After my last, incredibly recent, sojourn to Australia, I never thought I’d be back. I regretted this immensely because I didn’t see a single kangaroo and hardly too any pictures except this triumphant one at the Sydney Opera House. It will be a hard trip to beat since I got to travel, thanks to the Edinburgh International Book Festival, with the superb Emily Ballou and Ewan Morrison, play a Golden Hour style gig at the Melbourne Writer’s Festival with the legendary Christos Tsalkis and watch old friends Andy Hazel and Rapskallion rock the stage. This time, I’m flying solo, and getting out of Melbourne and Sydney. I’m really excited to be appearing at the National Poetry Festival in Darwin and am especially excited about the gig in Canberra (which, I’m told, starts at ‘wine o’clock’!), not to mention the thrill of being at the Clunes Booktown Festival with thousands of other book-lovers, events and talks. So, please, come or tell your friends / family to come if you can’t. Here’s my schedule but I want say sincere thanks to Australian Poetry for inviting me and setting up all these great gigs, Creative Scotland for the funding assistance, and the Edinburgh International Book Festival for introducing to the deep, deep south the first time around.

If you are NOT interested in me being in Australia (and who could blame you) perhaps you’ll enjoy Hugh Jackman crashing into the Sydney Opera House in a zip-line catastrophe….. Wolverine!

Australia

10 – 13 May – Wordstorm & National Poetry Festival 2012: A Festival of Australasian Poetry –

Monday, 7 May – The Manning Clark House, Canberra — 19.30

a lovely informal space where I’ll read as many of your poems as I like with room for questions, jokes, heckling, and wine sipping. I expect an enthusiastic evening.

Saturday 5 May – Clunes Booktown Festival — Writer’s Workshop — 11am:

in which I’ll be hosting an informal writer’s group. We’ll be looking at Scottish poetry and creating our own poems.

My appearances in Australia have been partly funded by the generous support of Creative Scotland. Myself and the Wordstorm / National Poetry Festival gratefully acknowledge this integral support.

Hello Aberdeen, Hello Poetry

The fine folks at ‘Hello Poetry’ and the wizard, Rapunzel Wizard, have a mega-show for you. It is called ‘Demented Eloquence’ and it is massive. I’m looking forward to seeing Rapunzel again and, of course, being up in Aberdeen where people have always been super kind and supportive. Here’s the deal:

Saturday, 14 April, 20:30 – Demented Eloquence – Cellar 35, Aberdeen, £4: ANDREW FERGUSON, DUFFY, RYAN VAN WINKLE,  GRAHAM BRODIE, ROBIN CAIRNS, and, of course, RAPUNZEL WIZARD!

Verses and lines that will make you laugh, make you cry, and say something to you about your life, featuring top names in spoken word performance.

This month: Poetry and prose from Andrew Ferguson and Hello Poetry.

ANDREW FERGUSON
is from Glenrothes and is a member of Writers’ Bloc. He recites poems and spins tales from the daft to the dark.
“All the energy and vigour of early Irvine Welsh, but with far more humour and nuance.” – The Scotsman

HELLO POETRY
Are touring Scotland. The aim to get differing performer on stage together, and bring poets to places they don’t normally recite. For our night in Aberdeen we have the poetic cream of the Central Belt.

DUFFY: is a performance poet and prime mover behind Hello Poetry. He has also appeared on Channel 4 reciting on a beach in Largs.

RYAN VAN WINKLE: is an American living in Edinburgh. He writes award winning poems and recites them interspersed with sharp patter.

GRAHAM BRODIE: is editor of Whirlpool Press and all-round-poetic wildman.

ROBIN CAIRNS: is a performance poet, who is never happier than when he has an audience laughing – as long as he knows he has something up his sleeve to squeeze a tear out of them soon.

RAPUNZEL WIZARD…
will be you host, settling you into the evening with verses sometime eloquent but always demented.

