Interest area: Literature

A Lovely Word featuring Beth Calverley

A Lovely Word is Liverpool’s most eclectic poetry night, featuring two halves of open mic poets, and a headliner beginning the first half. Hosted by Alex Ferguson, this free event is a fun, relaxed and friendly evening of performance poetry.

Beth Calverley is a poet, performer and founder of The Poetry Machine.

Beth is Poet in Residence at University Hospitals Bristol & Weston NHS FT and was published in These Are The Hands, the NHS anthology. She was Lyra: Bristol Poetry Festival’s Resident Poet 2021, a Bristol Life Awards Arts Finalist 2020, and a Roundhouse Slam Finalist 2018. She has worked with the BBC, ITV, Sky, and many more.

Beth travels across the country to places of work, care, learning and play – from high streets to hospitals to theatres to festivals – performing, facilitating and co-creating poetry.

Her debut collection, Brave Faces & Other Smiles, launched in 2020 with Verve Poetry Press, exploring some of the countless and complex reasons we smile. Benjamin Zephaniah called it “a great collection with a honest, real theme.”

TAKE PART

Whether you are a new poet performing for the first time or a seasoned poet who wants to try out some new stuff – sign up to perform by EITHER;

I) turning up at 7.30 in the bistro

II) emailing alovelywordpodcast@gmail.com with a confirmation of your full name, mobile number

When signing up to perform, you are signing up to these principles of the open mic.

Liverpool’s 2021 Year of Writing...

An event to bring writers, independent publishers, booksellers, partners, and communities, together to celebrate the Year of Writing and the official hand over to the Year of Spoken Word

Liverpool’s 2021 Year of Writing has been a celebration of writing in all its forms designed to discover new voices and publish new writing through a partnership of arts and cultural organisations, writers, artists, educators and businesses as part of an inclusive drive to improve literacy in the city.

Special Guest Appearance by acclaimed writer, Yvonne Battle Felton

Writing activities and workshops

Poetry workshops and games

Community Choir performances

Writers’ advice sessions

1:1 Literary Agent appointments

Live local author readings

The premier of the ‘It’s My Life Young’ person Writing Commissions 

Open Mic

FREE resources and giveaways.

Join in to celebrate creativity and look forward to the Year of Spoken Word and many new creative opportunities.

“The Year of writing has involved communities across the Liverpool City Region, inspiring them to get creative. It has worked with our many talented writers, offered commissions to new and up and coming writers, and provided a platform for expression and engagement, supporting wellbeing and combatting isolation.

Most of all it has been great fun, and we are proud that we have been able to play our part in support Liverpool’s drive to improve literacy across the city. We’re looking forward to seeing what The Year of Spoken word will bring the city’

Mike Morris, Chair of the Year of Writing and Co-Director of Writing on the Wall.

“The Liverpool Literacy Cycle was set up to support skills development in the city. I am delighted to report it has delivered creative engagement and opportunities across the city region and beyond given the reach of a growing online and social media presence. In 202o the Year of Reading was celebrated, this year the focus has been the Year of Writing and 2022 will be Liverpool Year of Spoken Word and performance. If you wish to engage with any of the forthcoming events or projects, check out the website and follow us on social media #LiverpoolSpeaks.”

Councillor Barbara Murray, Labour Councillor for Yew Tree Ward, Chair of Education and Skills Select Committee

‘This has been a year bursting with creativity. It has been a delight to see so many activities and opportunities for people to express themselves. The community and camaraderie between creatives has been inspiring and shown what can be achieved collectively. I am excited to see the work written throughout the year be performed and the new projects that will take place during the 2022 Year of Spoken Word, #LiverpoolSpeaks.’

John Maguire, Project Coordinator, #LiverpoolWrites, Creative Director of ArtsGroupie CIC.

