brianbilston

[brianbilston]

O do not ask if I am beach body ready

O do not askif I am beach body ready. Observe how the folds of my stomach ripplelike the wind-pulled waves. Rub your hands over these pale buttocks,sand-smoothed by time. Note my milk-white limbs like washed up whalebones,stranded and useless. Consider these tufts of hair on my back and shoulderssprouting wildly like sea-grass. And listen to the lapping of my socksat the shores of my…

[brianbilston]

At the Intersection

The mathematician John Venn was born on this day in 1834. To commemorate the occasion, here’s a poem in the form of a Venn diagram.

[brianbilston]

You Took the Last Bus Home

I took delivery yesterday of some advance copies of the gorgeous new edition of ‘You Took the Last Bus Home’. In celebration of that, here’s the title poem … You Took the Last Bus Home you tookthe last bus homedon’t know howyou got it through the door  you’re always doing amazing stuff  like the time you caught that train

[brianbilston]

The Bad Salad of William Archibald Spooner

Why do I always watch my birds?I know that statement sounds absurdbut today I reached an all-lime toewhen I received a blushing crow. It’s wetting gorse – and here’s the crunch:my conversation packs a lunch.I’m not sure when all this beganbut I think I need a plaster man to help me when my stouth gets muck.I should sit, perhaps, and bead a rook,fight a liar, or flick some powers.No, I think…

[brianbilston]

Wild Weekend

Sunday – and the squirrels are lazing in their branches,the sheep are congregating for morning service,and the bears are sleeping off their sore heads. The sloths are taking things slow, the hippos are wallowing,the cats are curling up on the newspaper in front of the television.The alpacas will spend the day in their fluffies. Not everyone is taking it easy. The deer are up alreadyfor a walk…

[brianbilston]

In the Park

In the park,the tall trees are wavingin the afternoon breeze. I wave backonly to realize they are wavingat the person behind me.

[brianbilston]

Stream 'Sounds Made by Humans'

Sounds Made by Humans – an album of my poetry put to music by the fabulous Catenary Wires – can now be listened to on Spotify, iTunes and those other streaming platforms. “A contender for album of the year.” Backseat Mafia“An instant cult classic. 5/5” Louder Than War And if you like what you hear, you can hear it played live this autumn when we’re heading off on a UK tour. There will be music,…

[brianbilston]

Today's Climate Forecast

And onto today’s climate forecast, where we can expect to see a prolonged spell of inaction,interspersed with patches of hazy promisesacross many areas.  Over Westminster and other centres of government,a build-up of hot air will cause inactivity to soarto record levels over the coming days,in spite of the high pressure. Elsewhere, a front of chronic misinformation will sweep in from the east,…

[brianbilston]

Ireland tour in October

Exciting times … I’m coming back to Ireland this October to read some poems in what is set to be my most extensive tour there yet*: 17th: BELFAST, Mandela Hall18th: DUBLIN, Ambassador Theatre19th: LIMERICK, Lime Tree Theatre20th: DERRY, Millennium Forum Tickets are on sale here: https://brianbilston.com/events/. Book now to guarantee disappointment. * previous record = 2 shows

[brianbilston]

Nights of music and poetry ...

One tour may have just finished but here’s news of another one coming soon … I’m delighted to announce that this autumn I’ll be going on tour with The Catenary Wires, for some fun-filled evenings of music and poetry. We’ll be performing our album ‘Sounds Made by Humans’, and there’ll be poems from me and music from the band throughout the night. Most of the gigs are in November, with a few…

[brianbilston]

Sounds Made by Humans - out now!

Last week saw the release of ‘Sounds Made by Humans’, an album of ‘poem songs’ I’ve made with the brilliant Catenary Wires. Sounds Made by Humans The album is out now on vinyl and CD; it’s also available for streaming on Spotify and elsewhere, and can be downloaded. Some places where you can find it… BANDCAMP SHOPIFY ROUGH TRADE (including limited edition ‘white vinyl’ edition): We’re…

[brianbilston]

Every Song on the Radio

A new ‘poem song’ with the fab Catenary Wires is out today: Every Song on the Radio Reminds Me of You. We’ve even made an accompanying video, in which I do some very good walking around with a radio, plus knob twiddling. Caravan of love It’s from our forthcoming album, ‘Sounds Made by Human’ which comes out on 9 May and is available to pre-order on vinyl and CD from all good record stores.…

[brianbilston]

A Poem for Every Question

Some news! A new book is on its way … A Poem for Every Question consists of 100 new poems for children, written in answer to the curious questions that kids will ask. Questions such as:Are unicorns real?How many stars exploded in the Universe today?Was Blackbeard a real pirate?Can it rain fish? Each poem is accompanied by the clever and funny artwork of Joe Berger. It’s the first time I’ve…

[brianbilston]

Sounds Made by Humans

Some exciting news … I’ve been collaborating (well, having fun) with a brilliant band, The Catenary Wires, who have very cleverly put some of my poems to music. The result is an album of thirteen songs to be released on 9th May on Skep Wax Records. It’s called ‘Sounds Made by Humans’. It can be pre-ordered now on vinyl and CD here: https://linktr.ee/brianbilston and it will also be available…

[brianbilston]

Early Morning Love Poem

Duvet, you are so groovet, I’d like to stay under you all of Tuesdet.

[brianbilston]

New shows for 2025

I’m delighted to announce a plethora of new shows for May 2025 with the brilliant Henry Normal. We’re be coming to BIRMINGHAM, CAMBRIDGE, HARROGATE, LANCASTER, LIVERPOOL, LONDON, MANCHESTER, MELTON MOWBRAY, NEWCASTLE-UNDER-LYME, NORTHAMPTON, STOCKTON-ON-TEES and WHITLEY BAY. Tickets have gone on sale today. As previously announced, we’ll also be reading poems in ASHFORD, BURNLEY, CARDIFF,…

[brianbilston]

Let Sleeping Cats Lie - out now

It’s UK publication day for ‘Let Sleeping Cats Lie’, my collection of poems about pets. I wrote the for book children, aged between 7 and 95, and it’s available through all the usual bookshop places. You can find some of the online retailers here: https://linktr.ee/brianbilston There are a few signed copies knocking about, too. Here’s a small list of some of the independent bookshops who have…