Our final Shore Poets event of the season! Please come along for what we are unofficially calling The Night Of Two Traceys. (Also a Ross and a Frank, and a musical Esther.)

Before we get started, a brief announcement: we have a new mailing list! We will be retiring the old one, which is creaky and full of spams and bounces. If you’re on the old one, we won’t be moving you automatically to the new one, but signing up for that new one is a breeze: just click right here and fill in the few bits of information.

Sunday 26th June 2016
7pm (doors open 630pm)
Oh! Outhouse, 12a Broughton Street Lane, Edinburgh, EH1 3LY
Admission: £5 (concessions £3)
Please be there in plenty of time to get a seat. Unfortunately, fire regulations mean we have to turn people away if the room becomes overcrowded.

MAIN POET: TRACEY HERD

Photo borrowed from the Bloodaxe Books website

According to Bloodaxe Books: Tracey Herd was born in Scotland in 1968 and lives in Dundee. She studied at Dundee University, where she was Creative Writing Fellow in 1998-2001. In 1997 she took part in Bloodaxe’s New Blood tour of Britain, and in 1998 was the youngest poet in the British-Russian Poetry Festival organised by the British Council with Bloodaxe when she gave readings in Moscow and Ekaterinburg and her poems appeared on metro trains in Russian cities. She has published three collections with Bloodaxe: No Hiding Place (1996), which was shortlisted for the Forward Prize for Best First Collection; Dead Redhead (2001), a Poetry Book Society Recommendation; and Not in This World (2015), a Poetry Book Society Choice shortlisted for the T.S. Eliot Prize.

NEW POET: ROSS DONLON

Ross is an Australian poet who comes to Europe regularly to read. His poems have been widely published in Australia and Ireland. He has also had poems taken in the United States and New Zealand. His work has been broadcast on Radio National’s Poetica and community radio. He has a Scots ancestor who was transported for 14 years in the 1850’s (theft).

SHORE POET 1: FRANK GLYNN

It is at this point the webmistress realises (with shame) that she has managed to forget to give Frank his own Shore Poet page. In contrition, she notes that Frank has been our wonderful musician wrangler this year, as well as being a musician in his own right – he plays with Holm and The Whole Shebang, and in the St Andrew Orchestra, Edinburgh. He writes both poetry and prose and may be reading at least one piece in Russian this evening.

SHORE POET 2: TRACEY S. ROSENBERG

Tonight’s second Tracey is originally from the United States, and yes, she is fully aware that she does not sound Scottish. She has a husband and a cat; both are currently sitting on the sofa, and one of them is keeping an eye on that bug.

MUSICIAN: ESTHER SWIFT

Sadly, Kirsti Law has had to cancel due to illness; we hope to have her with us at a future date. Our musician will now be harpist Esther Swift.

Singer-songwriter and harpist Esther Swift is an up and coming musician in the Scottish folk music scene. Whilst being heavily influenced by her folk roots, Esther’s music also combines jazz, blues and minimalist references. With a passion for pushing the boundaries of folk and classical harp music she has become a prolific song writer. A deep love of Scotland, the Scottish Borders (where Esther grew up) and nature continually inspire and influence her music; the songs of her new EP ‘The Mairches’ which features cojon, string quartet and trumpet, are based on her life growing up in The Scottish Borders.

WILDCARD SPOT AND THE LEMON CAKE RAFFLE

The lemon cake raffle provides us with much-needed funds, so we very much appreciate your support. And it is a most excellent lemon cake. (Occasionally, we also have poetry books in the raffle, and are very grateful to the donors thereof.)

We should have a wildcard spot this month. Please mention to the person selling tickets that you’d like to put your name in the hat (because sometimes we forget to ask and then we feel sad once we remember our faults). Bring a poem to read! If you’re chosen, you have three minutes (this includes any preamble or introduction – please time yourself in advance to make sure you’re within the time limits).

THE IMPORTANT INFORMATION AGAIN

Sunday 26th June 2016
7pm (doors open 630pm)
Oh! Outhouse, 12a Broughton Street Lane, Edinburgh, EH1 3LY

We hope to see you there! Please be there in plenty of time to get a seat. Unfortunately, fire regulations mean we have to turn people away if the room becomes overcrowded.

Our email address is changing! More soon.

You can also join us at our Facebook group and keep an eye on our Twitter feed.

Readings by mainly Scottish poets on the last Sunday of every month

May is here! Cold winds and daffodils.

