Monday, 6 October 2025

New Spoken Label Podcast - Toni Sidwell (96 Degrees)

 












Latest Podcast from Spoken Label (Author / Artist Podcast) features Toni Sidwell from 96 Degrees, a newish coffee cafe set Eccles, next  to Salford who talks about the creative / community projects which she is running / co-running at 96 degrees which includes running litter picking, a spoken word / poetry open mic and a writing workship among other things.

96 Degrees is based near Eccles Bus Station and the tram station.

96 Degrees can be found on facebook - 96 Degrees Eccles

(https://www.facebook.com/themalagadrift)

Toni is on facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/kidwithcactus/

They can also be also be found on Instagram and Tik Tok.

*


Podcast can heard/found on:

https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/toni-sidwell-96-degrees-spoken-label-october-2025/id1501847969?i=1000729333061

https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/spokenlabelpodcast/episodes/Toni-Sidwell-96-Degrees-Spoken-Label--October-2025-e38gnv7

https://www.instagram.com/andynpoet/reel/DPbQrqjDTj6/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kmX6M6aMoDk

https://open.spotify.com/episode/54MNMHiUKNOthhABxJDh75






Saturday, 4 October 2025

Speak Easy - thank you's for October 2025 and how to book November 2025

Busy few days folks but following on from the other day, a huge thank you for everybody who read at Speak Easy on Thursday at Dulcimer Bar and attended, 21 readers and a crowd of at least 45 people.

Kudos and love to Ant Briscoe who did a sterling job of hosting the show for us.

Want to thank the following who read:

1. Anthony Briscoe

2. Mark Quinn

3. Luke Piercey

4. Jenny Pikington

5. Michael Hulley (Volodya Gorky)

6. Mr Kai

7. Jeremy Pak Nelson

8. Noemi Scotellaro Massimi

9. Andy N

10. Amanda Nicholson - Author

11. Gordon Zola

12. Steve Smythe

13. Sophie Gannon

14. Thomas Butterworth

15. Andy Cash

16. Annie Acre

17. Martin Elder

18. Martin CM (Martin Corlettmoss)

19. Ella Holmes

20. David Bond

21. Jo Somerset

We have pictures by a team effort from Amanda, Andy Cash and Olga Gerke – want to thank Olga and Andy for their help here

These can be seen here:

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?vanity=speakeasymanchester&set=a.1333261148592666&__cft__[0]=AZXZ71twv0g6Psfla9XDCgwenvPUusoySqdYEZjOAwG5xqlDlTULO5AhUOl3e-FEiq9Ls4fbX6rwgslE7rwHc2aU0jEpvdEw7Bdy0an60wcH6cr0vTcztzsXgbg8iMFoJqUpjaWdB-QgFmFVx3tHA7GCxMbTxxvVmGdCW_5CwQxmHkulYB3PH4oxFG630KbLyLk&__tn__=-R

Next Speak Easy is on Thursday 06 November 2025 and bookings open on Sunday 05 October by emailing me Andy N on aen1mpo@yahoo.co.uk


Sunday, 28 September 2025

Julia Webb - Spoken Label September 2025

 












Latest up from Spoken Label, featuring her return is the wonderful Julia Webb.

Julia advises "I was born in London but grew up on a council estate in Thetford, a small town in rural Norfolk surrounded by pine forest. Thetford is known for being the home of The Iceni tribe, the birthplace of Thomas Paine, the place where they filmed a lot of Dad's Army and (in the 1960s) as a London Overspill town.My ambitions to be a writer started when I was six-years-old and read The Enchanted Wood by Enid Blyton. I can trace my interest in magical realism, surrealism and love of language right back to the things read as a child - Dr Seuss, Enid Blyton, A.A. Milne, Tolkien and fairytales. However I left school (and home) at 16 with no qualifications and went to live in a commune. I continued to write short stories and poetry over the years, but with no real writing community I didn't really know how to improve them, and after my son was born I gravitated more towards art and printing while working as a pre-school supervisor. When I was 40 I had an epiphany of sorts and realised that writing was my first love. I quit my job and did a degree in creative writing at Norwich School of Art and Design (now known as NUA). After that I went on to do an MA in poetry at the University of East Anglia."Her website is: 

https://juliawebb.org/

Her new book - Grey time can be found at all of the usual places including - https://ninearchespress.com/publications/poetry-collections/grey-time.

