Poetry Corner

To my surprise I have been successful in a ballot, receiving an invite to an event this afternoon at Marsden library, located in the Mechanics Institute.

I decided to arrive much earlier and explore the Huddersfield Narrow Canal and Standedge Tunnel. It is a glorious day, sunny and warm. I wasn’t expecting to go into the tunnel but found myself one of three hard hatted passengers entering by boat what is the countries longest, deepest and highest canal tunnel (extra). Scheduled to take 5 years to complete from 1794 it took 17. Dynamite had yet to be invented.

I also explored Marsden’s centre. There is a huge derelict mill, on one side of which is a row of tenter posts (extra), something I’d not seen before. Woolen cloth was dried and stretched on slotted in wooden boards and held in place by hooks. It’s where the phrase “on tenterhooks” originates.

Then the event. Poet Laureate Simon Armitage has been touring libraries giving free readings for one week each Spring since he took up his laureate role in 2019. This year its libraries beginning L to M, so he returns to his home town. The venue was small, and like a lot of libraries now it depends on local volunteers to keep it going. It was a very enjoyable hour, and somehow I’ve come home with more reading material to supplement my Tsundoku pile.