Roger McGough – Alive and Gigging

april, 2025

25apr7:30 pmRoger McGough - Alive and Gigging“The patron saint of poetry” reads from his new Collected Poems .

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Event Details

Friday 25th April 2025 at 7.30pm

Doors & bar open at 7.00pm

Tickets: £20

Tickets are available HERE

By phoning 01728 454022, or in person Tuesday and Thursday mornings from 10-12pm at the AJH corner office.

Roger McGough, President of the Poetry Society not only helped kickstart the musical careers of Bob Dylan and Jimi Hendrix, but inspired hundreds, if not thousands of young poets (well, quite a few), on their poetic journeys. 

87 years old and at that awkward age now between birth and death, he puts on a brave face and takes to the stage with a show featuring new poems as well as old favourites. 

The show takes audiences on a journey back to key moments of his life. McGough reflects on his Liverpool childhood just before World War II, with memories and poems including The Full English, The Overall Winner and Learning to Read. Memories of his mum and dad are told through poems The Railing and What Does Your Father Do, and some are a throwback to the ’60s, namely The Beatles and Top of the Pops. 

New verses have been added for Lily the Pink, which take a playful update on the 1968 classic by The Scaffold. As well as laughs, there will be poems about growing old. A Joy to be Old, A Cure for Ageing and Let me Die an Old Man’s Death, which aptly round up the new show. 

Roger will be signing copies of the 2024 release The Collected Poems after the performance. 

“This triumphant anthology stuns with its sheer variety…There is something here for everyone” The Guardian on The Collected Poems 1959-2024 

“McGough is a true original and more than one generation would be much the poorer without him.” The Times 

“The patron saint of poetry.” Carol Ann Duffy 

The performance ends at approx. 9.30pm including an interval. 

Time

(Friday) 7:30 pm

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