Cafe Writers competition link: https://www.cafewriters.co.uk/home/poetry-competition/ and the main website link https://www.cafewriters.co.uk/


**

https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/julia-webb-spoken-label-september-2025/id1501847969?i=1000728267828

https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/spokenlabelpodcast/episodes/Julia-Webb-Spoken-Label--September-2025-e37tjjc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PycUDwpVyoQ&t=1s (Chat)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tTjORJaRpK4&t=2s (Reading)

https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/bae49616-2295-4e7c-b931-91415a724cb6/episodes/67c662c5-d71d-44c4-8628-60c12b260348/spoken-label-julia-webb-spoken-label-september-2025

https://www.instagram.com/andynpoet/reel/DPJMFVODmwI/ (Chat)

https://www.instagram.com/andynpoet/reel/DPJHLiTjonQ/ (Reading)

https://www.audible.co.uk/pd/B0FSFPD7KR?ref_pageloadid=not_applicable&pf_rd_p=a202f891-0d90-47a2-ac3f-8ebc4b2943db&pf_rd_r=FBR63DF0YQZQC10A2HSY&plink=wmzS6B0nvveJPCbw&pageLoadId=1pqtXlVfsWjpWAYY&creativeId=43463e8d-6f2b-4d01-a759-854a1034c4b8&ref=a_podcast_S_c4_lAsin_0_0

https://open.spotify.com/episode/3b9RnUEYsJrdCMDrJmUFpQ

Tuesday, 23 September 2025

Speak Easy guest host announcement

 













Special guest host announcement for Speak Easy (Our Spoken Word open Mic night at Dulcimer, Chorlton) on Thursday 02 October 2025....

Anthony Briscoe

We first met Ant all the way back in 2018 if my memory is correct at Speak Easy and Ant also has helped out with Amanda when she did Printed

Words and also at our Printed Words event in 2019, which Ant headlined.

Anthony Briscoe is a performance poet and Multi-disciplinary artist. His Poetry is a mix of comedy and at times seriousness.

Like a clown giving bad news.

Using spoken word poetry as a base Anthony discusses meaningful issues through an absurdist comedic lens using his background in theatrics (BA HONS in contemporary theatre - Lancaster university) to add an energetic, engaging and entertaining performance to all his material and to justify his overhanging student debt.

Night starts around 7.30 pm-ish.

Booking enquiries - Andy N on aen1mpo@yahoo.co.uk for 4-minute slots.




Sunday, 21 September 2025

New Spoken Label Podcast - Caroline England

 












Latest up from Spoken Label (Author / Artist Podcast) features making her debut is Caroline England.

Known as the ‘Duchess of Dark Domestic Noir’, Caroline England is the author of seven psychological suspense thrillers, BENEATH THE SKIN, the bestseller MY HUSBAND’S LIES, BETRAY HER, THE SINNER, THE STRANGER BESIDE ME and THE RETURN OF FRANKIE WHITTLE. Her next thriller, BEHIND HER SMILE, will be published in November 2025. She also writes gothic-tinged psychological thrillers as CE Rose, namely THE HOUSE OF HIDDEN SECRETS, THE HOUSE ON THE WATER'S EDGE, THE SHADOWS OF RUTHERFORD HOUSE and THE ATTIC AT WILTON PLACE.

Caroline writes ‘scarily brilliant’, dark twisty stories that delve into complicated relationships, secrets and the moral grey area. Drawing on her career as a criminal and divorce lawyer, she creates characters who get caught up in extraordinary situations, moral dilemmas and crime. She guarantees a jaw-dropping ending!


