Salo press has just issued Pissoir! #2 edited by Sophie Essex. Taking the word ‘pissoir’ as inspiration I wrote this poem below, ‘CHOICE’. It appears with another, ‘SUSPECT COMMUNITY.’ in the issue.
2 poems in Pissoir! #2
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Poem in Skylight 47
Skylight 47 is a long-established literary journal based in Galway. I have a poem in issue 19. It’s one of a series about my grandfather, Thomas Graham.
Poem in These Pages Sing
These Pages Sing describes itself as ‘a quarterly, English-language magazine made in Wales. We aim to highlight unsung Welsh voices to honour our diverse culture and rich history.’ I was very pleased to have a poem in the first edition.
‘Cardiff Docks, 1931’ is about my father’s years in the merchant navy when he worked out of Cardiff for more than a decade before the Second World War.
In 2024 St Fagans National Museum of History, just outside Cardiff, opened its reconstruction of The Vulcan, a pub which had been moved from central Cardiff to this site. Below is a video which gives a virtual tour of this pub which features in my poem.
Star in St Hilda’s College, Oxford news
Nice to see ‘Star’ feature in news from my college.
 | Angela Graham (English, 1975) has published several collections of short stories and poetry in recent years, and her new offering is suitably festive! STAR: Poems for the Christmas Season is a new poetry collection that illuminate a wide range of human experience – political power struggles; persecution and flight; the vulnerability of the innocent and of the planet – alongside celebration, wonder and friendship. And we hear some Irish, Welsh, Scots and Ulster-Scots, reflecting Angela’s engagement with our indigenous languages. You can buy STAR right here or find out more about Angela’s work on her website. |
STAR launches at No Alibis Bookshop, Belfast
A supportive bookshop is a wonderful thing and that is exactly what No Alibis is. David Torrens kindly arranged a launch for ‘Star’ in his welcoming and extremely well-stocked shop on 14th November.
No two launches are the same. No Alibis, on Belfast’s Botanic Avenue is a treasure trove for book lovers, an intimate place wehere you feel the love of books in the atmosphere.
It was a great pleasure to read to an audience of poets and book lovers and editors.
Star launches at Corrymeela
On 4th November ‘STAR’ was launched at Corrymeela, Ballycastle to a wonderfully receptive audience.
Corrymeela, Centre for Reconciliation, is very close to my home in Ballycastle and it was a privilege and a pleasure to hold the launch there. The Centre has done ground-breaking work for decades in bringing communities together and it has develoepd protocols for achieveing reconciliation through hard-earned experience of tackling difficullties in many settings.
It was particularly supportive to have members of Ballycastle Writers Group there and member, Ashley Todd kindly read my poem in Ulster-Scots from ‘Star’: ‘Chrissmas Eve’. She was terrific!
It was very special for me to read to friends from the locality and the staff and members of Corrymeela Community couldn’t have been more helpful.
The Irish Times: ‘Waking Up To Christmas’ 17 Dec ’24
On 17th December 2024 The Irish Times carried an article by me about ‘STAR’ entitled, ‘Waking Up To Christmas‘
I focused on my admiration for the 12th-century scuptor, Gislebertus who not only designed and oversaw the construction of the cathedral of Autun in Burgundy but also carved some of the most beautiful works of art on its facade and in its interior.
I’d long felt that an image of Gislbertus’s carving ‘The Awakening of the Magi’ would be right for the cover of ‘STAR’. (The article contains a photo of the carving). I found a wonderful linocut by Martin Erspamer, which is his take, in that medium, of ‘The Awakening’; the moment before the three astronomer kings see the Christmas star for the very first time.
Continue reading The Irish Times: ‘Waking Up To Christmas’ 17 Dec ’24
Consulate General of Ireland sponsor STAR launch & Christmas reading
The Consulate General of Ireland in Wales kindly sponsored the Cardiff launch of ‘STAR: poems for the Christmas Season’.
Llyfrau Caban Books hosted with Phil Cope of Culture And Democracy Press.
