with me however came from her ‘Love and Other Natural Disasters’ poem: ‘Fractured affections and dislocated devotions’.  Claire left us with the insightful advice ‘to look to the poetry of your intuition’.  

The interval was like a cold-water immersion into a truly creative bunch of people.  It was powerfully revitalising and eye-opening to see glimpses of lives lived so differently to my own. I wanted more.  

Act two came with more solid performances from Poetika trio, Nicky (reading John Cooper-Clarke), Jamie with his ‘Tory’ poem, and Ria with her superb ‘Black Dog’ piece. Ria’s quirky, sweet radiance could fool one into mis-labelling but listen to this poem, and you will hear a voice full of strength and intelligence. Respect to you, Ria, for picking a fight with Sir Winston Churchill.  You educated and made us see that his labelling of black dogs as synonymous with depression was wrong. I love how Ria’s quiet passion permeated the room and how her words weaved anger and the virtues of black dogs into a great poem.

We had a Gary Stringer (lead singer of 90’s band, Reef) look-alike sing a lovely song about his mum’s death, Lois a relative newbie reading her second poem of the night and more from the comedy poets Ripper and his mate ‘and that’s that one!’ Craig.  We had Hopper, confidently read his second poem and then we had me.  Confidence slipped away as I heard my name called. Tummy swirling, I floated above the scene and listened as I read out a personal piece of me.  I received a warm clap and vocal praise.  Thank you Poetika, my ego enjoyed the moment.  I write for me but sharing on the night was good.  And inspiring. The following day I wrote two poems.

If you want to sit back and take in the theatre, the warmth, the tough emotions and the laughter then I would highly recommend going along to Poetika in Salisbury. You will be welcomed and hopefully, as I was, surprised and inspired by the talent in the room.  If you have an inkling that you’d like to get up on stage to read then please do. I may have had an out of body experience but it’s charged me up like a supernova. You could always do what I did and go on your own.  If you die on stage you never have to go back… if no one you know hears it, it never really happened, right?

Thanks Team Poetika. See you in the future.

Next Poetika night: 18th April 2023, 7.30pm The Winchester Gate, Salisbury. Theme: tbc.

Horses of the Gods; We Wish You Health

I once reviewed a cassette with a photocopied punk-paste zine style picture of Mr Blobby as the cover, where a distraught male voice screeched, “take an overdose, ginseng!” continuously over some white noise. Thank heavens that’s in a long-lost past!

Fortunately, I’ve never had anything quite so bizarre to review since, not even this week when, Erin Bardwell messaged; “one of the drummers I do things with, Matty Bane, has a side duo project and wanted to let you know about their latest album.”

Sure, I’ve heard of Matty, seen him listed as one of Erin’s collective, trekking with them to Jamaica in 2003 to record with Recoldo Fleming at Dynamic Sounds. Further research shows he’s drummed in Bad Manners for over ten years, and is now part of Neville Staple’s From the Specials setup, headhunted from days as part of the Special Beat tour with the original rude boy.

Given this, I was naturally expecting said side-project to be reggae, stands to reason. What might’ve eased the surprise was to have pre-known of Matty’s own band The Transpersonals, a minimalistic, psych-rock outfit lounging somewhere between Pink Floyd and Spaceman 3. Still, nothing was going to prep me for what I got; We Wish you Health by Horses of the Gods.

There’s only one reason for facetiously mentioning the eccentric Mr Blobby cassette, because this is unusual too. The likeness ends there, though. “Bizarre” can connote excruciating, as with the cassette, but, as with We Wish you Health, can also imply uniquely stimulating and inimitably disparate. So much so, it’s astonishingly good. For those seeking the peculiar, those at their happiest dancing barefoot in Avebury’s morning dew, or for whom reaching the summit of Glastonbury Tor before sunrise is priority, will adore this, with jester’s bells on.

Matty teams up Mike Ballard, a media and games lecturer with a penchant for folk. And essentially this is what we ought to pigeonhole Horses of the Gods as; Somerset folk, is as near in modern terminology you’re going to get. But for comparisons I’m going to have to max my flux capacitor way beyond my usual backtracking.

If I relish in music history without the technical knowledge, I understand one has to either accept four-time pop, or untrain their ear to acknowledge other musical metres, in order to appreciate folk, classical, even jazz, but particularly the kind of sounds We Wish you Health is embracing. There’s something medieval, least pagan mysticism about the influences here, of shawms and hand-cranked hurdy-gurdies, miracle plays, and Gallican chants of plainsong. And it’s swathed with chants and poetry as if in variant West Country Brittonic tongue.

