John Hegley
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| John Hegley | |
|---|---|
 Hegley in 2009 | |
| Born | 1 October 1953 London, England |
| Medium | Performance poetry, Stand up comedy |
| Nationality | British |
| Alma mater | University of Bradford |
| Website | Link |
John Richard Hegley[1](born 1 October 1953) is an English performance poet, comedian, musician and songwriter.
Early life
[edit]He was born in theNewington Greenarea ofIslington,London, England, into a Roman Catholic household.[2]He was brought up inLutonand laterBristol,where he attended Rodway School. After school he worked as a bus conductor and civil servant before attending theUniversity of Bradford,where he gained a BSc in European Literature and the History of Ideas and Sociology. Hegley has French ancestry (his father's name was René) and claims he is descended from the composerJean-Philippe Rameau.[3]His paternal grandmother was a dancer with theFolies Bergère.[4]
Career
[edit]Hegley began his performing career at London'sComedy Storein 1980, and toured as one half of The Brown Paper Bag Brothers withOtiz Cannelloni.[5]He received national exposure when he appeared with his backing band the Popticians onCarrott's Libin 1983, and recorded two sessions forJohn Peelin 1983 and 1984.[6]Hegley published his first poetry collection,Visions of the Bone Idol (Poems about Dogs and Glasses),pieces from which were later incorporated intoGlad to Wear Glasses,in 1984. Hegley has written a number of collections of poetry, ranging from the surreal through the humorous to the personal and emotional. There are a number of recurring themes in his poems, notably glasses, dogs,Romans,and reminiscences of his childhood in Luton.[7]
He was presenter of theBorder TelevisionseriesWord of Mouth– in which numerous contemporary poets performed their work – in 1990, and theBBC radioseriesHearing with Hegleyfrom 1996 to 1999. His other television appearances includeWoganandNever Mind the Buzzcocks.In 1998, Hegley's poem "Malcolm" came second in aBBCsurvey to find Britain's most popular comic poem.[8]In 1999 he starred in aSimon Callow-directed revival of the musicalThe Pajama Gamein London's West End.[9]
In September 1999 together withSimon Munneryhe wrote and performed in a comedy series for BBC Radio 4 calledThe Adventures of John and Tony.[10]
Hegley frequently performs live and is a regular at theEdinburgh Festival.His stage act includes elements of poetry, music (he plays themandolinand is often accompanied by adouble bassist), comedy and references toLuton Town Football Club.He also likes to utilise audience participation in his shows, for example by having a dog drawing competition during the interval, or by asking his audience to try writing poetry themselves.
TheUniversity of Lutonawarded him anhonoraryLL.D.in 2000, and he has also led creative writing courses at the university.[11]
Hegley launched "Warning: May Contain Nuts",a project using comedy to increase awareness of mental illness.[12]He performed these shows in 2010 with other performers, including comicMackenzie Taylor,talking about mental illness.[13]
Books
[edit]- Visions of the Bone Idol (Poems about Dogs and Glasses)illustrated byLinda Leatherbarrow(Little Bird Press 1984) ASIN: B0016ZKLU2
- The Brother-in-Law and Other Animals(Down the Publishing Company 1986)
- Poems for Pleasure(Hamlyn 1989)
- Glad to Wear Glasses (glad to have ears)illustrated by Linda Leatherbarrow (Andre Deutsch 1990)ISBN978-0-233-05035-5
- Can I Come Down Now, Dad?(Methuen 1991)
- Five Sugars, Please(Methuen 1993)
- These Were Your Father's(Methuen 1994)
- Love Cuts(Methuen 1995)
- The Family Pack(Methuen 1997: incorporatingThe Brother-in-Law and Other Animals,Can I Come Down Now, Dad?andThese Were Your Father's)
- Beyond our Kennel(Methuen 1998)
- Dog(Methuen 2000)
- My Dog is a Carrot(Walker Books 2002)
- The Sound of Paint Drying(Methuen 2003)
- Sit-Down Comedy(contributor to anthology, edMalcolm Hardee& John Fleming) Ebury Press/Random House, 2003.ISBN0-09-188924-3;ISBN978-0-09-188924-1
- Uncut Confetti(Methuen 2006)
- The Ropes: Poems To Hold On To(editor with Sophie Hannah) (Diamond Twig 2008)
- The Adventures of Monsieur Robinet(Donut Press 2009)
- Stanley's Stick(Hodder's Children's Books 2012)
- Peace, Love & Potatoes(Serpent's Tail 2012)
- New & Selected Potatoes(Bloodaxe Books Ltd 2013)
- I am a Poetato: An A-Z of poems about people, pets and other creatures(Frances Lincoln Children's Books 2013)
- A Scarcity of Biscuit: Pieces drawn largely from the letters, life and laughter of John Keats(Caldew Press, 2021)
Discography
[edit]- Spare Pear/Mobile Home(1984) Double A-sided single of Peel session recordings, with the Popticians
- "I Saw My Dinner On TV" (1988) Single with the Popticians
- Saint and Blurry(1993) Poems and music
- Hearing with Hegley(1996) BBC audio-cassette taken from the radio series of the same name
- Family Favourites(2006) Poems and music
References
[edit]- ^"University of Bradford: John Hegley".12 February 2001. Archived fromthe originalon 12 February 2001.
- ^"Stanza and deliver",The Observer,27 April 2003
- ^"People's Poet Laureate Plays Adam Smith Theatre"Archived8 June 2011 at theWayback Machine,fifedirect.org.uk, 29 May 2008
- ^"My family values: John Hegley, poet",The Guardian,20 June 2009
- ^Davies, Alan.My Favourite People & Me: 1978-1988,Michael Joseph Ltd (2009).
- ^"BBC - Radio 1 - Keeping It Peel - The Popticians".Bbc.co.uk.Retrieved17 July2020.
- ^"Grammar, Style, and Usage".Writingexplained.org.Archived fromthe originalon 10 April 2007.Retrieved17 July2020.
- ^BBC News (10 October 1998)."Top poetry is complete nonsense".BBC.Retrieved6 January2009.
- ^"Pajama Game pillowtalk",BBC News,4 October 1999
- ^"The Adventures of John and Tony (a Titles and Air Dates Guide)".Epguides.com.Retrieved17 July2020.
- ^Rampton, J.Review: There once was a fellow named John...,The Independent,20 January 1998
- ^Jenny Minard (25 May 2010)."Mackenzie Taylor talks about mental health problems".BBC.Retrieved10 November2010.
- ^Toby Green (20 May 2010)."Warning: May Contain Nuts, South Street Arts Centre, Reading".The Independent.Retrieved20 November2010.
External links
[edit]
- John Hegley's Word Wild Web Site
- John Hegley performs two poemsonYouTube
- Profile at the British Council website
- Hegley at theGuardian.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
| Other | |
- 1953 births
- Living people
- English male poets
- Comedians from Bristol
- Comedians from Bedfordshire
- Writers from Bristol
- English male singer-songwriters
- English singer-songwriters
- English people of French descent
- Alumni of the University of Bradford
- People associated with the University of Bedfordshire
- Edinburgh Comedy Festival
- English male comedians
- 20th-century English comedians
- 21st-century English comedians
- Singers from the London Borough of Islington
- Comedians from the London Borough of Islington
- People from Newington Green