Award-winning writer Michael Glover is a London-based poet, art critic, fiction writer and magazine editor who has contributed regularly to The Independent, The Times, The Financial Times, The New Statesman and The Economist. He is also a London correspondent for ARTnews, New York. His new, on-line poetry forum, The Bow-Wow Shop.
I was excited to be invited by Michael Glover and Marius Kociejowski to celebrate the launch of the third issue of The Bow-Wow Shop at The Arts Club in Dover Street in mid November.
From a personal point of view I was interested to see how this passionate underground society of poets operated. I was thrilled to witness the array of individuals passionate about poetry and I wanted to discuss the history of Bow-Wow and its inception. Clearly Michael’s priority was that he wanted editorial control, straight forward ownership and as an added bonus he would not have the worry of unsold magazines.
Interestingly, Michael who is an insomniac found himself not unusually awake in the middle of the night when he picked up a Captain Francis’s Grossest Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue (1775) which is full of miscellaneous information and not actually vulgar at all compared to today’s standards.
It was there that he encountered the term BOW-WOW CLUB. Not quite the research I expected to unfold but a brilliant name nevertheless.
He and Marius have been friends for many many years and committed to the development of the BOW WOW Shop. Through great effort and commitment they now celebrate the growing popularity of their brain child. They were surrounded by friends, family and poetry connoisseurs and the room was heaving with expectation.
The poets included Alan Brownjohn, Peter Porter, Annie Freud, Martyn Crucefix, Myra Schneider, Leah Fritz and Paul Rossiter.
Also taking the place of honour was the inestimable Poet Laureatesse ‘Dame Polly Syllabix’ a character Michael had invented for the sheer hell of poking fun at the absurdities of the Laureateship game and immortalized by the great Fenella Fielding, who was reading from her collected poems in the octavo .. the most amazingly elegant and eloquent lady of the night in Mayfair that night. How did Fenella become Polly?
Michael described it on his blog “There was one natural choice: the great Fenella Fielding, veteran star of Carry On Screaming. I sent her the speech, and we met in her favourite café one Saturday morning in Covent Garden, where she does a dance class. She flew at me over our cappuccinos: ‘I just can’t do it,’ she said. ‘I don’t know how. How can I possibly combine those two?’ She was barking at me with tremendously engaging imperiousness. ‘How can I possibly be two people at once?’ I felt cowed, horrified, humiliated. Fortunately, she agreed to read the speech out loud in the café in order to get the tone of voice, that mixture of ludicrously deluded self-importance, tetchiness, vanity and soaringly misguided self-confidence. ‘Is there a near perfect congruence’ she declaimed, flourishing her arm to an ever swelling audience, ‘between the rutting of dogs and the antics of poets?” The question was left hanging in the air, tellingly…’
I am so impressed that the traditional form of poetry is now adorning blogging spots and can now attract international poets with immediacy. Bow Wow Shop now has a mailing list of 3500 and a readership of 6000 and is growing fast. Look out for Week 4 – Coming soon. Who says poets are traditionalist that cannot move with the times … just go and visit Michael’s blog.
Of course I must not forget the incredible Fantin Le Flaneur who performed an extended omage to e.e.cummings (an improvisatory three-piece suite entitled ‘c-cummings and g-goings’) on the clarinet. It was a beautifully delivered charming piece, it was difficult to identify where Fantin Le Flaneur began and the clarinet ended as he was so connected to his clarinet and audience. A sincere and fine artist.
I was absolutely delighted by the variety of poetry and the hypnotic use of language. It is a rare luxury to take time out to enjoy the spoken word especially when we are encouraged to devour greedily media material without time to digest. Not an evening I would normally have gone to as with two young sometimes boisterous children music to my ears is usually silence.
The night was captured video by Michael’s wife Ruth and will be seen on Youtube just prior to launch of week 4 of the Bow Wow Shop.
The night would not be complete if I did not give account of the colourful array of guests in the audience, well actually I can speak more specifically of those that sat either side of me.
Inke Lenka a quietly spoken German woman most times except for raucous reactions to comic overtones given by one or two of the female poets. She particularly loved Annie Freud whose poetry included varied family observations and characters that were flawed but adorable.
Another guest was unexpected, I met Michael’s next door neighbour, Edward Russell Walling. He was delighted to see Michael looking flamboyant and wonderful in his element amongst other worthy poets. He said that he knew Michael as a reserved mild mannered gentlemen and it was delightful to see him on such form.
There is much more to hear from Bow-Wow Shop so please do follow the blog and if you are daring enough to be poetic then please offer your literary gifts generously at this magical festive time.
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