Catch Up with Darren Beaney

The titles of each of the poems in The fall of the repetitive mixtape are taken from early song titles by The Fall. The chapbook is a collection of observations, rants, acid trips and acid flashbacks. Here’s a poem from the pamphlet: Crap rap 2 This sounds like a half pint fella wearing a ten-gallon hat. Taking shelter

Review of ‘My C&A Years’ by Roger Waldron

One of the features of poetry to which poets aspire is a distinctive voice; to write poetry that the reader recognises could only have been written by that poet. It does not take long, when reading My C&A Years (Dreich 2022) to realise that Roger Waldron’s poetry has achieved that unique voice and that is

Drop-in by Roger Waldron

After my short Easter break I have great pleasure in welcoming the inimitable Roger Waldron to reflect on his pamphlet My C&A Years (Dreich, 2022). Thank you Nigel for inviting me to talk about my work and in particular my pamphlet, My C&A Years and as always thanks to Jack Caradoc at Dreich for publishing

Catch Up with Julie McNeill

Look out for my revised occasional Catch Up feature to be posted on Fridays when poets who have previously been reviewed have an opportunity to promote their latest publications. Julie McNeill is the first poet up. Football, feminism, motherhood and friendship – Julie McNeill brings a sharpened perspective on the familiar and everyday in these

Review of ‘Body Talk’ by Niki Strange

I suppose it’s something of a responsibility to be selected as a new poetry press’ first pamphlet, particularly in today’s unhelpful economic climate. Though Flight of the Dragonfly Press had published a magazine earlier in 2022, it selected Niki Strange as the author of their debut pamphlet. I’m pleased to be able to say that

Drop-in by Niki Strange

It’s always exciting for lovers of poetry when a new small poetry press publishes its first pamphlet. If Niki Strange’s debut pamphlet is anything to go by Flight of the Dragonfly Press has an eye for exciting new talent. Here she is to talk about a poem from Body Talk, (Flight of the Dragonfly Press,

Review of ‘The Keeper of Aeons’ by Matthew M.C. Smith

Sometimes in the business of reviewing you come across a collection that is so impressive in its quality and so layered and complex in meaning that it challenges one to find words to do it justice. The Keeper of Aeons (Broken Spine Arts, 2022) by Matthew M.C. Smith is one of those collections. This is

Drop in by Matthew M.C. Smith

I’m particularly excited to welcome Matthew M.C. Smith to drop in today to talk about a poem from his stunning collection, The Keeper of Aeons, as I have long been an admirer of his poetry. My poem Paviland: Ice and Fire was published by The Lonely Crowd in 2022. I was really pleased to be

Review* of ‘Imperfect Beginnings’ by Viv Fogel

At a time when the discourse surrounding asylum-seeking, refugees and migration has become contentious, having been hijacked by nationalists and populist politicians, Viv Fogel’s Imperfect Beginnings is very welcome. Informed by her personal and professional experiences her collection gives a voice to the exiled and displaced. Though her poems are uncompromising in their exploration of

Review of ‘kinscapes’ by Marie Isabel Matthews-Schlinzig

In her biography Marie Isabel Matthews-Schlinzig is described as an editor, a translator and a writer of flash fiction, reviews and essays, but if her debut pamphlet, kinscapes (Dreich, 2022), is anything to go by, she is also an intelligent and innovative poet who playfully pushes the boundaries of poetic form, with telling effect. kinscapes