On 12th December I read from ‘STAR’ at the Consulate’s Christmas reception in Cardiff. Both Ireland and Wales are very present in ‘STAR’ and I was delighted to share some poems with this particular audience.
Poetry in 3 Slimline anthologies from The Broken Spine
High Rise: Brutalist Poetry, a slimline anthology that promises to blend the raw, unfiltered essence of Brutalism with the emotional depth and honesty of art brut. Inspired by the architectural starkness of ‘beton brut’ and the visceral expressiveness championed by notable figures such as Charles Bukowski, Sylvia Plath, and Anne Sexton, this collection seeks to explore the profound realities of the human condition through poetry that is both honest and intricately crafted.
My poem ‘Ending The World’ appears in ‘LAST LIGHT’ anthology.
Last Light: Apocalypse Poetry is a compelling anthology edited by Alan Parry, presented by The Broken Spine. This collection offers a haunting exploration of apocalyptic themes through the eyes of diverse, contemporary poets. The works within navigate the fragility of existence, environmental collapse, and the profound sense of finality that marks the end of worlds, both imagined and real.
With contributions from poets like Angela Graham, Clive Matson, and Amaleena Damlé, each poem acts as a poignant reflection on humanity’s role in its own undoing. The collection deftly balances between the personal and the universal, capturing the myriad ways in which individuals and societies confront the spectre of annihilation. From the visceral imagery of environmental devastation to the intimate despair of personal loss, Last Light invites readers to consider the beauty and terror of endings.
Last Light is a powerful testament to the enduring relevance of apocalyptic literature in our uncertain times.
My poem, ‘CAPITULATION’ appears in ‘Reels’
‘Reels doesn’t ask for your comfort, and it won’t offer any. This anthology gathers poets who write with an edge, crafting texts that land like unflinching film cuts, capturing moments that demand to be seen. Born from a passing conversation on the cinematic art of image-shifting, Reels is for readers ready to feel every word, every line, and every collision of light and shadow.
‘Edited by Alan Parry, Reels invites you into poetry as snapshots of raw, untamed experience. Refusing to look away, these poems confront beauty and brutality with unapologetic honesty. Featuring voices like Georgia Hilton, Sue Finch, Katie Manning, and many more—Reels embodies poetry at its most uncompromising.
Published by The Broken Spine, Reels is for those who understand that art lives on the edge, that real poetry is a lens on the world’s harshest truths. Step into these pages if you’re ready to see what these poets lay bare—but leave comfort at the door. This is poetry with teeth, capturing life’s starkest reels.’
I was interviewed about my short fiction by The Broken Spine https://thebrokenspine.co.uk/2022/11/02/brokenasides-with-angela-graham
Short Story in The Lonely Crowd #14
The Lonely Crowd was one of the first journals to take a story from me so it’s always a particular pleasure to be published here. A print copy arrived immediately before Christmas containing the bold mixture of styles that we’ve come to expect.
My story is one of imprisonment, escape and daring – in unlikely circumstances: THE BANGLE
Three Poems Medbh McGuckian / Mature People Mary Morrissy / Three Poems Taz Rahman / Everything Falling Emily Devane / Letter To My First Milk Tooth Breda Spaight / Success is counted sweetest… Fiona O’Connor / Naming Jimmy Wilde Tony Curtis / Capital Vices Conor Montague / Two Poems Hilary Watson / Intermission Catherine Wilkinson / Three Poems Linda McKenna / A Suitable Feast Cath Barton / Three Poems Jackie Gorman / A Letter to Dylan Thomas Orfhlaith Foyle / Three Poems Pauline Flynn / Joy Karys Frank / Three Poems Jane Lovell / Wild Horses Lucie McKnight Hardy / Two Poems Jo Mazelis / The Bangle Angela Graham / Two Poems Fiona Cameron / Take Away Alan McCormick / Two Poems Mary O’Donnell / Review: Open Up by Thomas Morris / Two Poems for Christopher Cornwell John Goodby, John Lavin / Edited by John Lavin
