WordDoctors.co.uk

Knowing that Martin shares my great fondness for Hugo's poetry, and just in case he hasn't already seen it, there was a really good two-page feature on the great man in Saturday's Guardian. It's online here:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2009/ju ... rview-poet
I think he's got a lot of interesting things to say about the writing process. Nice to see, too, that the writer picks up on the fact that he's often anything but your typical mainstream poet (despite the way he's often tagged as such presumably because of his Old Etonian background), highlighting his occasional surreal flourishes and the fact that the Hugo Williams of the poems is very much a character.

Matt, I have to reveal my ignorance, yet again, for I'd never heard of Hugo Williams (nor had I heard of his parents) but I read the article out of curiosity and will look out for him in the future. Like him I've outlived my father, who also died at the age of 65, but that's where the resemblance ends!
Thanks for the reference.
Regards.
Tony

I can recommend him very highly. The Collected Poems aren't necessarily essential reading, because a lot of the early stuff seems a bit half-baked, but any of the last three collections - Dock Leaves, Billy's Rain and Dear Room - are excellent.