Plus a limited number of open mic spots for…
Freestylers, Stand up poets, Ranters, M.C.s, Performance Poets, Rhymesters, Rappers, or any other spoken word ne’er-do-wells
Email : dementedeloquence@yahoo.co.uk
to book your three minutes of fame. First come first served. Silly prize for best performer courtesy of Spar’s bargain bucket…

Plus the audience poem…
Your chance to create a great piece of literature without leaving your seat. Silly prize for best line courtesy of Spar’s aforementioned bargain bucket.

 

10 Red Reading: 4 April 

I know this: Ten Red is a night of poetry. It happens in the beautiful Victorian Lounge of the Persevere Bar, Easter Road. It is hosted by our friend and poet: Kevin Cadwallender. I suspect it features 10 poets, some of whom are: Kevin Williamson, Young Dawkins, Katherine McMahon, Chris Lindores, Gerry Cambridge, Rachel McCrum, Matt MacDonald, Mira Knoche, Nancy Somerville, Sally Evans, Jenny Lindsay. And me. That’s 12. 10 Red, 2 Blue. Come on down and decide who the blue are. I suspect the evening will be jubilant, poingnant, funny and, on occasion, dirty. I hope you will come along. It will be nice to see you.

10-RED, Wednesday 4 April, 19.00, The Persevere Function Room, Edinburgh. £3.00 entry.

Reading at W.P.M. Glasgow

I’ve been invited to read at the ineffable W.P.M. in Glasgow. (That’s, Words Per Minute, for those not in the know…). I’ll be sharing a stage with fellow expert on late-80s SNL cast members, the American, Jarred McGinnes. There is also Elaine DiRollo and Michael Pederson. Anything else happinging on the 1st of April will be expertly guided by hosts Kirstin Innes, Kirsty Logan and Helen Sedgwick. There will be many surprises. American accents, booze, and trivia. And fools. Many many fools. Glasgow, I hope to see you there.

Sunday, 1 April — Words Per Minute — The Arches, Glasgow, 16.00, £5: I’ll be sharing a stage with fellow expert on late-80s SNL cast members, the American, Jarred McInnes. Hosted by Kirstin Innes, Kirsty Logan and Helen Sedgwick.

I have been woefully inadaquate in hyping the Scottish Poetry Library on my website. This is a shame because of the sheer breadth and scope of talent on display in these conversations and readings. We’ve got poets from New Zealand, Malta, America, the Scottish Isles and Britain. We talk nationalism with Donny O’Rourke, Occupy Wall Street with Matthew Zapreder, cynicism with Matthew Dickman, politics and small communities with Gabrielle Calvocoressi and life with Sarah Broom. I’ve learned something new with every interview and they provide food for thought and poems to inspire, sometimes advice. Thanks to all who sat patiently through my questions — I enjoyed every chat and hope you, dear listener, will too. Dip in and tell us what you think. Click on a name to hear the podcast and don’t forget to subscribe – for free – via Itunes or RSS. Ryan

Gabrielle Calvocoressi

Gabrielle Calvocoressi reads from and discusses poems from her collections The Last Time I Saw Amelia Earhart and Apocalyptic Swing.

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Joseph Lease

San Francisco’s Joseph Lease talks about the Beats, the Renaissance, and his own poetry.

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Literature Across Frontiers: Ian Stephen

We catch up with poet Ian Stephen from the Isle of Lewis.

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Literature Across Frontiers: Adrian Grima

We chat with Maltese poet Adrian Grima.

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Young Dawkins

We catch up with Young Dawkins, winner of the 2011 Scottish Slam Championship.

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Alastair Cook and Ken Cockburn

Collaborative projects involving poetry with other art forms provides the focus of this week’s episode.

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Talking with Donny O’Rourke

Poet, musician, editor and broadcaster Donny O’Rourke talks about Scottish poetry, Scottish identity and Scottish nationalism with Ryan Van Winkle.

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Ian Wedde

We chat with the New Zealand Poet Laureate Ian Wedde.

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Holiday Season 2011: Syria, Lebanon and Scotland at Reel Festivals

Highlights from a series of events centred around writers and artists from Lebanon, Syria and Scotland.