You can find more information on the Liverpool Year of Writing at: 

https://www.cultureliverpool.co.uk/year-of-writing-2021/

If you would like a discussion about engagement, please contact: 

Project coordinator, John Maguire, info.2021@yearofwriting@gmail.com

 

Spoken Word – February

The Reader’s Spoken Word event for February will feature Liverpool based band, Sunstack Jones, alongside a selection of supporting poets.

Spoken Word events encompass a huge variety of writing and performance styles, from the intimately personal and heart-breaking to the uproariously funny and celebratory. Poetry in all its forms will be the main feature, along with memoirs, stories, monologues and any number of almost-indefinable types of prose!

They recommend this event for adults 18+. Doors 7pm. The Mansion House is wheelchair accessible, for access enquiries please contact: tickets@thereader.org.uk.

Rachael Doman
A second appearance for  Rachael at the Mansion House (following her lovely set for the Bandaged Moments poetry evening at last November’s Gravity Festival at The Reader). Rachael is the co-founder of the Magpies and Pigeons poetry collective and her curated show was one of the highlights of at last year’s Smithdown Festival. Rache is a brilliant poet in her own right and her poems of love and loss are an absolute delight.

Saint Vespaluus
Expect tales and poems of the heartbreak caused by the unsolicited comments of Joe Public; the nightmare of being a New Romantic in 1980s Anfield – and how to approach singing songs about Branwell Brontë without causing offence.

Paddy Clarke
Paddy Clarke is a superb musician and brilliantly talented wordsmith. Paddy’s take on one of John Cooper-Clarke’s most famous poems is a work of near-genius. They’re already looking forward to seeing Paddy back at the Mansion House.

Sunstack Jones
They are indeed privileged to welcome one of Britain’s best bands to The Reader. Sunstack Jones are BBC 6 Music regulars and a big favourite on the live circuits. The band has released four beautiful albums which mix ‘indie’, psychedelia and dreampop to stunning effect.

Spoken Word 11 will be a great night!

The Storybarn February Half Term: Book...

This February half-term The Reader would like to give you the chance to experience Books and Brambles – their unique family offering for children and grown-up’s.

Books and Brambles is usually a six-week programme, running on Saturdays and Sundays, but over half-term they’ll be offering Storybarn visitors a number of 1.5 hour stand-alone taster sessions.

Based in their wonderfully warm and cosy Storybarn, you can expect stories exploring nature, imaginative play, and arts and crafts.

If you’ve already joined them on a Books and Brambles course before, you’re very welcome again, along with curious and adventurous newcomers!

Books and Brambles is perfect for 4-9 year olds (or thereabouts!). Tickets are £4, infants under-1 go free but still require a ticket.

Sessions run on Saturdays and Sundays at 10am, Tuesday – Thursday at 12pm and 2.30pm, and Friday at 2.30pm. There are no sessions on Monday 21 February.

If you book a Books and Brambles Taster Session you can get 10% off your next Books and Brambles course.

Reading Group: for generations that ar...

This group is a safe platform for collective reading and sharing. It holds space for care and encourages the practice of reading together as a form of survival, resistance and healing under our current post-lockdown but still in pandemic condition.

In the first few sessions, the group will be focusing on exploring different chapters from All About Love: New Visions (Love Song to the Nation) (2000) by African-American scholar and activist bell hooks. Each chapter deconstructs and reframes our assumptions about “love” as a primarily romantic emotion and how love became a “cliché”, instead it reconnects us to love that is redemptive, and healing; an understanding of love that in Covid times we need more than ever.

Join them regularly each month or for one session. No need to complete the reading beforehand, there will be time to read each chapter at the beginning of the group and time for discussion after.

Free, booking required.

A Lovely Word featuring Shagufta K. Iq...

A Lovely Word is back at its spiritual and literal home; the downstairs at the Everyman.

A Lovely Word is Liverpool’s most eclectic poetry night, featuring two halves of open mic poets, and a headliner beginning the first half. Hosted by Alex Ferguson, this free event is a fun, relaxed and friendly evening of performance poetry.

