Cheltenham Literary Festival
Image © Gaby Morgan, Macmillan
On Wednesday 9th October Matt Goodfellow and I were performing together for the first time, at Cheltenham Literary Festival, in the Sunday Times Garden Theatre.
This isn’t a dedicated children’s literary festival, like Bath, and the green room was quite a lot larger as it also hosts people who write for adults. The photo above, taken by our lovely editor, and super-poetry-champion, Gaby Morgan, is a small corner. Sadly I didn’t recognise anyone else in it as I never recognise faces, and the only person I knew well-enough at the festival to recognise (wonderful children’s author, Candy Gourlay) was performing in the same tent just before us, and was signing books as we were ushered in for sound checks etc.
Me – and Matt… during the sound check and light in your eyes check!
We used poems from The Same Inside, Poems about Empathy and Friendship, and Be the Change, Poems To Help You Save the World, about why it’s important to be a glitter quitter, and showing how to save 50,000 trees each Christmas. We’ve written both books together with our poet friend, Roger Stevens.
I don’t think it will be the last time we will perform together as it was GREAT FUN, and brilliant having someone else on stage with you – it can be a bit daunting facing 500 faces alone!
Here’s to next time.
lizbrownlee - poet 