This book examines intersections of poetry and performance during the
British Poetry Revival. Its investigations are centered on four specific
performance events: The First International Poetry Incarnation at the
Royal Albert Hall in 1965; Denise Riley's first public reading at the
Cambridge Poetry Festival in 1977; Eric Mottram's Pollock Record; and
Allen Fisher's Blood Bone Brain. Drawing upon a range of archival
resources, recordings, and interviews, Juha Virtanen offers engaging and
detailed "archaeological" accounts and analyses of these largely
unexamined events as well as the potential dialogues between them. The
appendices of the book also feature previously unpublished interviews
with both Fisher and Riley.
This book is essential reading for poetry and performance enthusiasts,
particularly those interested in innovative British Poetry.