In celebration of their 23rd birthday, join Enfield Poets for an afternoon-long literary party of poetry, performance and film on 13th January at the newly reopened (and rechristened) Dugdale Arts Centre.Programme
Foyer
11.30am-1.30pm Mini Poemathon presented by Mary Duggan
A two-hour poetry marathon and open mic. Come and enjoy the words from local wordsmiths live from the ENFood Café. Free event.
Film screenings
2-3pm Jane Austen: The Unseen Portrait? (1 hour)
Jane Austen is one of the most celebrated writers of all time but apart from a rough sketch by her sister Cassandra, we have very little idea what she looked like. Biographer Dr Paula Byrne thinks that is about to change. She believes she has come across a possible portrait of the author, lost to the world for nearly two centuries. Can the picture stand up to forensic analysis and scrutiny by art historians and world leading Austen experts? How might it change our image of the author? And what might the portrait reveal about Jane Austen and her world? Martha Kearney seeks answers as she follows Dr Byrne on her quest. (BBC)
3-3.45pm The Lamb’s Tale (45 mins)
Celebrating the lives of local literary figures Charles Lamb and Mary Lamb, and how Mary Lamb manages to write the famous Lamb’s Tales of Shakespeare despite her personal struggles. This project was conceived by local artist, the late Debbie Dean, who made the puppets who tell the tale. It was produced by Art Start and funding from the Arts Council England, Enfield Residents Priority Fund and The Enfield Society. The video is of a performance in All Saints Church in Edmonton where Charles Lamb is buried.
Performance
4-4.20pm As It Was
Anthony Fischer came to Enfield in 1947 and lived on Willow Road near the junction with Southbury Road. After a short introduction to his life before this, As it Was records a some of Fischer’s experiences living in Enfield, from Willow Road to Old Park View where he moved to with his wife Valerie Darville in 1953. This short play is based on his poem ‘10 Things I Learned Before I was 14’. Produced by Holly Darville.
4.25-4.45pm The Story of the Minotaur
A short play based on the poetry of Valerie Darville.
Poetry readings
4.50–5.15 Maggie Brookes-Butt
Maggie Butt is a local writer with six published poetry collections and two historical fiction novels. She was a newspaper reporter and BBC TV documentary producer before teaching Creative Writing at Middlesex University. Her poetry collections include Lipstick (2007) Ally Pally Prison Camp (2011) and everlove (2021). Her novels The Prisoner's Wife and Acts of Love and War have been published internationally by Penguin Random House under the name Maggie Brookes.
5.15-6pm Hannah Lowe
Hannah Lowe is a poet, memoirist and academic. Her latest book, The Kids, a won the Costa Poetry Award and the Costa Book of the Year, 2021. Her first poetry collection Chick (Bloodaxe, 2013) won the Michael Murphy Memorial Award for Best First Collection. In September 2014, she was named as one of 20 Next Generation poets. Her family memoir Long Time, No See (Periscope, 2015) featured as Radio 4’s Book of the Week. She is a Reader in Creative Writing at Brunel University.
Admission is £6 for the whole afternoon. Tickets available from the DAC: 020 8807 6680