Sunday 29th May 2016
7pm (doors open 630pm)
Oh! Outhouse, 12a Broughton Street Lane, Edinburgh, EH1 3LY
Admission: £5 (concessions £3)
Please be there in plenty of time to get a seat. Unfortunately, fire regulations mean we have to turn people away if the room becomes overcrowded.

MAIN POET: LIZ LOCHHEAD

Photo by Norman McBeath, borrowed from the SPL website

Scotland’s former Makar (national poet) needs no introduction. The Scottish Poetry Library, of course, has an excellent overview of Lochhead’s extensive and impressive career. If you’ve heard her read, you know you’re in for a treat; if you haven’t, here’s your chance!

SHORE POET: IAN MCDONOUGH

Ian McDonough was born and brought up in Brora on the East Coast of Sutherland, and began to be interested in literature in school when he was made to clear out a book cupboard as a punishment for insubordination. His third collection, “The Vanishing Hitchhiker”, was published by Mariscat in early 2007 and his latest collection from the same publisher, “A Witch Among The Gooseberries”, was was runner-up for the 2015 Callum Macdonald Memorial Award.

NEW POET: MICHAEL THOMAS HOUGH

Michael Thomas Hough’s poems are urban vernacular in form, drawn from closely observed situations reflecting his passion for place and people, the repetition of time and the business of being fallible, written with simple humour and gentle honesty. He tries to keep them short. He has published two pamphlets, “Rig and Furrow” and “Family Matters”; one CD of poems, “12 Cafe Poems”; and two video poems, “Just another tale” and Circle. More work can be found at his blog, http://mikethough.tumblr.com/.

MUSICIANS: THE MADRIGAL CLUB

The Madrigal Club is a new group of singers aiming to study and perform the unaccompanied vocal chamber music repertoire, conducted by John Mortimer, composer and conductor of the St Andrew Orchestra in Edinburgh. They will be singing a few madrigals; more than most vocal music, madrigals closely follow and respect the secular poems on which they are based.

WILDCARD SPOT AND THE LEMON CAKE RAFFLE

The lemon cake raffle provides us with much-needed funds, so we very much appreciate your support. And it is a most excellent lemon cake. (Occasionally, we also have poetry books in the raffle, and are very grateful to the donors thereof.)

We should have a wildcard spot this month. Please mention to the person selling tickets that you’d like to put your name in the hat. Bring a poem to read! If you’re chosen, you have three minutes (this includes any preamble or introduction – please time yourself in advance to make sure you’re within the time limits).

THE IMPORTANT INFORMATION AGAIN

Sunday 29th May 2016
7pm (doors open 630pm)
Oh! Outhouse, 12a Broughton Street Lane, Edinburgh, EH1 3LY

We hope to see you there! Please be there in plenty of time to get a seat. Unfortunately, fire regulations mean we have to turn people away if the room becomes overcrowded.

P.S. If you would like to receive regular news about our events straight into your inbox, e-mail us at newsletter (at) shorepoets.org.uk

You can also join us at our Facebook group and keep an eye on our Twitter feed.

Readings by mainly Scottish poets on the last Sunday of every month

It’s the return of our open night!

Sunday 24th April 2016
7pm (doors open 630pm)
Oh! Outhouse, 12a Broughton Street Lane, Edinburgh, EH1 3LY
Admission: £5 (concessions £3)

OPEN NIGHT

This is when we open the stage to local (and not-so-local) poets. Our list is currently full, but you can check with us on the night if you want to read, in case someone has dropped out. (Bring a poem or poems which you can read in no more than five minutes.)

SHORE POET: CLAIRE ASKEW

That’s a photo from Claire’s launch. Note that it’s so crowded, people are sitting on the stairs. That’s the sign of a good event!

Claire Askew launched her debut poetry collection, This changes things, at Blackwells on 5th February. The collection is published by Bloodaxe, and was shortlisted for the Edwin Morgan Poetry Award in 2014. Poems from the collection have been recognised by the International Salt Prize for Poetry, the Mslexia Women’s Poetry Competition, and the Charles Causley Poetry Prize, among others.

MUSICIANS: ARLEN

Arlen’s repertoire includes both original music and arrangements of songs by artists from George Gershwin to the Zombies. In 2014 and 2015 they played in the Edinburgh Fringe and North Berwick’s Fringe By The Sea to great feedback, and are looking forward to festival appearances in 2016 throughout Scotland. We’ll hear two-thirds of Arlen – Sadie Maskery (voice) and Graham Cumberland (guitar).

