Southwell Library
Featuring
Mark Gwynne Jones
Gillian Clarke
The Emergency Poet
John Dougherty
Dr Kate Wilkinson
Joel Stickley
Festival
17 - 21 July 2013
Readings I Workshops I Performances
Children’s event and much, much more
John Rivers
Nina Hossain
Jenny Swann
www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/
southwellpoetryfestival
WELCOME
Southwell Library Poetry Festival 2013
This year’s festival is packed with talented performers and contributors offering a wide
range of exciting performances, readings and workshops with something of interest to
all ages.
Each evening we offer a very different style of performance, starting on our opening
day Wednesday 17th July when, back by popular demand, poet Dave Wood leads us
on a poetry pub crawl around Southwell, through to Sunday 21st July when there is
an opportunity to experience Under Milk Wood in the style of the original1954 radio
broadcast. On Thursday evening in Desert Island Poetry, journalist and broadcaster,
Nina Hossain interviews well known Southwell resident Pauline Buttery and on Friday
we are thrilled that Mark Gwynne Jones will be presenting his highly acclaimed show,
Just for a Moment.
As in previous years we asked you for your ideas for this year’s festival and you
said that you wanted more opportunities to take part in workshops. So we have
commissioned a range of poets and experts in their field to lead you through the
history of sonnets and the miniature world of haikus, via poems written in clay to a
workshop encompassing births, marriages and deaths. On Saturday we will have
workshops running throughout the day and there will also be a chance to have a
consultation with our Emergency Poet who will be parked outside the library in her
ambulance.
On Sunday morning, John Dougherty, children’s poet and author of the Zeus series
of books is coming to entertain families with his characteristic and thoughtful humour
and in the afternoon we are pleased to welcome the national poet of Wales, Gillian
Clarke, who, over tea and cakes will read and discuss poems from her collection.
These promise to be popular events so book early to avoid disappointment.
As we anticipate another wonderful festival, special thanks are due to all our staff,
volunteers and local community groups. It takes a huge number of people to make the
festival possible and the willing and cheerful help, so generously given makes a very
special contribution to the success of our festival.
Councillor xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Chairman of the Culture Committee
Nottinghamshire County Council
Peter Gaw
Group Manager Libraries Archives and
Information
Nottinghamshire County Council
Your feedback and suggestions
We are interested in hearing what you thought of this year’s festival and your
suggestions for next year.
Complete our evaluation form during the festival or online at:
www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/southwellpoetryfestival
Wednesday 17 July
Festival Opening Event
Exploring the History
of Sonnets and English
Sonneteers Workshop
10am - 12 noon I £6
Originating in 12th century Italy , il
sonetto or little song, is one of the
most popular and enduring forms of
verse with successive English poets
changing and adapting the structure
to develop and express their own
ideas. Join Dr Kate Wilkinson from
Sheffield Hallam University as she
explores the history and form of
sonnets and analyses three of the
most important English sonneteers, Sir
Philip Sidney, Edmund Spenser and
William Shakespeare.
Poetry Pub Crawl
7 - 10pm I Free event
No booking necessary
Meet at Southwell Library
Back by popular demand! Dave
Wood, poet, artist and wordsmith
leads the literary way around the
pubs of Southwell only stopping to
mix poetry with pints and sonnets
with sangria. Follow the whole
route around or dip in and out
as you please. Route details and
approximate timings are available
from the library.
A Giant Fibreglass Model Of
The Digestive System You
Can Ride Through On The
Back Of A Sausage and other
poems READING
2 - 3.30pm I Free event
With poems about everything from
the evolution of fish to heroic bin
men, Lincolnshire Poet Laureate
Joel Stickley tackles subjects that
other poets, often for perfectly good
reasons, won’t. Join him for an
afternoon of unexploded bombs,
honest love poems and B-movie
sequels to Wordsworth (Daffodils II:
The Revenge).
Thursday 18th July
A Big Workshop about a
Tiny Poem Workshop
Desert Island Poetry
10am - 12 noon I £6
7am - 9pm I £6
Can you distill your thoughts into 17
syllables? Let’s find out, but first,
Sam Gemmell leads you through
the evolution of the haiku, from the
traditions of Matsuo Basho in the
East to the politics of Jack Kerouac
in the West; over one thousand years
of history through to contemporary
gems…and then it’s your turn.
