I'm excited to announce that my poem Tyne undertow is now available to read online as part of the Poem of the North. Commissioned by the Northern Poetry Library, this unfolding digital artwork serves up a gorgeous smorgasbord of new…
The author David Almond set his third children’s novel Heaven Eyes on the banks of the Ouseburn where it winds down towards the Tyne. The post-industrial wasteland that inspired the book is slowly transforming into something else. People have come…
Robert Stephenson's Rocket has returned home. It stands in pride of place at the Discovery Museum, Newcastle, just a few streets away from Stephenson's works. It is on loan, of course. A star attraction of the Great Exhibition of the…
Imagine this... It's the hottest day of the year. You are meandering through the hordes of sun-scorched drinkers, eyeing up their ice cold pints, when you spot it. Slap bang in the middle of the village green! A giant ear…
Carving out space to create is not always easy. I journey from creative chaos to fresh beginnings and discover seven ways to make space for inspiration. Emerging from chaos Spring is a good time for new projects. But fresh shoots…
Last week, World Poetry Day heralded the beginning of spring here in the Northern hemisphere. People shared lines from their favourite poems and journalists penned poetry-related pieces. Here are five weird and wonderful World Poetry Day picks from around the…
Recording an audiobook version of my poetry collection Limehaven would be fun, I decided. After all, poetry is music. And rhythm and rhyme must be spoken before it can be heard. There’s real joy in reading aloud. All those deliciously…
To celebrate the recent BBC adaptation of this wonderful book, I'm republishing a review I wrote some years ago. If you didn't see the series — or even if you did — read the book! A sumptuous tale of magic…