We end the meeting on a ramble which is always a good thing and I learn of the three K’s – reasons for an artist to do any job “The three K’s darling” says Mary raising an imperious eyebrow with imperative twinkle in the eye “ Kash Kudos or Kicks” Mary then takes me through them, each a reason to do a job. "There is a fourth" she says “Kanucky”. Mary should smoke. She would suite a cigarette in a gold cigarette holder. And she would only ever smoke Galouise!   more »

Here’s to the clearing of air. Martin calls for a meet and comes over to The Riverside Rooms and we do just the stuff that I have wanted and it seems he has wanted - we communicate clearly about projects and events. We discuss the Linda Smith mix up. It’s the first time Martin Acting Head of Literature has seen The Riverside Rooms I think. Certainly it is the first time I have seen him here. But lets be clear, I only got my phone fixed last week. And I only got PAPER for the first time last week. It’s early days adn this is a good sign.   more »

When I visit schools children often ask me “are you famous” I wasn’t cruel enough to say the answer is in the question but it is. Famous living poet is however an oxymoron. There are few Living Poets that truly deserve the moniker - Benjamin is one of them. I was talking of Teachers Dead the book by Benjamin Zephanioa wasn’t I.   more »

I meet Laka (the meeting was set by Neil Quinten) talk about writing a piece for Lambeth Children event in March next year. We get along famously, myself and Laka. We know similar people. To write this piece I shall have to research The Olympic Torch and have a first draft for her ready by the end of December, before I go to LA for the month. It’s a welcome challenge and just the kind of reason that I am here at the south bank. I can’t really explain how wonderful this meeting was, suffice to say it was perfect for the end of the day and just makes me want to come into the office tomorrow. I am going home now. .   more »

It’s a gorgeous day today. At ten am I pass in to an Italian Deli just outside Little Italy and buy a Panatone as a present for the production and literature team – they all sit close to each other. It’s a thankyou for there organisation of the 24 hour party people event.    more »

I wake at 4.30am in the lake district, get on the 6am train cause I missed the 5.30 and at 9.45am I am on level five of the Royal Festival Hall just as Jude walks around the corner. I am with Hannah from the cape farewell team. Cape farewell are the original residents of THE RIVERSIDE ROOMS where my “office” is. Jude delivers her talk on The Entire Vision and artistic Policy of the South Bank. It is assisted by four massive pieces of art plastered on the wall with sticky tape stuck on by Becky and Sarah. These pieces were constructed by an artist and Jude. It’s visionary and it’s clear as a bell. The term “inclusion” is not lip service but an an active part of the vision, at the heart of the vision and at the heart of the day to day working practises. It makes sense.    more »

Should we quarantine all immigrant words, search their pockets for possible explosive material? Maybe some words are, though not immigrants, housing an immigrant within. Shall we raid our sentences, interrogate our paragraphs, imprison large groups of words of latin extraction and question all words with an Indian Root just in case they are trying to subvert us.   more »

Coincidentally, tomorrow is the deadline for input into the next literature brochure for January to March 2007. All the events which I have been trying to organise are as yet unconfirmed and so will probably not go into the brochure. The brochure deadline seems to appear out of nowhere. In fact it does. I get the call from the literature department so late in the day that it is near impossible to catch the deadline and no assistance. I’m rolling with it and suspect that I am missing something here. I am meeting the literature officer on friday to ask how we can work more effectively together. As presently it is unsatisfactory in terms of communication.   more »

Did interview with Metaroar downstairs at EAT café with a very nice woman called Naomi Woddis who had the good grace to come see my work in progress at the Hammersmith Lyric this weekend as research. The interview was thoroughly enjoyable. That is no guarantee of how an interview will look when it goes to print. People seem often not to realise that there are three people in any given interview The subject, The Writer of the interview and the reader.    more »