*

Podcast be downloaded / steamed from:

https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/caroline-england-spoken-label-september-2025/id1501847969?i=1000727123081

https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/spokenlabelpodcast/episodes/Caroline-England-Spoken-Label--September-2025-e37mhn1?fbclid=IwY2xjawM9EsBleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFMMzZaZTY0Z1ZzR05tZXNhAR7DO4kDbdecExQ53uxd-A0ZoBiXt3TajDJLGd-4zFoBwElFDOazptHPdSwQrw_aem_oW26BQQmbHXhqVJU6wUZbg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NuMEhtsucDg&t=1s (Chat)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=poEKtqfWQ6o (Reading)

https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/bae49616-2295-4e7c-b931-91415a724cb6/episodes/767ccc0e-8770-439a-9481-17a6041c8d2a/spoken-label-caroline-england-spoken-label-september-2025?fbclid=IwY2xjawM9EsVleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFMMzZaZTY0Z1ZzR05tZXNhAR6ui00VXMqAQpzxEwda5A1C0tASZrETsnMC54_yBuKtv6PddPbgyuoqWoFHzw_aem_og7cu0RWkWoG9CVwBp7aSw

https://open.spotify.com/episode/7g4rDnRuNzh3h17FvhW67B?fbclid=IwY2xjawM9EsdleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFMMzZaZTY0Z1ZzR05tZXNhAR6ui00VXMqAQpzxEwda5A1C0tASZrETsnMC54_yBuKtv6PddPbgyuoqWoFHzw_aem_og7cu0RWkWoG9CVwBp7aSw

https://www.audible.co.uk/podcast/Spoken-Label/B08K5Z65R1?qid=1638096875&sr=1-1&ref=a_search_c3_lProduct_1_1&fbclid=IwY2xjawM9EslleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFMMzZaZTY0Z1ZzR05tZXNhAR6cLxff1JQXAz-ME_6EZh__TP2f4GyZBrDDz8oOTNlLnXD-5O_Um3vEN2-JxA_aem_aHKqPHIy9meN2inwQR2Miw

https://www.instagram.com/andynpoet/reel/DO237USjMSP/?fbclid=IwY2xjawM9EstleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFMMzZaZTY0Z1ZzR05tZXNhAR6ui00VXMqAQpzxEwda5A1C0tASZrETsnMC54_yBuKtv6PddPbgyuoqWoFHzw_aem_og7cu0RWkWoG9CVwBp7aSw (Chat)

https://www.instagram.com/andynpoet/reel/DO24DPaDmCM/?fbclid=IwY2xjawM9Es1leHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFMMzZaZTY0Z1ZzR05tZXNhAR6cLxff1JQXAz-ME_6EZh__TP2f4GyZBrDDz8oOTNlLnXD-5O_Um3vEN2-JxA_aem_aHKqPHIy9meN2inwQR2Miw (Reading)






Monday, 15 September 2025

New Spoken Label Podcast - Lee McShane

 













Latest up from Spoken Label (Poetry / Artist Podcast) features Lee McShane.

Lee McShane is a Neurodivergent actor, filmmaker, and published writer and poet from Newcastle upon Tyne, UK.

His work often blends psychological horror with themes of mental health, creating emotionally charged and thought-provoking narratives.

His writing has appeared in All Your Stories, All Your Poems, and the PoeticEdge Fantasy Anthology.

He will appear in Rise of the Badger and the Great Shrubbery by Black Eye Publishing.

*














Sunday, 7 September 2025

Mark Quinn - Spoken Label - September 2025


 










Latest up from Spoken Label (Poetry Podcast) features Mark Quinn.

Mark is described as "I’m a poet, writer, and performer based in Manchester. My work blends humour, honesty, and heart — sometimes thoughtful, sometimes cheeky, always real. Whether it’s on the page or the stage, I’m here to connect with people through words."

Mark's books can be all be purchased on Amazon and his website is https://markquinn.uk/


