The Bard of Windmill Hill
local events
Coastopia
Poetry and theatre writing workshop
Senhouse Roman Museum, Maryport, CA15 6JD
Wednesday 24 May, 1 – 3pm
Simon Quinn of Fired Up Theatre Company will lead the workshop, which is part of a project called COASTOPIA, exploring the experience of living in coastal towns. The workshop will be supported by Dave Cryer, Learning & Participation Manager from Theatre by the Lake and will involve writing poetry and taking it towards performance. The project will include a publication of poems created by the participating groups.
The workshop is free but places are limited and must be prebooked – 01900 816168
senhousemuseum@aol.com
Wiza Words 2017
Welcome to Wiza Words 2017, A Festival of Creative Writing
Wigton Market Hall, 27th-29th May 2017 10 til 4
Flyer here (pdf)
Learning & Participation at TBTL
Dave Cryer has recently been appointed Learning and Participation Manager at Theatre by the Lake, Keswick. Great new inititatives are in the pipeline. See the latest information flyer here (pdf)
Kendal Poetry Festival
Kim Moore writes
Dear Poets
I’m writing to you to let you know about Kendal Poetry Festival, which I’m the co-director of, along with Pauline Yarwood.
The festival will be taking place from the 16th-18th June 2017 at Abbot Hall Art Gallery and other venues in the market town of Kendal.
Last year was our first year of running the festival, and it was a complete sell-out, so we’re hoping to replicate this again this year.
We have a really exciting programme of events and poets coming from far and wide. Our Festival Poets this year are Hannah Lowe and William Letford, Inua Ellams and Chrissy Williams, Katrina Naomi and Malika Booker, Kathryn Maris and Tim Liardet and Ian Duhig and Linda Gregerson. We’ve got a series of workshops, discussions and open mics as well as readings and the full programme is now up on the website.
It would be lovely to see you in Kendal this year at the festival – there is some great bed and breakfast accommodation available in Kendal that is fairly cheap. The nearest train station is Oxenholme Lake District which is on the mainline and just a five minute taxi ride from the venue.
We believe our festival is unique in the UK in its programming of young poets alongside our invited guest poets. Last year people remarked on our friendly and welcoming atmosphere as well as the quality of the programming – please have a look at our programme, and if you’ve got any questions, you can email me here or at team@kendalpoetryfestival.co.uk
If you’d like to be added to the Kendal Poetry Festival email list, just let me know and I can put you on there.
Finally, any help you can give with spreading the word about the festival would be much appreciated. We don’t have a budget for marketing or even a marketing expert, so we rely on word of mouth to let people know about the festival.
Best wishes
Kim Moore and Pauline Yarwood
Festival Directors
Kendal Poetry Festival
Meet the Fitzgeralds
Meet the Fitzgeralds at Upfront Gallery, Hutton in the Forest. Flyer here
Literary treasure
Snow topped Fells. Frosted fields. Winter sharpens ancient definition in glorious Lakeland scenery. And every year, noting steaming breath, I marvel at sheep knees and noses withstanding intense cold.
At the Maryport Literary Festival, hosted at the Senhouse Roman Museum where picture windows frame the Solway Firth, I enjoyed a tour de force from Steve Matthews (‘polymath and raconteur’) whose book Lap of Horror tells of early travellers to Borrowdale and Derwentwater.
The genius of the Brontë family came alive in Angela Locke’s illuminating conversation with renowned authority Juliet Barker. Each of Patrick Brontë’s children was shy. Writing became their means to articulate rich inner lives.
A personal and poignant reading by Grevel Lindop, the timbre of whose voice hums in his stanzas before he speaks, brought poetry’s moving power to search depths centre stage.
Echoes of Roman soldiers on the mileforts. Time-travel to walk with early Lakeland tourists. Encouragement to the shy. A great poet’s inspiring to aim high. Solway Firth’s sea and sky. Treasure of a way to spend a winter’s day.
– M&P
Art Exhibitions
A couple of quick plugs for great local art exhibitions
– in the case of C-Art at Rheged [#rheged] because time is running out fast and it’s absolutely worth a visit before it closes this coming Sunday 13th November 2016. Ray Ogden’s Fisher King (image at Ray Ogden) got a mention here – but there’s so much other inspirational art to whet a writer’s appetite too.
– and after you’ve been to Rheged and are wondering where else you could enjoy a fab teashop and take in a bit more art whilst you’re about it, our own Sylvia Stevens, gifted poet and painter, has an exhibition of some of her work at Thornthwaite Galleries [#thornthwaitegalleries] and Teashop.
– M&P
Maryport Literary Festival
2016’s festival is inspired by this contemporary altar, carved by local
sculptor Sky Higgins, bearing an image of Herne the Hunter
Maryport Literary Festival
to be opened by Doug Scott CBE
Friday 18th – Sunday 20th November 2016
Wild!
Full Programme downloadable here (pdf)
– M&P
Winter Droving
This year’s Winter Droving on Saturday 12th November promises to be another spectacular event, showcasing local appetite for good food and great fun. Something to write home about!
– M&P
Mungrisdale Writers 