There is a strange feeling comes over you when you reach the beginning of the end of a tour. Sat at hotel restaurant in Shrewsbury I felt very emotional, beaten down but alive, sad but happy, grounded but affected, all at once. It was a complex kinda feeling one that felt right though. Natural. Honest.

Starting in the middle Fix was an experience for me. Monday, Fuel Bar Cafe Manchester, A real honest spoken word account of my days and nights as a hedonist, the good, the bad, and the strung out. One of my favourite ever performances, one where I really enjoyed myself on stage. It felt good, it felt right. It was well received. I have big plans for Fix. More to say about that at a later date but believe me, wheels are in motion.

Manky Poets was a lovely event to come back to, hosted by the dab hand of copland smith. It’s the longest running Manchester poetry event and its headliner for the month, Steven Waling did it proud. It was also a chance for me to air a few sections of Fix a few days before the full show. Fix is actually about an hour and a half in length (without the necessary chapter intros) so may never get read in its entirety, as a result each reading can be more or less unique, in what sections get read and in what order. Since the show is non linear (decided by themes not dates) it can be read in virtually any order. This excites me. As for Manky Poets and earlier Beatification I really enjoyed the poetry of Ben Willems, a real talent.

Tuesday was Word Central. I had already a headliner during Lockdown but had yet to make the live gig. I had not been to the Central Library in Manchester since its massive refurb so loved being in there. Tony Curry is a fascinating and supportive MC and Paul Neads runs a tight ship. It’s always lovely to perform and being with a live audience was an excellent experience.

Survivors was a wonderful blend of poetry and music, the headliner was captivating reading her poems about the USA in Fall and Yorkshire, her nature poems perfect for a November evening online. Deborah McNamara is a very warm and welcoming host. It did the soul good.

So now there are only two more events. So my next post will probably be my final blog on the road but I’ve really enjoyed going back over recent, fresh memories. I may have felt a mixture of feelings tonight, but positivity always rings through like a peal of bells.

Yes.