Category Archives: Events

Still busy over the summer…

Telltale Towers is ringing with the sound of cogitation as we mull over plans for the next year or so. Some of it is a bit hush-hush at the moment, but here’s what’s definitely happening:

Sarah Barnsley’s pamphlet The Fire Station is coming in September and it’s going to be Hot Stuff. Cover reveal coming soon!

We’re entering both When Love Came To The Cartoon Kid and The Nightwork for the Michael Marks Poetry Pamphlet Award.

We’re cosying up to the Frogmore Press for Free Verse, The Poetry Book Fair in London on September 26th where we’ll be sharing a table and selling pamphlets, postcards and/or all manner of natty poetry doo-dads. Hope to see you there…

 

A Hot Night at the Poetry Cafe

Robin Houghton, Peter Kenny, Sarah Barnsley, Tamar Yoseloff & Sue Rose, Telltale Poets & Friends, Poetry Cafe June 2015

Robin Houghton, Peter Kenny, Sarah Barnsley, Tamar Yoseloff & Sue Rose

We had a great time at the Poetry Cafe last night. These things are never without drama! Firstly, Tamar Yoseloff wasn’t at all well, so it was touch and go whether she could be there – so we were mighty relieved and grateful to see her.

Then there had clearly been some mix-up at the Poetry Cafe, as a number of the audience clearly weren’t expecting our event. It was actually standing room only in the end, and although we sweltered a bit no-one really minded. One person who turned up expecting an open mic was disappointed, but a number of others did stay and one person made a point of saying she was glad she did.

Our guest readers gave wonderful readings – Sue’s included some of the poems from her sonnet sequence Heart Archives, a combination of fourteen sonnets inspired by love and loved ones, and her own photos. It’s a really beautiful book, lovely production values, from Hercules Editions. And Tamar read from (and gave some background to) her new book Nowheres, a collaboration with artist David Harker, whose exhibition Drawing the Line is on display at the Poetry Cafe until June 27th. You can read John Field’s review of Nowheres here.

We were very proud to introduce Sarah Barnsley in her first reading for Telltale, a preview of some of the poems from her forthcoming pamphlet The Fire Station.

The audience included two visiting professors from the State University of New York at Oswego, Laura Donnelly and Adrienne McCormick, and a number of their students, which was great fun. And we couldn’t NOT invite Laura to read a couple of her own poems while in London!

Tamar Yoseloff, Sue Rose & Sarah Barnsley at the Poetry Cafe

Just a week to go till our next ‘Telltale Poets & Friends‘ – our informal reading series featuring special guests. Peter and I hope you can join us at the Poetry Cafe, 22 Betterton Street in London’s Covent Garden, at 7pm next Thursday 18th June.

We’re delighted to have Tamar Yoseloff and Sue Rose coming to read recent work, and also our newest member, Sarah Barnsley. We’re currently working on the production of Sarah’s debut pamphlet, ‘The Fire Station’, which will be published in September. It’s a wonderful first collection and we’re so proud to have Sarah on board. Do come and hear her read and enjoy a sneak preview of the pamphlet.

Photo of Sarah Barnsley by Hannah Brackenbury

Photo of Sarah Barnsley by Hannah Brackenbury

Launch of ‘When Love Came To The Cartoon Kid’

Siegfried Baber launch reading photo by Dot & Lucy Photography

Huge thanks to Toppings Bookshop in Bath, and to Saber the manager there, for not only supporting our latest pamphlet but for hosting the launch reading last Wednesday.

Siegfried Baber’s ‘When Love Came To The Cartoon Kid’ is a fantastic debut from a young poet with a great poetry career ahead of him. It was a super audience and nearly 30 pamphlets were sold there and then … plus we’ve already had mail orders from as far afield as Australia! You can buy the pamphlet here …

Thanks so much to Dot of Dot & Lucy Photography for allowing us to reproduce her photos on this site.

Siegfried Baber,  Toppings Bookshop May 2015 photo by Dot & Lucy Photography

 

 

A great night at the Lewes Arms

Telltale Poets and Friends at the Lewes Arms

Peter Kenny, Siegfried Baber, Helen Fletcher & Martin Malone

Telltale Press & Friends took the Lewes Arms by storm last night, battling a train derailment, a ukulele group next door, and the warmest day of the year so far. . . but the room was full, everybody was happy and it was fantastic to see so many friendly faces.

Unfortunately Ryan Whatley wasn’t able to make it, but Siegfried Baber stepped up with about ten minutes’ notice and read from his new pamphlet, When Love Came To The Cartoon Kid. Although the pamphlet launches officially next month, our Lewes audience got a sneak preview and sales were good.

