Ian McMillan brings performance poetry to the Lakes

By Kieron Sutton

Ian McMillan’s relentless touring schedule finally sees him return to the Lake District on March 6 for another inimitable show of performance poetry, taken from his new anthology Talking Myself Home.

“I always enjoy coming to Cumbria,” says Ian, “I love the Lake District – it is a very beautiful and poetic place. It’s easy to see why it inspired Wordsworth so much.”

Talking Myself Home reflects McMillan’s easy-going charm, which is not surprising given the autobiographical content of the poems. While there is plenty of breezy reminiscing, as you’d expect with a book of poetry subtitled My Life in Verses, it’s not all rose-tinted nostalgia.

Life is far from one dimensional, and once you look beyond the punch lines and dig a little deeper, the poems reveal a disguised pain. Even some of the funniest poems are based on unpleasant events.

Dam Flask Days, 1965 is devastating in the matter-of-fact simplicity in which it reveals the effects of war on everyday life, while The Worst Gig Ever, June 1979, one of the standout poems, is a toe-curling account of McMillan’s attempts to perform Acker Bilk songs to an audience of heavy metal fans after a wrong booking.

“That’s one of the unique things about live shows,” says Ian, “The good shows are good, but you always remember the bad ones more. "McMillan expertly guides us through this scenario, allowing us to revel in the humour and absurdity, while always being able to emphasise with him on how humiliating this experience must have been.


It is too easy to linger on the dark, beating heart of poetry, though. There is plenty here to simply enjoy and read without deep analysis.

“My advice to any aspiring poets is simple,” says Ian, “Read as much as you can, write everyday and listen to everyone. I was influenced by Ted Hughes a lot when I was younger, but as for my favourite poet? It would be a different answer everyday.”

So, what does the future hold for Ian? “I’m working on more music with the Ian McMillan Orchestra, I’m writing an opera, and I’m putting the finishing touches on a book of Yorkshire humour.”

But that’s all in the future. For now, let’s sit back in Theatre by the Lake and witness one of Britain’s most enduringly original poets muse on life and the world we live in.

Or as Ian puts it, “expect an evening of delight, laughter, joy and tears.”