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Colin Herd

We chew the cud with poet, editor and critic Colin Herd.

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Matthew Zapruder

We talk to poet and translator Matthew Zapruder.

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Sarah Broom

We catch up with poet Sarah Broom in Auckland to talk about her collection Tigers at Awhitu.

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Durs Grünbein, Tom Petsinis & Krikri at StAnza

Our Ryan in Residence gets down to brass tacks with Durs Grünbein, Tom Petsinis and poetry troupe Krikri at StAnza 2011.

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Matthew Dickman

In a special episode from Flagstaff, Arizona, Ryan has a good old jaw with poet Matthew Dickman.

Angus Reid is a painter, poet, film and theatre maker, architectural critic, composer and he has a stunning exhibit at Axolotl gallery on Dundas Street, Edinburgh. I’ll be reading some poems with Reid and Henry Marsh to celebrate the exhibit composed of six funky sonnets mirroring the six summits Reid walked  in the Pentlands — an emotional, evocative, windy, journey. When I was asked to read some poems along with him and Mash, I was happy to accept. The space is very beautiful, the poems good. Come, sit on the floor with us, have some wine, talk about the walk, the cold, the wind. Hope to see you there:

Thursday, 29 March — 19.00:  Journey: Poetry and Landscape with Angus Reid and Henry Marsh – Axolotl Gallery, 35 Dundas Street. We’ll be reading, walking in our minds, drinking, maybe singing, talking and – of course – enjoying the fantastic artwork in the gallery. This is the final show for Axolotl on Dundas, so do come and enjoy the space one more time. You’ll like it.

Henry Marsh was born in Broughty Ferry, Dundee in 1944.  He now lives in Midlothian.  His working life has been spent teaching English, with a bit of philosophy.  Henry began writing poetry in 2000 following the death of a friend, a Gaelic Bard, Donald MacDonald of South Lochboisdale.  Four collections of his work have been published to date: A First Sighting, A Turbulent Wake, The Guidman’s Daughter and The Hammer And The Fire.  He was invited to read at the Edinburgh International Book Festival in 2008.

Ryan Goes Reekie

Friday, 30 March — Neu Reekie 15 — Scottish Book Trust, 19.00: join myself, Jenny Lindsay, a featured animator, Raffle of the Absurd, two pound drinks and house band Emelle for another round of Reekie fun. Also, it pleases me to be appearing with our old friend — Mr. Withered Hand. We’ll talk, read poems, sing. All of us, we will.

Poetry NZ is New Zealand’s foremost poetry magazine and it contains a lively mix of resident and international poets. I’m lucky to be amongst them and I urge you to check out the issue. They will gladly post it to you no matter where you live. So, you know, don’t be shy. In this issue I have a poems that address: cancer, David Lynch, suede, One Flew Over the Cukoo’s Nest, groins, and the ball droping in Times Square. The poems are called ‘Moths’ and ‘Untitled (Lynch)’ and I hope you’ll let them into your home the old-fashioned and courtly way.

Also, there is a nice review of my first collection. And I quote: ‘Tomorrow, We Will Live Here is a rich symbol of contemporary UK poetry.’ So, I guess you want to go buy my book now, don’t you? Go ahead. Just click here!

Two Poems in Poetry Scotland

I’m very proud to have had my work appear in Poetry Scotland. It is a great and pioneering broadsheet poetry magazine and to appear in it is something special for me. I’ve been sending submissions in for some time as well as being a loyal subscriber. I’m in the Autumn and Summer 2011 issues and I hope you will support this independent publication by getting the issues or taking out a subscription. It is worth every penny of the very reasonable £5 a year. Check out Poetry Scotland here. Unfortunatly, you don’t get to read ‘Jobation’ or ‘You Wanted to See the Lighthouse’ or ‘Challenger (1986)’ without buying a copy. These issues also feature new work from Donald S. Murray, Nalini Paul, Elspeth Brown, Sheena Blackhall and Kenneth Steven amongst many fine others. Get a copy!