One of the incidental pleasures of my sabbatical has been deciding what to have for lunch each day. Over the last couple of months, I've enjoyed the following lunchtime delicacies, usually accompanied by a nice cup of tea, and rounded off with an apple (Cox's Orange Pippin for preference): Tahini, cheese and lettuce sandwich Egg …
Author: Hilaire
I am a writer of poetry and prose. I was born and brought up in Melbourne but have lived in London most of my adult life.
evolving english
Ventured up to the British Library yesterday, to see the latest of their wonderful (and, amazingly, free) exhibitions, Evolving English: One Language, Many Voices. The exhibition explores the development and spread of the English language, in all its rich variety, covering aspects such as slang and dialect, and how the language has absorbed influences from …
come in, january
The last day of 2010 is cool, dank and overcast, and I'll soon be closing the blinds. I've yet to notice the slow lengthening of the days since the winter solstice. But for once, I'm quite looking forward to January, which, in England, is usually an interminably long and dismal month. The difference for me, …
something old, something blue
So, farewell, old blue cardie. I have finally accepted that my midnight blue cardigan has passed over from the realm of garments to that of rags. I bought it from Benetton on King's Road sometime in early 1985, when I first came to London. How many gigs did I wear it to? The Smiths, at …
a week in December
A packed week, which started, startlingly and hilariously, with James Naughtie's now infamous slip-up just before 8 o'clock on Monday morning. Then the gratifying announcement that Susan Philipsz had won the Turner Prize (see my post about her installation Surround Me). Also tickled to hear about the campaign Cage Against the Machine, which aims to …
Diaghilev at the V & A
On Friday afternoon, we ventured out to see the exhibition Diaghilev and the Golden Age of the Ballet Russes at the Victoria and Albert museum. This proved to be a thoroughly absorbing exhibition, bringing together so many different elements - theatre, music, art, choreography, strong and creative personalties - in the same way that Diaghilev …
Triptych Poets – Melbourne launch
Thursday 11th November saw the Melbourne launch of Triptych Poets: Issue One, hosted by my fellow Triptych poet Ray Liversidge at Collected Works bookshop. Unfortunately I couldn't quite stretch to a flying visit back home, but some of my family were able to attend. Ray read my poem The Lemon Tree, the Hills Hoist and …
surround me
What better way to spend a crisply cold Sunday afternoon than tracking down ethereal sound installations in obscure alleys and corners of the City of London? These temporarily deserted streets are the site for Surround Me - A Song Cycle for the City of London by Susan Philipsz. We start in Change Alley, where three …
time to write
Tomorrow, officially, is the first day of my six month sabbatical from paid employment. My plan, simply, is to write. To see what I can achieve (unfortunate, work-tainted word) with a period of uninterrupted time. Uninterrupted, except for interruptions I choose, from hourly mugs of coffee, to gazing out the window at the comings and …
The Unfortunates
A few (random, appropriately) thoughts on Radio 3's dramatisation of B.S. Johnson's The Unfortunates, broadcast last night: his searing honesty that wonderful mix of humour and pathos the vividly evoked detail of place and time (the sixties, a Midlands town, British Rail trains, a walk on the Downs...) the relishing of food, of language held …
Hilaire 