Seamus Heaney could turn a moment’s thought into a naturalistic poem of pure joy. He may be an acquired taste but he’s worth it. Oysters by Seamus Heaney/ Our shells clacked on the plates, My tongue was a filling estuary, My palate hung with starlight: As I tasted the salty Pleiades Orion dipped his footContinue reading “Heaney: a taste of nature”
Author Archives: Robin
Wonderful to meet you – just sign here please
We meet many people on our journey through life – most are the type we meet every day: neighbours; local business people; fellow shoppers (not so many in the last 18 months); local sports personalities; or national personalities. As a journalist it is possible I have met more people, no matter how fleetingly or forContinue reading “Wonderful to meet you – just sign here please”
Poetry Please because poetry always pleases
I have a large collection of books, even some going back to the 1800s. and amid them are many poetry books. Some I inherited from my father, school prizes won by him and by his sister, Dorothy, who died very young. There is Longfellow, Yeats, Elizabeth Barrett Browning – running on to Rossetti, to whichContinue reading “Poetry Please because poetry always pleases”
Hello, fancy meeting you here after all this time!
On my path through life I have met many people – at school, at work and in my leisure time. Some have entered my life and after a few years exited it again. Some school friendships ended when I left school (although there were a few which lasted longer – my dear departed friend RogerContinue reading “Hello, fancy meeting you here after all this time!”
You can take the boy out of Wales but you can’t take Wales out of the boy
When I joined the team at the Basildon Standard Recorder I believe my editor, Tony Blandford, saw a chance to inject some fresh blood into features about the new town. What was even better, as far as he was concerned, was that I was not just not from Basildon but I was not even fromContinue reading “You can take the boy out of Wales but you can’t take Wales out of the boy”
Love – a many splendour’d thing but very personal
Love is a very personal thing and is not always full of sweet moments. Three poets can look at love and even if they are close, with similar backgrounds, each will have had a different experience. If you lose the love of your life, no matter what the reason, it can be painful but theContinue reading “Love – a many splendour’d thing but very personal”
I turned down ‘a fortune’ after going undercover
As I have said before a general news reporter has to handle a wide variety of news from golden wedding anniversaries to major fires, even murder. Sometimes feature work might just concentrate on a new attraction opening in town, at others it could be a piece of serious investigative journalism. An opportunity for the latterContinue reading “I turned down ‘a fortune’ after going undercover”
New town residents were servants of two masters
In the early 1970s Basildon New Town (officially Basildon but as it was just over 20 years old people still added the New Town tag) control was in the hands of two organisations – Basildon Development Corporation and Basildon Urban District Council. By the time I arrived in 1972 the council was the civil administratorContinue reading “New town residents were servants of two masters”
The good, the bad and the downright boring
Living in Burnham-on-Crouch (until my boss could arrange a Corporation flat for me) could be a bit wearisome – it meant early rises and late nights if I had an evening job, council or arts review and a long drive to work to wake me up. The return journey was always in the dark. DuringContinue reading “The good, the bad and the downright boring”
Tonight at Noon
(for Charles Mingus and the Clayton Squares) by Adrian Henri Tonight at noon Supermarkets will advertise 3p EXTRA on everything Tonight at noon Children from happy families will be sent to live in a home Elephants will tell each other human jokes America will declare peace on Russia World War 1 generals will sell poppiesContinue reading “Tonight at Noon”
Robin's Nest 