THE LEMON CAKE RAFFLE

The lemon cake raffle provides us with much-needed funds, so we very much appreciate your support. And it is a most excellent lemon cake. (Occasionally, we also have poetry books in the raffle, and are very grateful to the donors thereof.)

We will not have a wildcard spot this month.

THE IMPORTANT INFORMATION AGAIN

Sunday 24th April 2016
7pm (doors open 630pm)
Oh! Outhouse, 12a Broughton Street Lane, Edinburgh, EH1 3LY

We hope to see you there! Please be there in plenty of time to get a seat. Unfortunately, fire regulations mean we have to turn people away if the room becomes overcrowded.

P.S. If you would like to receive regular news about our events straight into your inbox, e-mail us at newsletter (at) shorepoets.org.uk

You can also join us at our Facebook group and keep an eye on our Twitter feed.

Readings by mainly Scottish poets on the last Sunday of every month

Sunday 29th November 2015
7pm (doors open 630pm)
Clouds and Soil, 4 Picardy Place, Edinburgh, EH1 3JT
Admission: £5 (concessions £3)

NEW TIME AND NEW LOCATION

Our November event is earlier – starting at 7pm, which we hope will make life easier for those who travel long distances to join us and those who wish not to go home very late in the night. It’s also at a new location, the hospitable Clouds and Soil on Picardy Place. (NB this might change in January – keep an eye on our social media!)

Please join us at a NEW time and a NEW location for the final Shore Poets event of 2015 – which is also our Book Week Scotland event! We will be giving out Book Week Scotland stickers galore, oh yes we will.

MAIN POET: TAWONA SITHOLE

Our ultra-special Book Week Scotland main poet is Tawona Sithole!

Tawona is a poet, playwright, mbira musician, educator and facilitator. His ancestral family name, Ganyamatope, is a reminder of his heritage, which inspires him to make connections with other people through creativity, and the natural outlook to learn. As co-founder of Seeds of Thought arts group, Tawona’s work involves supporting and facilitating access to the creative arts. Currently poet in residence for GRAMNet, he also works in a variety of settings and institutions. As he continues to write, teach and perform, mostly he appreciates his work for the many inspiring people it allows him to meet.

SHORE POET: HAMISH WHYTE

Hamish Whyte

Hamish Whyte was born near Glasgow where he lived before moving to Edinburgh in 2004. He has edited many anthologies of Scottish literature, and runs Mariscat Press. He’s an Honorary Research Fellow in the Department of Scottish Literature at the University of Glasgow and plays percussion in the band The Whole Shebang. His most recent collection of poems, Hannah, Are You Listening?, was published by HappenStance in 2013.

NEW POET: FLORA SINCLAIR

Flora is originally from the west of Scotland but has lived in Edinburgh for the past 17 years or so. She qualified in medicine but has spent her working life so far both in and out of being a doctor. She has worked and trained in various fields including Higher Education, alternative medicine and, in particular, mental health. She recently completed the MSc in Creative Writing at Edinburgh University, specialising in poetry.

MUSICIAN: TUESDAY ROSE MCDONOUGH

A Shore Poets favourite, Tuesday Rose McDonough has been playing clarsach and singing since she was eight years old. Her repertoire extends from traditional Gaelic songs to Nirvana and Bob Dylan. She is a fluent gaelic speaker and won the medal for self-accompanied singing at the National Mod in Stornoway while still at primary school. She’s sung and played the clarsach live on radio and in a number of venues including The Queen’s Hall, The Usher Hall, The Royal Scots Club, and The Edinburgh Society of Musicians. She’s received awards from the EMI Foundation and The Verdi Trust.

We should have a wildcard spot, so if you want a chance at reading a poem (maximum length three minutes), ask at the door to put your name in the hat.

And, as always, we will have our famous lemon cake raffle, renowned throughout this land. The raffle provides us with much-needed funds and we appreciate your support.

Did you leave a grey scarf at our October event? If so, please contact one of the Shore Poets at the event, or leave us a comment/send us an email/write us a poem and we will return it to you.

So there you have the Shore Poets lineup for Book Week Scotland 2015! We hope to see you there at our NEW location and a NEW time:

Sunday 29th November 2015
7pm (doors open 630pm)
Clouds and Soil, 4 Picardy Place, Edinburgh, EH1 3JT

P.S. If you would like to receive regular news about our events straight into your inbox, e-mail us at newsletter (at) shorepoets.org.uk

You can also join us at our Facebook group.

Readings by mainly Scottish poets on the last Sunday of every month

(Photo credit)