• On the Pitch

    Serious stuff doneJust one more for charityFor the love of life~ n.b. 6,012 people came to support Alan Knight’s call for funds for three Portsmouth charities supporting cancer patients. ‘Knightsie’ played 801 matches for Pompey and is being treated for Stage 4 prostate cancer. It’s so sad to see him so ill, but uplifting to

  • Eyes Opened

    A flat square of greyed, corner- curled plywoodNailed to the end of a thick poleStaked into the herb bedDiced bacon, toast crumbsMorsel of old appleSeeds, pieces of nutA shard of coconut hung by stringWarm in teddy print pyjamasFace still pillow-creasedI watch them feed as I eatAutumn chill,Folded into school uniform (again)Lying on my backOn the

  • What Brought Us Here

    We sit hereOn a memorial benchBeneath the line of ancient beechThat stands strong along the ridgeWhat brought us hereChoices? Fate?Buzzards spiral high aboveFinding lift upon a thermalOne, then two, a third appearsTheir cries pierce April’s shocking blueWhile they scour the farm belowFor rabbit, toad, mouse, small fowlWe sit and watchWithout a wordKnowing nothingOf the life

  • A Short Story

    How do you iron out your past?Re-tell the story until it bores youWhen you finally realiseEveryone else was boredYears agoDo you write it outChoosing the best bitsOmitting the worst?Or vice versa? How do you move on?~Here is a version of The Story of Woody and Johnny, (Johnny’s narrative).Thank you for reading.

  • on time

    put yourself outsidebrave the weather, breathe in springtoday soon passes~ CLP 24/03/2025

  • on Spring

    sun rises paths crossshadows shorten by the daycity traffic queues~n.b. Behind the avenue of trees, hundreds boxed in, grind on, doing the commuter crawl. CLP 18/03/2025

  • on Spring

    Sun’s inundationdowses ripened hawthorn budsblossom bursts open~ n.b. Gentle twist of fate, a trip to seek Spanish sunshine and warmth coincided with a change in the weather for the better in East Anglia, with that high pressure system locking in total cloud and consequent rain in Spain, mainly everywhere, not just on the plain. On

  • on dawn (sparrows)

    Push Rush Swoosh BreathePush Rush Swoosh BreathePush Rush Swoosh BreatheBlackbird calling Time!Marking its territoryPush Rush Swoosh BreathePush Rush Swoosh Breatheacross the terracetwo floors downa glass door slidesplastic wheels on plastic runnerthe shallow cough of a restless smokerdesperate for fresh toxicityscrape of metal chair on balcony tilesclick of lighterexhalation of first fag draginto steel grey lightPush

  • on stasis

    Silent reminderThey came, they saw, they conqueredUnelected Lords~ n.b. Know your history. Note the advertising board on bottom right of picture is for an American fast-food franchise. CLP 03/03/2025

  • on time

    As I a child I wonderedWhat life was like beforeWar broke out in EuropeCricket played on village greensActors shining from silver screensTube trains, trams, omnibusesFull of people reading newsheetsEditorials and commentariesOn threat and riskThe rights and wrongsThe unlikelihood of something worseNo-one would be mad enoughTo fire the shot, to call a bluffTo cross the line,