I live in a small Cornish village with my dog Rex It is a tranquil life born of silence and friendships I am an artist and often paint the sea and the harbour It is mostly a seasonal occupation As I travel during the cooler months But now I am changing these self imposed rules…

I visited the Ramsgate Tunnels yesterday It was a very interesting experience Jane was on the constant look out for spiders Which do not alarm me at all as I am insect free However I did find something that worried me It was a small metal sign nailed into the chalk wall It read –…

I had not even reached twenty and had not loved I had not travelled I had not written books This is my only serious poem Recorded in blood I had no argument with the enemy Yet others thought that this area of scrubland Was worth fighting for Yet they are alive Sitting on the coffins…

Helen Lassiter was a trained opera singer Who sang under the name of Copper Beech She was quite popular but lived in obscurity Often wearing rags and goften clothes Helen lobed in a shack near Copper Beach And swam each morning no matter the weather To raise founds she would sing in front of charity…

Angels in reverse Crowd The threatening skies I am counting The grey church towers Warning bells are about to toll Bring out your dead most of them have died the most memorable of deaths They were all filthy traitors And have died by my sword The scent of the night I will not close my…

You stand at my gate Smoking a pipe Adopting a languid pose Your sword rests against The lightning stump Which in its short life Was far more gallant Than you have ever been

I live quietly in East Kent And own a large house That has extensive views Towards the Coast of France When I am resting in my Sea Garden I often think of you In our bookshop opposite the Seine It is a humble slow moving river That is always Alice Thoughtful As you are my…

I have lived near the sea For a number of years I can see the coast of France From my clear rooms on upper days This brings me a great sense of comfort

From my bedroom window I used to be able to see the Radley Tower It was over one thousand feet tall And was built on Radley Moor In the late nineteen sixties as a transmitter My childhood house was built at about the same time And the house came with the job My father was…

Heaven That it faces I sometimes think When I am deep in thought It illuminates the town whatever the month The local light is famed for its crystal brilliance