My poem 'Certain Events in Blackburn, Lancashire, 1967' has been shortlisted for the Wells Festival of Literature's Poetry Competition. This year's judge is Sean Borodale. Prizes are announced on 22nd October. I'm hoping to attend the prize-giving ceremony - Johnson be damned - as Wells is a great place. A magical part of the world. And, of course, it's a great festival!
My poem 'Variations on a Theme from Isaac Holland' has received a 'Notable Mention' in the 2020 Poetry London Prize, judged by Ilya Kaminsky: https://poetrylondon.co.uk/competition/
Robert Bird, who wrote a two books on Tarkovsky, and who I had the pleasure of meeting at the 2013 Zerkalo Tarkovsky conference in Ivanovo, Russia, has just died. He was only 50. A very sad loss.
Here is Robert's last essay, detailing Tarkovsky's last year, and his thoughts on his own - and Tarkovsky's - cancer.
