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Speeches as Sonnets
A famous political speech recast as a sonnet For several hundred times in Cabinet We met, and oft I went the extra mile Attempting,...
Fabulous
A fable for the 21st century complete with moral A knot of toads in league amassed Upon the cliff top’s brink, With fire behind...
Initial Impressions
An acrostic poem about a politician (alive or dead) in which the initial letter of each line spells the name of that politician Jolly...
Spanish Ayes
A William Topaz McGonagall poetic response to Magaluf Of sunshine Scotland doth not have enough so some say And would prefer for to go to...
Redoing The Hokey-Cokey
A version of the hokey-cokey filtered through the pen of a well-known writer Nothing is so dear and deft as dance — When, in a ring, folk...
After Milton
A sonnet with the following end-rhymes No milksop this, the Tories’ favourite son Who, though his faux pas land him in the mire, He, like...
Twister
A poem with a twist at the end I’m honoured as a lifelong friend to praise the bridegroom, Ben, And tell the bride I know her man will...
Belles of the Ball
A fragment of commentary on the 2019 Women’s World Cup delivered by a figure from the world of fact or fiction Thank havens there are...
Animal Magic
A poem about an imaginary hybrid from two existing animals A cormorant and a May bug met And, wondering if they should beget, They...
Cheesy Feet
A piece of prose which ends with the line ‘I felt like a half-eaten Gorgonzola Who was I? I knew I existed but only as something nascent,...
That Way Madness Lies
A Sonnet found in a deserted madhouse Wild ayes and noes resound inside my brain Indicative of something I suppose, Who has it? Do the...
Spring Villanelle
A villanelle about the coming of Spring A green haze hints that spring might soon appear, The trees come into leaf, unhurried, slow, Like...
Cringe Benefits
A toe-curling bad analogy After bursting into tears her weeping subsided like the slow trickle in a recently flushed cistern
Haikick
A Haikick (a hybrid form incorporating the haiku and limerick) William Spooner Would certainly not admire MPs all at war And, cocked to...
Writer's Block
A poem about the struggle of writing a poem I thought I’d never reach the end But when the Devil drives, needs must. I strove to get that...
The Ex Factor
An elegy on a piece of obsolete technology In grandma’s scullery it stood, sublime, The rainbow arch which crowned the cast iron frame,...
Shakespearean
A sonnet with the name of a Shakespearean character hidden in each line Poor Portia, such glum arias she sings, Sad as a blue tit...
Bad Romance
A seriously misguided love poem likely to repel rather than attract Dearest love, fear not, I’m coming, Hammer-like my heart is drumming,...
Brief Lives
A short verse biography of a well-known person from history Not hardy, but a weakling born, Ay, weakling born, Who lived a life forlorn...
This Sporting Life
An ode on a piece of gymnasium equipment My heart quakes, and a lousy glumness gains A hold on me and fills me with dismay, Then, as my...
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