David Bircumshaw

David Bircumshaw
Pam Brown
Jill Chan
Jen Crawford
AnnMarie Eldon
Claire Gaskin
Jeff Harrison
Jill Jones
Mark Kanak
Christopher Kelen
Corinne Lee
Cassie Lewis
Lizz Murphy
Sheila E Murphy
Alaric Sumner
Louise Waller
Mark Young

Renga -
  Andrew Burke,
  Jen Crawford,
  Louise Waller,
  Lawrence Upton,
  Kristin Hannaford,
  Jennifer Compton,
  Heather Matthew,
  Jill Jones
  Alison Croggon

I know one thing, and that I know well:
living in Leicester is like being in hell.

David Bircumshaw

So solo una cosa e bene la so:
la vita a Leicester è un vero inferno

Italian version, from Anny Ballardini

Eitt veit ég þó,
og sú vitneskja er sýkt:
Að lífið í Leistri
er helvíti líkt!

Icelandic, from Arni Ibsen.

Fur this is hell, nor am a oot o it:
    there is nae wurld elsewhere;
'S Alexandria, no Leicester, yir leavin.

Scots, from Robin Hamilton.

Dissatisfactions with Verse

'White as a hospital, the lie began ....'

                I

This is an age of prose.

               II

The mountains have all been climbed.
Speechworst evicted gods grudge and slurry
Off into a flit loft of lost
Snow flurry. From slow masked
Breathmarks: plastic, oxygen.

              III

And rubble.

              IV

On the bed opposite, his head
Almost loll-loll lolling
Drop like a peach, pillowed
On nothing but memory
Like that portrait canvas what was it
Twitch old Goya plus doctor plus.
Who's emptied eyes swimming
Pools looking out
Drained beyond metaphor?

              V

This is an age of noise.

              VI

The pure noise, oh the colourless
Delight, arrhythmia
Shambling without shape. I believe
In chance, it is fate;
The wave's number's up. Look:
I am a voice, collapsing. Rilke's
Narrow angels' glob and puddle.

              VII

And scrabble.

               VIII

Without shape blur, form blah, purpose us,
Point dit, off dot, off off, dat, ooze sqwoos.

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