Join journalist and news presenter
Nina Hossain as she interviews Pauline
Buttery about her life and career and
she reveals some of her favourite
poems, and the unique reasons behind
their choices. This is an evening not to
be missed.
Poems in Clay
Workshop
2am - 4pm I £6
Potter John Rivers explores his craft’s
relationship with poetry and discusses
how from the fragmented angry shards
of clay through to the sensuous,
sinuous ceramic form, pottery can
reflect the range of the poets’ voice.
John, who regularly exhibits at The
Edinburgh Festival, will be bringing
examples of his work featuring the
poems of
W.H. Auden,
Anne Stevenson,
Seamus Heaney
and Carol Ann
Duffy.
performance
Friday 19th July
Birth, Marriages, Deaths and
Poetry Workshop
10 - 12 noon I £6
Jenny Swann discusses the important
milestones that are marked and
enriched by poetry and reads poems
celebrating birth, falling in love and
poetry for funerals. You will then have
a chance to write your own verse
using, for inspiration, private or public
events.
Your Favourite Poems
performance
2 - 4pm I Free event
Southwell Library’s very own poetry
reading group, The Not Scary Poetry
Society, invite you to hear some of their
favourite poems and to share some of
yours.
Festival Highlight
Just for a Moment
performance
7.30 – 9.30pm I £10 / £8
Mark Gwynne Jones invites you to
feel the moment in a mind-altering
show that is both funny and thought
provoking. Combining comedy, poetry
and film Just for a Moment draws on
his time as resident poet in London’s
central parks, his survival at boarding
school, despite his holding the record
for the highest number of canings,
through to his inspirational conquering
of chronic anxiety through poetry. This
award winning and inspiring wordsmith
is an accomplished performer who is
guaranteed to deliver an entertaining
evening full of surprises.
“
Inspired…one of the most
accomplished performance poets in
the land’ The Guardian ‘Astonishing…
you’ll love this show
Daily Mail
”
Saturday 20th July
Emergency poet
Throughout the day I Free
10 minute consultations for all ages
How are you feeling?
Whatever your need,
whatever your mood
there’s a poem out
there for you. Visit
the Emergency Poet in her 1950s
ambulance and receive a private
consultation and a prescribed poem,
verse or lyric. If you haven’t the time to
wait for this uplifting experience then
you can briefly discuss any poetic
ailments with Nurse Verse who has
a ready supply of poemcetamols on
hand.
Had we but world enough
Workshop
10 - 11am I £4
Explore the metaphysical poetry of
Andrew Marvell with Nicola Ellis.
Modern Women Poets
Workshop
11am - 12 noon I £4
Gill Starkey examines the wealth of
contemporary women poets.
An Introduction to John Clare
Workshop
1 - 2pm I £4
Join Rennie Parker from The John
Clare Cottage to learn more about this
most remarkable poet of the English
countryside. Who was he, how did he
become a poet and what inspired him?
An Audience with Lord Byron
Workshop
2.30 - 3.30pm I £4
Christy Fearn reads from the work of
Lord Byron and invites questions from
the audience.
Take Two
READING
4 - 5pm I £4
Local poets, Jane Wyles and Fiona
Theokritoff share their take on life and
love.
Festival Highlight
Land, Sea and Air
performance
7 - 9pm I £10 / £8
Enjoy an evening of pomp and
circumstance featuring the Newark
and Sherwood Brass Band
accompanied by friends of Southwell
Library, as they celebrate and
reflect through music and poetry the
contributions made throughout history
by the British Armed Forces. Whilst
wishing to retain ‘modest stillness and
humility’ this truly promises to be an
evening to ‘stiffen the sinews’
Sunday 21st July
John Dougherty
performance
Under Milk Wood
performance
11 - 12 noon I Free event
7.00 – 9.00pm I £8 / £6
We are delighted to welcome John
Dougherty, poet, performer, songwriter
and author of Zeus on the Loose and
many other popular titles. There’s
something for all the family, especially
children from 5 - 11 in this lively and
entertaining performance.
