Category: Poetry
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A book of poems about the Merlion
At the pubic library, I came across a book of poems entirely about the Merlion, the lion-headed, fish-tailed icon of Singapore. The book is called Reflecting on the Merlion: An Anthology of Poems. It’s edited by Edwin Thumboo and Yeow Kai Chai, and co-edited by Enoch Ng, Isa Kamari, and…
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The Twelve Days Of Christmas by Carol Ann Duffy
Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy has written a new Twelve Days Of Christmas for Radio Times. It’s all about current affairs, touching on Afghanistan, the drought in sub-Saharan Africa, the financial crisis, the election of Barack Obama, the British MPs’ expenses scandal, and the Copenhagen climate summit. This is how…
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TS Eliot Britain’s favourite poet
TS Eliot is Britain’s favourite poet, according to a BBC online poll. More good news: John Donne came in second and Yeats and Dylan Thomas also ended up in the top 10. I am surprised Auden didn’t make the list. How couldn’t he? More than 18,000 votes were cast and…
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World War II , Vera Lynn and Auden
This was the day Poland was invaded by Germany and Russia 70 years ago, marking the start of the Second World War. Britain and France declared war on Germany two days later, on September 3. Those wartime memories have now made Vera Lynn the oldest artiste to hit the charts.…
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The enduring appeal of Roger McGough
Roger McGough, who stands a chance of being voted Britain’s favourite poet, has another claim to fame. He was a member of the band, The Scaffold, that topped the BBC Top 20 chart with the hit single, Lily The Pink, in 1968. The trio also included Paul McCartney’s brother, Mike…
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BBC poetry site polling for Britain’s favourite poet
Carol Ann Duffy is the poet laureate, but who is Britain’s favourite poet? The BBC poetry site is running an online poll which closes on September 1. Voters can choose from a shortlist of 30 poets selected by a panel of judges. One can vote for TS Eliot, WB Yeats,…
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Carol Ann Duffy: The first woman poet laureate
Carol Ann Duffy became the first woman poet laureate today. She was considered a frontrunner for the post in 1999 following Ted Hughes’ death in October 1998. But she lost out to Andrew Motion then amid speculation that Tony Blair had decided that Middle England was not yet ready for…
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A New York minute with Billy Collins
The Singapore River isn’t the Hudson But it has a homely charm of its own, The Botanic Gardens no Central Park But a tranquil, sylvan landmark Well worth a visit or two. Life in Singapore is nothing to rue Unless you make much ado About the Straits Times Being no…
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Shakespeare in love: The youth and the Dark Lady of the Sonnets
Shakespeare’s sonnets are the greatest love poems in English literature, says The Times. And they are mostly homoerotic, says Bill Bryson in his book, Shakespeare. That makes them all the more remarkable. For, let’s not forget, as late as 1960 Penguin Books was tried for obscenity when it published Lady…
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Billy Collins on his old typewriter
I am reading the poems of Billy Collins for the first time. And what can I say? Imagine Keats living into middle age, developing a dry wit and writing poems about domestic life without rhymes – but still showing flashes of his youthful romanticism. That’s Billy Collins. Collins, who was…
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