Bloodaxe Books | Keith Hutson: Hylda (for Hylda Baker 1905–1986) @BloodaxeBooks | Uploaded February 2019 | Updated October 2024, 1 hour ago.
Keith Hutson has written for Coronation Street and for many well-known comedians. He has published two much praised poetry pamphlets, Routines (in 2017) and Roupers (2018). His first book-length collection, BALDWIN’S CATHOLIC GEESE, looks at the delight and heartbreak of being human through the lens of beloved music hall and variety stars like Hylda Baker, Frankie Howerd and Les Dawson, as well as less celebrated, now long-forgotten acts of the past: The Bryn Pugh Sponge Dancers, Macauley’s Leaping Infants, Willy Netta’s Singing Jockeys, and many more. Hutson’s vividly realised portraits bring back to life a whole cast of the extraordinary characters who have entertained us for over two centuries. Comedy is brought into sharp relief by hardship, that of comedienne Hylda Baker (1909–1986) in the case of this poem. His BALDWIN’S CATHOLIC GEESE is a social history chronicle in poems, focusing on what it means for all of us who have to make the most of our luck – the good, the bad, and the bizarre.
Neil Astley filmed Keith Hutson reading a wide selection of his poems from BALDWIN’S CATHOLIC GEESE at his home in Halifax, West Yorkshire, on 9 February 2019. The full reading can be found on YouTube [youtu.be/Yw_cc4Xv03o]. BALDWIN’S CATHOLIC GEESE is published by Bloodaxe Books in February 2019. There are also separate videos of him reading three other poems from the book: ‘The Audience’ (i.m. Les Dawson, 1931–1983) [youtu.be/SvrUPgooYaM], ‘Accept No Imitations’ (i.m. J.D. Plummer 1846–1901) [youtu.be/CoOZu0_etr0], and ‘Glasgow Empire’ [youtu.be/NzWIfne2Isg]. For more details see bloodaxebooks.com/ecs/product/baldwin-s-catholic-geese-1201
Keith Hutson has written for Coronation Street and for many well-known comedians. He has published two much praised poetry pamphlets, Routines (in 2017) and Roupers (2018). His first book-length collection, BALDWIN’S CATHOLIC GEESE, looks at the delight and heartbreak of being human through the lens of beloved music hall and variety stars like Hylda Baker, Frankie Howerd and Les Dawson, as well as less celebrated, now long-forgotten acts of the past: The Bryn Pugh Sponge Dancers, Macauley’s Leaping Infants, Willy Netta’s Singing Jockeys, and many more. Hutson’s vividly realised portraits bring back to life a whole cast of the extraordinary characters who have entertained us for over two centuries. Comedy is brought into sharp relief by hardship, that of comedienne Hylda Baker (1909–1986) in the case of this poem. His BALDWIN’S CATHOLIC GEESE is a social history chronicle in poems, focusing on what it means for all of us who have to make the most of our luck – the good, the bad, and the bizarre.
Neil Astley filmed Keith Hutson reading a wide selection of his poems from BALDWIN’S CATHOLIC GEESE at his home in Halifax, West Yorkshire, on 9 February 2019. The full reading can be found on YouTube [youtu.be/Yw_cc4Xv03o]. BALDWIN’S CATHOLIC GEESE is published by Bloodaxe Books in February 2019. There are also separate videos of him reading three other poems from the book: ‘The Audience’ (i.m. Les Dawson, 1931–1983) [youtu.be/SvrUPgooYaM], ‘Accept No Imitations’ (i.m. J.D. Plummer 1846–1901) [youtu.be/CoOZu0_etr0], and ‘Glasgow Empire’ [youtu.be/NzWIfne2Isg]. For more details see bloodaxebooks.com/ecs/product/baldwin-s-catholic-geese-1201
