Uploaded November 2020 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
THE SECRET COUPLE
By P B Taylor
I
I sat across the room from the two of them
The room that was so full of smoke
And it was full of them with their own self-importance
And only half-full of our dreary indulgence
II
So, we stayed awhile, perhaps watching for the view
I counted only three talks per hour
Like the fervent cyclist whose machine performs
In the wrong way its frame cannot take
III
She stared at him, just stared no reaction
Yes, the beard told the story well
Of course, she stayed, like a woman of the time
Just waiting for the next thing to happen
London 1983
Phillip Taylor MBE was born in Amersham and educated at London University and the Inns of Court School of Law. His working life was spent, firstly at the BBC in London, in the Ministry of Defence and the Army, and then as a barrister at law and mediator at Lincoln’s Inn after he was called to the Bar.
He was Chairman of the Society of Civil Service Authors Poetry Workshop from 1982 to 1986 and contributed to their annual anthology FOCUS. His poems and short stories have appeared in journals, magazines and newsletters and some have been broadcast by the BBC. He has produced several poetry collections since 1972.
The Poetry Workshop was founded by Bill Barnes in 1970. It was a part of the Society of Civil Service Authors (founded in 1935) which now known as the Society of Civil and Public Service Writers.
THE SECRET COUPLE
By P B Taylor
I
I sat across the room from the two of them
The room that was so full of smoke
And it was full of them with their own self-importance
And only half-full of our dreary indulgence
II
So, we stayed awhile, perhaps watching for the view
I counted only three talks per hour
Like the fervent cyclist whose machine performs
In the wrong way its frame cannot take
III
She stared at him, just stared no reaction
Yes, the beard told the story well
Of course, she stayed, like a woman of the time
Just waiting for the next thing to happen
London 1983
Phillip Taylor MBE was born in Amersham and educated at London University and the Inns of Court School of Law. His working life was spent, firstly at the BBC in London, in the Ministry of Defence and the Army, and then as a barrister at law and mediator at Lincoln’s Inn after he was called to the Bar.
He was Chairman of the Society of Civil Service Authors Poetry Workshop from 1982 to 1986 and contributed to their annual anthology FOCUS. His poems and short stories have appeared in journals, magazines and newsletters and some have been broadcast by the BBC. He has produced several poetry collections since 1972.
The Poetry Workshop was founded by Bill Barnes in 1970. It was a part of the Society of Civil Service Authors (founded in 1935) which now known as the Society of Civil and Public Service Writers.