We have to trek beyond futurist Francesco Balilla Pratella’s Art of Noises theory, to an olden ambience of nature, of birdsong, storms and waterfalls. The opening track starts as a spoken-word toast and ends akin to medieval court jester entertainment, over a haunting chant. Equally passe but equally amicable is a sea shanty called Down in the Bay. Then a clocktower chime follows; left wondering if this was Dark Side of the Moon recorded in 1648. Sow In uses mellowed hurdy-gurdy to mimic what the untrained ear might deem an Eastern ambience. With a solstice theme, it’s so earthy it makes the Afro-Celt Sound System sound like Ace of Base! (Joke; I love the Afro-Celt Sound System!)

In many ways the next tune Ostara follows suit, more eastern promise yet slightly more upbeat. Consider George Harrison’s collaborations with Ravi Shanker. As the album continues, experimentation with traditional abound, obscure instruments are thrown into the melting pot; the Victorian circus sound of The Thing and I, the rural west country ditty of Digger’s Songs, in which you can almost smell spilt scrumpy as folk rise from haystacks to jig.

Throughout you’re chopping randomly at influences, this medieval court running theme, blended with an oompah band styled sound on The Whole World Goes Around, will make you want bells on your shins like a drunken Morris dancer at the village fete. Else you’re haunted by the chill of evocative soundscapes, unable to pinpoint an era this falls into. I’ll tell you now, it was aptly released at Samhain last year.

We Wish you Health may be bespoke, and some wouldn’t give themselves adjustment time, yet Sgt Pepper and Pet Sounds were famed for pushing the boundaries of what is acceptable in contemporary pop. This is a fissure to the norm, a testimony of yore, for while there’s a demonstration of newfound passion within ancient realms, it is fundamentally timeless. Though I suspect there’s myth and history behind each track, which extends the album from a set of songs to a research project for the listener.

The finale, for example, has a reference in Wikipedia; John Barleycorn, a personification of the importance of sowing barley and of the alcoholic beverages made from it, beer and whisky. Though in the House of Gods, cider gets a mention. John Barleycorn is represented as suffering indignities, attacks and death that correspond to the various stages of barley cultivation. It goes onto reprint a Robert Burns version from 1782, though stating countless variations exist; Matty and Mike use an earlier version:

There was three men come out o’ the west their fortunes for to try, And these three men made a solemn vow, John Barleycorn must die, They ploughed, they sowed, they harrowed him in, throwed clods upon his head, Til these three men were satisfied John Barleycorn was dead.

I’ve rushed out this review to make you aware of it, and because I’m so utterly astounded by its uniqueness, but fear I’m only teetering on the edge of its fascinating historical references myself. Thus, is the general nature of folk music, to dig out lost fables which once would’ve entertained young and old, and bring them to new audiences, and The Horses of the Gods does this in such a way, the negative confines and stereotypes commonly associated with folk music just melt away.

Link Tree to album

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Blossom with Gail (from Devizes)

Phone memory bursting with text messages from Gail Foster the day I did my fundraising milk round in my Spiderman onesie. A keen photographer as well as accomplished local poet, Gail had cycled to the summit of Monument Hill and sat awaiting to capture the moment I returned triumphant.

I confess, I underestimated my ETA massively due to the media attention, Carmela and family arriving, and passers by stopping me to donate. I was also irritable and smelly by that point, but those are occupational hazards at the best of times, doubly so in a onesie in the sweltering August climate. Gail, though, was as dedicated as paparazzi to getting the snap she wanted, got me smiling just to see her there, and it’s the same commitment she shows through her expressions in poetry. Her shiny new book, Blossom is a prime example.

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Images by Gail Foster herself!

Perhaps its very title coveys Gail’s grouping of photography and poetry, natural elements crucial to her snaps, but her books bestow only the written word. We’ve reviewed Gail’s books in the past, never an easy task. Poetry not my bag, usually, so I cannot liken to similar creative outpourings. There’s also the fear that my own penmanship doesn’t compare and will not do justice to her creative writing. Poems are hard, something about bacon. Yet it is down to befriending Gail which has re-sparked an interest in poetry in me, and deflected my juvenile fear of a Ted Hughes book facing me on a school desk. That’s how universally appealing her words are.

While subjects chronologically stream from one poem to another, expect also, sudden changes in Gail’s train of thought. Blossom kicks off with a memorial forward and dark subjects follow, of wintery funerals and melancholic seasons. One may expect this, the platitude of poems often reveals a shadowy side of the poet. But, just a few poems in and though we’re still on the seasonal theme, winter cries a warning to Gail, to keep her knickers on.

Here is precisely why Gail got me into in poetry, a feat I never cared to assume would happen. The wittiness of the absurd, surreal, Pythoneske can crop up, without warning and provide actual laugh-out-loud observations. There’s a feeling of daring in Gail’s words, while acute and proficiently executed, nothing is off limits. Gail projects drollness, jocularity and just about every other emotion of the human psyche, in manner which though reflects poets of yore, breathes a fresh and unique approach to boot.

gail2

In this, her new book Blossom doesn’t necessarily take us anywhere new in comparison to her previous collections, there’s even a pigeon reference, a running subject in Gail’s words, yet an improvement in skill and wordplay is clearly evident. Gail strives to advance and progress in her wordsmanship, dealing words like a croupier deals cards, snappy and expertly.