Founder of the Yoniverse and Kiota, Shagufta K Iqbal is an award-winning writer, filmmaker, workshop facilitator and Tedx Speaker. Described by gal-dem as a poet whose work “leaves you validated but aching – her narratives are important, heart-wrenching and relatable”.

Her poetry collection Jam Is For Girls, Girls Get Jam has been recommended by Nikesh Shukla as ‘a social political masterclass.’ And she is also published in Slam: You’re Gonna Wanna Hear This with McMilllian Books. Shagufta is currently writing her second poetry collection and debut novel.

A Lovely Word featuring Gerry Potter

A Lovely Word is back at its spiritual and literal home; downstairs at the Everyman.

A Lovely Word is Liverpool’s most eclectic poetry night, featuring two halves of open mic poets, and a headliner beginning the first half. Hosted by Alex Ferguson, this free event is a fun, relaxed and friendly evening of performance poetry.

Gerry Potter is currently touring his new book, he describes this one as his genre defying opus, the fifth of hopefully ten volumes of autobiographical theatre verse, then he promises never to write again. The Chronicles of Folly Butler is the follow up to the successful Fifty, The Men Pomes, Planet Middle Age and Planet Young.

A favourite son of both Manchester and his hometown Liverpool Gerry has also been wowing audiences nationally with his own unique brand of domestic-fantastic free verse.

Gerry is the creator and destroyer of the infamous gingham diva Chloe Poems. Chloe was a cabaret and literary stalwart and raver some years ago on the London and national scene. I think it’s safe to say she caused quite a stir.

A Lovely Word featuring Suhaiymah Manz...

And they’re back for 2022! A Lovely Word is back at its spiritual and literal home; downstairs at the Everyman.

A Lovely Word is Liverpool’s most eclectic poetry night, featuring two halves of open mic poets, and a headliner beginning the first half. Hosted by Alex Ferguson, this free event is a fun, relaxed and friendly evening of performance poetry.

This month’s headliner Suhaiymah Manzoor-Khan is a writer, poet and educator disrupting understandings of history, race, knowledge and violence.

New Mersey Poets’ Blast! evening

Welcome to the inaugural New Mersey Poets’ Blast! evening (upstairs) at Jimmy’s. Blast! is music, Spoken Word and comedy – and features some of Merseyside’s most talented performers.

For Blast #1 they have spoken word from the brilliant Lumenaate and the amazing Wordy Lirpa. Lumenaate’s urban poetry is an absolute delight, and Wordy’s inaugural poetry and music evening Outspoken was one of Liverpool’s cultural highlights of December.

There will be laughs aplenty (he assures us) from the mysterious Barry Comedy, and after the Blast Pop Culture Quiz Spot the Bastard (answer number 7 is ‘Michael Gove’), there will be comedy and spoken word from Saint Vespaluus.

Saint headlined downstairs at Jimmy’s in October, and is a regular on the Liverpool Spoken Word scene. His poems and tales take in gender fluidity and how language abuse controls society, but there’s also lots of references to 80s electro pop stars, Scouse dads morphing into pirates and how the good old days were actually sh*t. Really sh*t!

Matthew-Loughlin Day is one of Merseyside’s most talented musicians. Matty has curated two Shipwrecked festivals in the past six months, and is taking an evening off from his brilliant band The Shipbuilders to perform some of his equally ace solo songs.

An Afternoon with Simon Armitage at Th...

Join The Reader from the comfort of your own surroundings for this special afternoon celebrating one of the UK’s best-loved poets.

Experience the joy of Shared Reading – live and aloud – in this online event where they’ll be exploring the work of Poet Laureate, Simon Armitage, together. At the end of the session, Simon himself will join them to read and take part in a live Q&A.

If you’ve never experienced Shared Reading before, this is the perfect opportunity to give it a try. Their friendly Reader Leaders will guide you as we begin by reading from a selection of Simon’s poems.

They’ll talk and reflect as they read and as with all Shared Reading groups, there’s no pressure to read aloud or speak. How you choose to experience Shared Reading is up to you.