*

https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/mark-quinn-spoken-label-september-2025/id1501847969?i=1000724702811

https://youtu.be/aBvMycEUD-E (Reading / Chat Part 2)

https://youtu.be/iVVntOPI8e0 (Chat)

https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/bae49616-2295-4e7c-b931-91415a724cb6/episodes/3db3a0b9-e2dc-43b6-813a-b7343b4514db/spoken-label-mark-quinn-spoken-label-september-2025

https://www.instagram.com/andynpoet/reel/DOS0u1hjMeJ/ (Chat)

https://www.instagram.com/andynpoet/reel/DOS9zlGjZrj/ (Reading)

https://www.audible.co.uk/podcast/Mark-Quinn-Spoken-Label-September-2025/B0FPLSDYQP?ref_pageloadid=not_applicable&pf_rd_p=a202f891-0d90-47a2-ac3f-8ebc4b2943db&pf_rd_r=4GJJW1FSGM3GNX8KEEBV&plink=QiAkW7gAp4mFgd4f&pageLoadId=ui1p7nzWAz4mLinu&creativeId=43463e8d-6f2b-4d01-a759-854a1034c4b8&ref=a_podcast_S_c4_lAsin_0_0&fbclid=IwY2xjawM9FM1leHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFMMzZaZTY0Z1ZzR05tZXNhAR5REqfJeSCBFycy5k4BIpgvFPZb1zNOk9D-yr_oTRIy4SxS9Oq58-huBi5Pww_aem_vLaK-bMMNxsGcUGBW_kZ2Q

https://open.spotify.com/episode/1J5Y1rpDGpIAsikVpw81yd

Saturday, 30 August 2025

Linda Quinn - Spoken Label New Podcast August 2025

 












Latest up from Spoken Label (Spoken Word / Author Podcast) features Linda Quinn.


Linda Quinn did most of her growing up in a caravan in West Country fields and byways, and later as a child of the state. She was inspired by the written word when she received her first postcard at the age of three, and set out to rescue as many printed words as she could from the local recycling dump, a collection that continues to grow.


After working in the Music Industry she trained as an actress at East 15 Drama School, and was the founder of Freefall Theatre Company, performing one woman shows and ensemble pieces, and contributing to and learning from additional projects with The Magdalena Project in Cardiff, Virginia McKenna, Cristina Castrillo in Switzerland and Linda Marlowe. She also worked as an actress in a variety of small television and film roles, including the most magical time with Glenda Jackson, Joan Hickson, Anthony Quayle and Richard Harris.


She created and directed performances as diverse as local community theatre and Manumission Club spectaculars for audiences of 10,000 in Ibiza, and was the co-founder of Pikes Ibiza Literary festival. Throughout this time she was scripting and editing from improvisations and developing skills that led to writing scripts, and an MA in Creative Writing at Birkbeck in London. Her work continues to attract noteworthy attention in the film industry, but has yet to reach the screen. Short stories have been published in various anthologies, including the online ‘Citizens Story’ at The Word Factory writing community in London. After decades of living in London and teaching Creative Writing at City Lit, she now lives in France. 


Her debut novel ‘The Toffee Man & The Kingdom of Ends’ was published earlier this year (2025), after winning the Pen to Print Book Challenge – and has been well received. It is adapted from her script ‘The Toffee Man.’ It is currently receiving many five star reviews, and sitting at the top of the booklife critics list for Fiction.


You can read more about the details, awards, reflections and ongoing projects in the blog via her website, coming very soon.


**

https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/linda-quinn-spoken-label-july-2025/id1501847969?i=1000723665483

https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/bae49616-2295-4e7c-b931-91415a724cb6/episodes/f62d5fd1-9d39-4f10-b1ed-dd35795947fd/spoken-label-linda-quinn-spoken-label-july-2025

https://www.audible.co.uk/podcast/Linda-Quinn-Spoken-Label-July-2025/B0FNRMGSSJ?ref_pageloadid=not_applicable&pf_rd_p=a202f891-0d90-47a2-ac3f-8ebc4b2943db&pf_rd_r=ZPMJ914GSY6MKKHGNSXD&plink=Tnhbejay7D4OpBS3&pageLoadId=tyxQ5AOAetE7IjSj&creativeId=43463e8d-6f2b-4d01-a759-854a1034c4b8&ref=a_podcast_S_c4_lAsin_0_0

https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/spokenlabelpodcast/episodes/Linda-Quinn-Spoken-Label--July-2025-e34iuor

https://www.instagram.com/andynpoet/reel/DN_cYaHFCfB/ (Chat)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uKCT7XiBpfo (Chat)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QapsI9Ihs2A (Reading) 

https://www.instagram.com/andynpoet/reel/DN_o_ZsDhpN/ (Reading)

https://open.spotify.com/episode/69fknhUbkPk58l30OThhzL







Friday, 29 August 2025

Speak Easy - September 2025

 











Enclosed above are the readers for September's Speak Easy (Spoken Word Open Mic night - our 10th anniversary special) at Chorlton's Dulcimer Bar , all of whom will read out their work in 4-minute segments on 04 September 2025. 

