WhenTown Hall was invaded by the Purple Poets

Thank you to everyone who passed on the news of the West Euston Time Bank Purple Poets Reading Party on October 8. I think this is the first time the Camden Town Hall has been used to celebrate the National Poetry Day, and the Purple Poets (and new-found

Thank you to everyone who passed on the news of the West Euston Time Bank Purple Poets' Reading Party on October 8. I think this is the first time the Camden Town Hall has been used to celebrate the National Poetry Day, and the Purple Poets (and new-found friends) filled the council chamber with 87 people on National Poetry Day - hurrah!

The audience included Etienne, aged six months, and Kathy, aged 94, and two thirds of the poets and heroes and audience hadn't met each other before the reading.

This wasn't a competition, it was a celebration, an open invitation to send us a poem on a postcard about a Borough of Camden hero.

Everyone was welcome to attend, the event was free, and wheelchair accessible, and every poet in the council chamber had a microphone at their seat, so that everyone could be heard.

All the poets read to the Mayor, Councillor Ansari, and our special guest poets, Elaine Feinstein and Alan Brownjohn (who wore a splendid purple suit!) and then everyone - poets, heroes, and audience - had tea with the Mayor.

The reading is over, but this is an on-going project. We'll be collecting Camden Hero Postcard Poems for the archive throughout the year.

If every poet sends us a poem on a postcard, then by the end of the year our archival collection of postcards, poets, photographs and original poems about Camden heroes will be wonderful!

Kim Morrissey

Writer-in-Residence

West Euston Time Bank Purple Poets

Crypt Centre, Munster Square, NW1