Summer edition
the one where I join Substack
Well, here we go. My first foray into the world of Substack. Let’s dive straight in…
What a summer it’s been! It was fun performing a Spoken+Sung gig with Mairi Neeves as part of the Tunbridge Wells Fringe in July. Friday night in a local pub, with a bunch of our mates and new faces turning up to hear my spoken word poetry and Mairi’s songs - total joy. Loved trying out a new piece, ‘I prefer to say we’(working title), that I wrote specifically for the occasion. Creative collabs will always be very special.
Photo credit: Ed Steele
Festival fever
August has been a festival flurry! It was lovely to be asked to take part on the Spoken Word stage at Big Church Festival, where I performed a short set of my poems with audience participation(you know I love it!) and was part of Rhythmic Reflections - creative reflections based on each session of the new edition Bible Course, partnering with The Bible Society. 35,000 people at the festival and the joy of it all is getting to see so many other poets, spoken word artists and creatives do their thing, cheer them on, learn from them and support each other. That place really feels like a home for the poets.
Photo credit: Ed Tranter
Then it was off to Greenbelt Festival for a half hour poetry set at the gorgeous outdoor venue, Caravan of Love. It’s an actual vintage caravan, set up beautifully with awning, cups of tea flowing and a welcome for anyone who walks by. ‘Caravan of Love’ by The Housemartins played as everyone joined in and I made my way to the stage(please can I have that as my walk-on music at the start of each day?). A particularly special moment was inviting everyone to put an arm round someone else’s shoulder as I shared my last piece, ‘Community’. So powerful to see so many people linked together in a moment of togetherness and hopefully taking that away with them. The power of creativity. And what a treat to warm the stage up for poet, Harry Baker & singer, Chris Read and have front row seats to their utterly brilliant set.
Photo credit: Flic Roberts
Summer reads in the Cabin
I’ve read ‘Michael Rosen’s book of play’ and Kate Humble’s ‘A year of living simply’. Both gorgeous. Rosen takes us on an entertaining, interactive journey through the history of play and includes suggestions for creative play. He writes,
“Play is at the heart of creativity. It is a form of experimentation that loosens the rigid boundaries of our very structured world, allowing us to try, allowing us to fail, allowing us to see that success might come in an unexpected shape, colour, sound or configuration. And that out of this play, or through this play, we create art.”
It’s been a lovely reminder to always take a playful approach.
Upcoming
This term I’m finishing a book I’ve been working on(for someone else!) that’s due for publication in January 2026. I’ll let you know all the details when it’s out.
Launching my new website…eek!
Speaking at several women’s events - a mix of spoken word poetry & story.
Guest speaking at a couple of churches for their Sunday services, along with continuing to be on the preaching team at Christ Church, Tunbridge Wells.
It’s National Poetry Day on Thursday 2nd Oct 2025. The theme this year is ‘Play’. How will you mark the occasion?
Leading a training session for Christian Spoken Word artists on 4th Oct, using poetry to share the good news of Christmas.
With love from the Cabin,