I Once Stood In The Middle Of

We Still Need A Voice That Thinks Before It Speaks.

As Far As I Can Tell, There Are Two Kinds Of Poets: Those Who Want To Tell Stories And Sing Songs, And Those Who Want To Work Out The Chemical Equation For Language And Pass On Their Experiments As Poetry.

I Wondered If People Might Not Have Had Enough Of Simon Armitage And Wondered Whether I Hadn't Had Enough Of Simon Armitage.

I Once Stood In The Middle Of New York City Watching My Name Go Round The Electronic Zipper Sign In Times Square And I Felt Pretty Thrilled, But Not Quite As Thrilled As I Felt When I Saw My Name In The Examiner For The First Time.

Killing Time In The Precinct, I Find A Copy Of One Of My Early Volumes In A Dump-bin On The Pavement Outside The Charity Shop. The Price Is 10p. It Is A Signed Copy. Under The Signature, In My Own Handwriting, Are The Words, "to Mum And Dad".