Initially written for the
radio, Under Milk Wood
was later adapted for
stage and screen and
has become one of Dylan
Thomas’s most well known
and best loved works.
Festival Highlight
Tea with Gillian Clarke
READING
4.30 - 6pm I £10 / £8
Gillian Clarke’s poetry is a visceral
experience, immediate and at times
sensual but often it seems haunted
by the past; childhood memories that
inspire and then become the reservoir
of her imagination.
Tea and cake with Gillian Clarke
promises not only to be a balm to the
soul and stimulation to the intellect
but also a tasty treat for the palate. So
come along and listen to the National
Poet of Wales as she reads and
discusses poems from her collection.
“
…[her]poems ring with lucidity
and power…her work is personal and
archetypal, built out of language as
concrete s it is musical.
TLS
”
We are introduced to the eccentric
residents of the small Welsh fishing
village of Llareggub through their
sleeping dreams and then, as the day
dawns, we listen as they face their
waking reality.
This charming, funny and at times
disturbing portrayal of village life is
brought to us, for one magical night
only, by Southwell Theatre Group
and friends of Southwell Library in a
performance in the style of the original
1954 radio broadcast.
Southwell Library Poetry Festival
At a glance
Events take place at Southwell Library except where specified in the event title
Wednesday 17th July
The History of Sonnets and English Sonneteers £6
10am – 12noon
Workshop:
7 - 10am
Poetry Pub Crawl: meet at the library
2am - 3.30pm
Reading:
Giant Fibreglass Model
Free
Free
Thursday 18th July
10am -12.00noon
Workshop:
A Big Workshop about a Tiny Poem
£6
2 - 4pm
Workshop:
Poems in Clay
£6
7 - 9pm
Performance:
Desert Island Poetry
£6
Friday 19th July
10am - 12noon
Workshop:
2 - 4pm
Performance:
7.30 - 9.30pm
Festival Highlight:
Births, marriages, Deaths and Poetry
Your Favourite Poems
Just for a Moment
£6
Free
£10/£8
Saturday 20th July
Throughout the day The Emergency Poet
Free
10 - 11am
Workshop:
Had we but world enough
£4
11.30am - 12.30pm
Workshop:
Modern Women Poets
£4
1 - 2pm
Workshop:
An Introduction to John Clare
£4
2.30 - 3.30pm
Reading:
An Audience with Lord Byron
£4
4 - 5pm
Reading:
Take Two
£4
7 - 9pm
Festival Highlight:
Land, Sea and Air
£10/£8
Sunday 21st July
11am – 12noon
Performance:
4.30 - 6pm
Festival Highlight:
7 - 9pm
Performance:
John Dougherty
Tea and Cake with Gillian Clarke
Under Milk wood
Bookings
Bookings for all events can be taken at Southwell Library 01636 812 148
Free
£10/£8
£8/£6
Booking Information
Festival Box Office:
Bookings for any of the events can be
made at Southwell Library in person or
by phone on: 01636 812 148 - credit or
debit cards accepted.
Where to find us:
Southwell is 14 miles from Nottingham
(see map)
By Post:
Please indicate the event and
number of tickets you require and
enclose a cheque made payable to
Nottinghamshire County Council.
There is a rural Pathfinder service from
Nottingham (no 100 from outside Boots
at Victoria Centre) and Stagecoach
Lincolnshire operates a service from
Mansfield and Newark.
The nearest train station is at Newark
which is eight miles away.
© Crown copyright and database rights 2011 Ordnance Survey 100019713.
Send to:
Southwell Library,
The Bramley Centre,
King St, Southwell,
Nottinghamshire, NG25 0EH
Email enquiries:
[email protected]
Nottinghamshire County Council is
committed to providing equality of
access. Southwell Library provides
access for disabled people and
has portable induction loops
available. We want everyone to
be able to enjoy and participate
in these events. If you require the
services of a British Sign Language
interpreter at an event, please contact
Southwell Library.
Children, Families and Cultural Services,
Libraries and Archives, County Hall,
West Bridgford, Nottingham NG2 7QP
nottinghamshire
@nottscc
D&P/date/dept/job or ref. no
D&P/5.12/CFCS/6638
Wnottinghamshire.gov.uk/southwellpoetryfestival
E [email protected]
T 01636 812 148