In my last post I suggested I’d had one of the weeks when you wished you could do one of those ‘a week in the life of’ columns, but I hadn’t been asked. Well I got asked by Jo Bell to do it for the National Poetry Day web-site. It is on my list of things to do: 300-400 words. I did start and the word count was consumed by the first evening (such is the glamour of my life) so am going to have to come up with a summary and some kind of over-arching and meaningful comment. I think I have it, given the week started with me doing my best ‘shouty boy’ set to a boisterous and engaged audience of some 150 in a Shoreditch nightclub and ended with my name not being the one in the envelope at the Hughes Award announcement in the Saville Club in Mayfair, it should be possible. More honestly, it ended with me blundering back to the hotel having over compensated my disappointment with the free free-flowing wine and then the pub with Helen, my producer Sarah and visual artist Karen, plus some of the Poetry Society crowd. Also (brace yourselves for shameless name-dropping) Matthew Sweeney, Christopher Reid and George Szirtes, plus the winner of the National Poetry Competition who’d never had a poem published. As if that was not enough that bloke who was runner up in The Apprentice turned up in the background of the photos. I am proud to say, I resisted the temptation to shout out YOU’RE FIRED in his direction, although I’m sure he would have found it hilarious. Since then Helen and I have been on the wagon and living quiet lives. I managed a minor skirmish on Facebook in the post Arts Council funding announcements, but other than it has been admin. I realised I slipped in the ‘didn’t win the Hughes’. You can be sure I would have blogged a lot quicker if I had won. But there was a huge amount of goodwill towards Whistle in the room that was better than any prize (no honestly, you cynics). I’ve had so much support and help on the project and never got the chance to say so publicly – so here I say thank you to: all those who nominated me, Sarah Ellis, Karen Hall, Andre Barreau, George Szirtes and most especially Helen Ivory. There are other, lots of them, you know who you are and that I am grateful.
I also failed to get selected for the Pulse Festival – this is particularly annoying as the application (FOR ONE GIG!) is a major effort and includes questions such as How do you intend to use the PULSE Festival to further the development of this piece, your career and the careers of the other members of your team? CVs for everyone included! I also didn’t get Decibel – more understandable – and the PR I wanted for Edinburgh couldn’t take me on. Is this the start of the decline I ask myself as I head to the fridge.