The Poets at Dove Cottage E-Book

• Herausgeber: The Poetry Business
• Kategorie: Poesie und Drama
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 32

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2022

Beschreibung

This unique and vivid collection brings to life Dove Cottage and Grasmere through the eyes of twenty-five of our finest poets. Written from so many brilliantly-imagined angles, it allows the reader to experience the day-to-day as it was and is in 'the loveliest spot that Man hath ever found'. William and Dorothy Wordsworth's own writing has pride of place alongside more recent Dove Cottage poets including Fleur Adcock, Simon Armitage, Gillian Clarke, Carol Ann Duffy, Paul Farley, Tony Harrison, Seamus Heaney, Zaffar Kunial, Kim Moore and Helen Mort. With a foreword by Michael McGregor, Director of The Wordsworth Trust.

Leseprobe

The Poets at Dove Cottage

Published 2022 by The Poetry Business

Campo House,

54 Campo Lane,

Sheffield S1 2EG

www.poetrybusiness.co.uk

Copyright © The Contributors 2022

In collaboration with The Wordsworth Trust, Grasmere.

The moral rights of the contributors have been asserted.

ISBN 978-1-912196-34-0

eBook ISBN 978-1-914914-34-8

All rights reserved.

Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

Designed & typeset by The Poetry Business.

Printed by Imprint Digital.

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data.

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

Smith|Doorstop is a member of Inpress (www.inpressbooks.co.uk.)

Distributed by IPS UK, 1 Deltic Avenue,

Rooksley, Milton Keynes MK13 8LD.

The Poetry Business gratefully acknowledges the support of Arts Council England and The Wordsworth Trust, Grasmere.

Contents

Foreword by Michael McGregor

WW Letter to ST Coleridge, Christmas Eve, Grasmere, 1799 by William Wordsworth

Extracts from Dorothy Wordsworth’s Grasmere Journal

Extract from Home at Grasmere by William Wordsworth

High is our calling, Friend! by William Wordsworth

The Keepsake by Fleur Adcock

The Candlelighter by Simon Armitage

On Greenhead Gill with Grasmere School by Gerard Benson

One of the Summer People by Judy Brown

Lines written in a convex mirror above Rydal Water by Holly Corfield Carr

Miracle on St David’s Day by Gillian Clarke

Shoal by Matthew Clegg

Dorothy Wordsworth is Dead by Carol Ann Duffy

Coffin Path Poem by Helen Farish

The Heron by Paul Farley

Remains by Tony Harrison

Wordsworth’s Skates by Seamus Heaney

On the Restoration of the Cuckoo Clock at Dove Cottage by Matt Howard

Placeholder by Zaffar Kunial

A Wood Gathering Poem by Pete Laver

Dunmail Raise by Carola Luther

Dear Mr Wordsworth by Kim Moore

Grasmere Oak by Helen Mort

A Double Wash Stand by Adam O’Riordan

The Boast by Jacob Polley

The Path of a Thousand Hellos by Neil Rollinson

Easedale by Fiona Sampson

Guangzhou Daffodils by David Tait

from Michael: A Pastoral Poem by William Wordsworth

Foreword

In his great poem ‘Michael’, written at Dove Cottage in 1800, William Wordsworth wrote ‘Of youthful Poets, who among these Hills / Will be my second self when I am gone.’ From its foundation in 1891 the Wordsworth Trust has, in this spirit, aspired to be a “living memorial” to Wordsworth, celebrating the continuum of creativity from past to present.

Readings by contemporary poets have long been a part of the Wordsworth Trust’s events programme. A look back through past programmes reveals an astonishing range of poets, from the established to the aspiring. In 1994, our commitment increased with the appointment of our first Poet in Residence, the late Gerard Benson. It was the beginning of an inspiring programme of residencies, which for many poets proved to be a seminal moment in their career. To date we have hosted 30 residencies, ranging in length from two weeks to two years. Each poet has brought a fresh perspective on and creative response to Wordsworth, our collection and the stunning Lake District landscape. From the outset, the emphasis has been on giving poets that most valuable and elusive of commodities – time dedicated to writing. In addition, they have contributed richly to our exhibitions and our work with schools and communities across Cumbria.