Peter Kenny was marvellous as the opening reader, performing one long poem from memory to great effect, and in the second half we heard readings from Helen Fletcher and Martin Malone. Helen had come all the way from Carlisle, and Martin from Warwickshire. Both were well received and the evening felt like a wonderful mix of styles and subject matter, not to mention a groovy poet get-together.

In the audience was a fearsome array of poetic talent, including many of the Lewes literati, plus Stephen Bone, a brilliant supporter of the press (read Robin’s review of his collection ‘In the Cinema’), and Roy Marshall who was there partly to get Martin home before the witching hour.

We also announced our latest Telltale Poet – but more about her shortly!

Huge thanks to our helpers & invaluable supporters Lorraine and Nick, and to the folks at the Lewes Arms for their hospitality … we’ll be back!

Lovely evening of readings at the Poetry Cafe

Readers at the Telltale Press event, Poetry Cafe, 7th Jan 2015

L to R: Robin Houghton, Peter Kenny, Rhona McAdam, Catherine Smith, Siegfried Baber

Last Wednesday we kicked off the New Year with a super evening at the Poetry Cafe  – more about it here on Poetgal. We’re already looking forward to the next one – will keep you posted!

Happy New Year – join us at the Poetry Cafe

First week into the New Year we’re back on the road at the Poetry Cafe, or as Peter Kenny eloquently puts it:

“After the orgy of booze-fuelled ribaldry that is December, why not turn over a new leaf in 2015 and make your first social outing one for the soul? Poetry from the outstanding Canadian poet Rhona McAdam, the frankly steamy Catherine Smith, shining new talent Siegfried Baber, plus the multi-prize winning Robin Houghton and myself in the centre of London.”

Yee-haa! Please come, bring your friends and let’s get started on 2015 with some shiny new poetry. Rhona McAdam is over from Canada, so take this opportunity to hear a brilliant talent… and Catherine Smith’s ‘The New Cockaigne’ is a fantastic, rollicking satirical tale in verse.

Free entry, all welcome … we hope to see you there, and will have news of our plans for 2015 and beyond.

With best wishes for a fantastic Christmas and New Year…

January at the Poetry Cafe

RhonaMcAdam_AuthorPhoto2_CreditAlexisYobbagyWe’re planning another Telltale & Friends reading at the Poetry Cafe on January 7th 2015, when one of our guest readers will be Rhona McAdam, a fine Canadian poet whose sixth full-length poetry collection, Ex-ville, is published by Oolichan Books this month.

Rhona spent some years in London and still returns regularly, so we’re delighted she can join us in January.

Meanwhile we’re also hoping to introduce the next Telltale Poet – exciting!

(Photo: Alexis Yobbagy)

Telltale launches in Lewes & Hove

Hove Telltale Launch event

Catherine Smith, Peter Kenny and Robin Houghton at the Hove launch

Last night was the second of our private launches for Peter Kenny’s The Nightwork, and joining us to read were Catherine Smith (who also read last week in Lewes) and John McCullough, who entertained us marvellously despite only recently getting back from Japan.

Peter Kenny reading at the Lewes launch of Telltale Press

Peter Kenny reading at the Lewes launch

Our venues were quite different – last week we were in the meeting room of The Hive, a really nice cosy space with a big pot plant in the corner – we put tealights on the mantlepiece and it had a salon feel. Then last night we were in the big, bright airy space of Cameron Contemporary Art in Hove, a wonderful gallery with floor to ceiling windows all down one side. Everyone remarked how quiet and classy it was, plus lots of lovely artwork to view of course.

I’m rather jinxed when it comes to filming so I can’t say yet whether we managed to capture any of the readings successfully, but I hope so. If and when we have something in the bag we’ll post it here.

So, two fab evenings done, one public launch event to go – next Wednesday at the Poetry Cafe, the day before National Poetry Day, so we hope we manage to get an audience!

Exciting news in the build up to our launch readings

It’s all happening at Telltale Towers! Checklists galore, last minute wobbles (will we have enough chairs? glasses?)…

Some great news came in the last few days. First of all, Telltale’s first pamphlet, Robin Houghton’s ‘The Great Vowel Shift’ has just had a super review by Clare Best in The Frogmore Papers. Secondly, one of our London launch guest poets, Rishi Dastidar, has just been named as one of the two new Assistant Editors at The Rialto.

Exciting times … do come to hear Rishi, Anja, Peter & Robin reading at The Poetry Cafe on October 1st, we’ve all got publications to sell, so it’s free to get in but it might cost you a pamphlet to get out!