Arts Articles
Once upon an early spring morning
It was Blackbird who saw it first, Woke to the gold that told of a change in the air. No-one said to unwrap the song That for long dark days had lain unsung. No dress-rehearsal needed, Note-perfect from the first performance.
Crossing the border
Here at the gap a concrete hut, a flag, bored men with guns, the barking of a dog; to either side the barbed wire and the signs BEWARE OF MINES!
After hard times
Patience comes first in that dark night; slowly, peace rises in the inward mind, then all the world around exhibits what there is, quiet and profound, disclosing itself as an offering; the soul appreciates what is offered.
Swift
The best would be the gift to heal; And what exchange could yield that gift? But hope compels the mind to kneel And then in silence turn the wheel; With each rotation short and swift The best would be the gift to heal.
To my sisters and brothers
As a child I was taught that the Russians and the Ukrainians had a long history of persecuting the Jews. My ancestors were refugees from Lithuania, My heart bleeds for the people of Ukraine and their supporters in Russia. And for the peoples of Palestine and Israel. For the persecuted...
Armistice
On the high field, battle-green and bracken-amber, three blanketed horses graze in radio-silence and doubting light.
The chrysalis
One hot afternoon in France, exhausted and longing for shade, I perched upon a wayside pile of logs, gingerly… for fear of snakes…
Think again, Priti
Priti Patel, Priti Patel your Police and Crime Bill will take us to hell, draconian powers never end well – for pity’s sake, Priti, we have to rebel!
Play favourites: John Lampen revisits Shakespeare’s Henry VI
Shakespeare’s Henry VI trilogy was a big success in its time, but is seldom played today. The plays look boring on paper. Huge lists of characters have names that sound like county councils; long speeches are given in plodding end-stopped verse; indistinguishable battles recur. But past productions have shown...
Love in a time of webcam and masks
Mourners have swum in underneath me, me from hundreds of miles away and no need to brave Waverley and Piccadilly for the sake of our goodbyes.