The introduction enlightens us to Gail’s motivation and reason for writing, “I write poems for all sorts of reasons. Sometimes an occasion demands it, in which case I stare at a sonnet on a screen for three days; at other times a poem might tickle me in my sleep, wake me up laughing.” Blossom then conveniently divides into sections, poems covering Seasons, poetry itself, “Binky Liked to Bitch a Bit,” Politics, Characters, Sorrow, Love and Prose, even local thoughts in a section titled, “a bit of old Devizes.”

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There are verses dedicated to friends, themes of celebrities, naughty royals and both Greta and Trump, odes to patronising old men, nosey neighbours, political sway, Brexit, current affairs and Nigel Farage depicted as a meerkat. As we pass through an era Gail documents them uniquely. There are unapologetic words of the sweary kind, bitterness at times, jollity in others; bugger, it’s tricky to nail this poet down; what does she want from me, trying to review a book so vastly sweeping with subject matter and prose?! I’m giving up, you have to read it yourself. You can bless your Kindle with one, or Gail favours that you nip to Devizes Books for a paperback, and I tend to agree. Devizes Books brilliantly supports local authors.

In this time of lockdown, you might need a good read, so too does the artists need some revenue. The advantage of holding Gail’s poems in your hand is that you can freely pursue them at your own leisure. We did once review a spoken word CD which Gail recorded, I like this approach and unsure if she will do it again.

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Proof it’s in Devizes Books, here’s owner Jo holding a copy!

I could, but don’t, motivate myself to attend local poetry slams and readings, in fear those poets I know, Gail, our own writer Andy, and Ian too, might encourage me to get up. Yeah right, “here’s one I wrote called ermm, ermm, and ermm!” Yet, I do love to hear Gail actually reading her poems herself, it’s a Jackanory thing, to hear the creator express their words is far more effective for a slow reader like me. But you, clever lot, will love Blossom.

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REVIEW –Devizes Arts Festival Fringe – Josephine Corcoran – 16th June @ The Vaults, Devizes

Penultimate Parade of Poetry

 

 Written by Andy Fawthrop

Images by Gail Foster (except the one of Gail Foster)

 

Another gig on the final day of Devizes Arts Festival, and something a bit different for the penultimate performance of the Free Fringe – a nice portion of poetry.

Down into the dungeons of The Vaults for this one – a perfect venue for a spoken-word event (The Vaults doesn’t have a music licence). After availing myself of an appropriate libation from the wide range of craft keg and cask beers/ lagers/ ciders in the upstairs bar (where the staff were still recovering from the shock of actually getting to see and serve our esteemed leader Darren the day before [They were delighted Andy, didn’t even take my cash- Ed],) I descended into the cellar to meet the very charming Josephine Corcoran. Josephine is not only a poet, but also a playwright (having had two plays performed on BBC Radio). She also runs a regular poetry group in nearby Trowbridge.

A goodly-sized audience (including a few poetry virgins) had assembled and enjoyed two sets of poetry. In each set Josephine read both from her latest publication (“What Are You After?”) as well as some newer unpublished poems, followed by half a dozen or so local contributors in an “open mic” slot. Josephine’s contributions were thoughtful, personal and close to home, as we learned from her careful introductions to each piece. The efforts from the floor varied in style and tone (including Gail Foster’s fine villanelle regarding the passage of time and of people), comic reflections on luxury toilets and on sex, together with more personal and reflective pieces on topics such as loss of loved ones, memory, separation and even anger. Standard stuff for a Sunday afternoon down the Vaults really. But, seriously, a hugely enjoyable and well-attended event. Hopefully we can do something similar next year too.

Josephine’s latest book is called “What Are You After?” (published 2018 by Nine Arches Press) and you can find out more about her, and her poetry, at www.josephinecorcoran.org

The Vaults’ Poetry Group meets monthly at 7pm on various dates TBA. Next meeting is on Wednesday 26th June. Each month a theme is set as a prompt to inspire new work. You can come with your own work, bring poetry by someone you admire, or just come for a listen. This month, a topic suggested by the latest guest at our table is “Addiction”. Who knows where that one will go? It’s sure to be deep, with a smattering of the light-hearted and supportive conversation that is the hallmark of this poetry group. Work, screens, exercise, love – the scope for addiction is as diverse as the waves on the sea, but is there a thread that links them all? Bring along your work and let’s explore together.

And well done (yet again) to Devizes Arts Festival for putting this on as a Free Fringe event.

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