Tag Archives: Roger McGough

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”

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”

Poetry: so much more than just words on a page

I love poetry. I loved poetry since before I loved Shakespeare I have loved poetry since before I can remember. It is highly likely my first poem was actually a nursery rhyme. Maybe “Hickory Dickory Dock” or “Ring a’ring of Roses”. By the time I reached primary school I was already reading poetry from booksContinue reading “Poetry: so much more than just words on a page”

The Sound Collector

by Roger McGough (b 1937) A stranger called this morning Dressed all in black and grey Put every sound into a bag And carried them away The whistling of the kettle The turning of the lock The purring of the kitten The ticking of the clock The popping of the toaster The crunching of theContinue reading “The Sound Collector”

The Trouble With Snowmen

by Roger McGough (b. 1937) ‘The trouble with snowmen,’ Said my father one year ‘They are no sooner made Than they just disappear. I’ll build you a snowman And I’ll build it to last Add sand and cement And then have it cast. And so every winter,’ He went on to explain ‘You shall haveContinue reading “The Trouble With Snowmen”

First Day at School

by Roger McGough A millionbillionwillion miles from home Waiting for the bell to go. (To go where?) Why are they all so big, other children? So noisy? So much at home they Must have been born in uniform Lived all their lives in playgrounds Spent the years inventing games That don’t let me in. GamesContinue reading “First Day at School”

Let Me Die a Youngman’s Death

by Roger McGough Let me die a youngman’s deathnot a clean & inbetweenthe sheets holywater deathnot a famous-last-wordspeaceful out of breath death When I’m 73& and in constant good tumourmay I be mown down at dawnby a bright red sports caron my way homefrom an allnight party Or when I’m 91with silver hair& sitting inContinue reading “Let Me Die a Youngman’s Death”