Guest Host is the original creator of Speak Easy, David Hartley. 

To go on the cancellation list (You never know), drop Andy N an email on aen1mpo@yahoo.co.uk, and we will see you on Thursday 04 September 2025. 

Admission is free. 

*

Andy N

Amanda Nicholson 

Steve Smythe

David Hartley 

Grant Curnow

Mark Quinn

Andy Cash

Rachel Hammond

Norman Dearlove Scott

Michael Hulley (Volodya Gorky)

Beth Cater

Daniel Findell

Joe Tetley

Martin Elder

Jared More 

Dylan Sayers

Martin CM (Martin Corlettmoss)

Anne Delargy

Karen Kendrick

Ria Jones

Anthony Briscoe

Antonia Fusaro

Trystan Lewis

Stuart Atkinson

Jenny Pilkington

Thomas Marsden 

*











*

David Hartley is a writer, researcher, tutor and performer with a taste for the strange and the wonderful. He is the author of 'Fauna' (Fly on the Wall Press) and 'Incorcisms' (Arachne Press), and has a PhD in Creative Writing with The University of Manchester where he currently teaches. In 2024, he was writer-in-residence in Tartu, Estonia where he created 'The Forest of Ink & Skin' an immersive storytelling experience about folktales, forests, and tattoos. He is also the creator and host of The Embassy of Utopia at the Festival of Libraries.

He was also the original creator and host of the very first Speak Easy, back when it started life in a small upstairs room at the Sip Club in Stretford. Reading his work in front of small audiences in weird little rooms in random pubs is still one of his favourite things...





Sunday, 24 August 2025

LKN - Part 2 - Spoken Label, August 2025 (New Podcast)

 












* Contains topics not suitable for all *


Latest up from Spoken Label, and the second part of a full-length two-part Podcast is with LKN.

LKN is a poet who won the UK's Wordplay Awards 2023. He was nominated for the Pushcart Prize (2023, 2024), T. S. Eliot Prize (2024) & Forward Prize (2025). He was part of A Given Grace by Squircle Line Press, winning the gold medal, both at America's eLit, and the Independent Book Publishers Awards 2022.

LKN has been featured at literature festivals in Toronto, Nottingham and Singapore. His poems were showcased at History Channel's HistoryCon, Weiner Holocaust Library & the Poetry Society of New York, HCE Magazine's Fire & Dust and the Polyglot Magazine.LKN was 1st runner-up at 2019 Singapore Poetry Slam and a finalist at the 2020 Toronto Poetry Slam.

He has performed as a busker and street performer in Manila, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore.

https://heylink.me/thelknpoetry


*

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyUSujsPSVI&t=871s (Chat)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4q4yzIGjUjQ (Reading)

https://www.instagram.com/andynpoet/reel/DNv-GKgYuUr/ (Chat)

https://www.instagram.com/andynpoet/reel/DNv-PzV3L4h/ (Reading)

https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/bae49616-2295-4e7c-b931-91415a724cb6/episodes/025e1004-ea18-426d-802d-1472d5d38ece/spoken-label-lkn-spoken-label-august-2025 

https://www.audible.co.uk/podcast/LKN-Spoken-Label-August-2025/B0FN6RRPMB?ref_pageloadid=not_applicable&pf_rd_p=a202f891-0d90-47a2-ac3f-8ebc4b2943db&pf_rd_r=S3PKHKVWDBSG9B8588DM&plink=cseV2sSMeVhZSXeF&pageLoadId=wMJYYg9itGGVwwD2&creativeId=43463e8d-6f2b-4d01-a759-854a1034c4b8&ref=a_podcast_S_c4_lAsin_0_0

https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/spokenlabelpodcast/episodes/LKN-Spoken-Label--August-2025-e34vvl8

https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/lkn-spoken-label-august-2025/id1501847969?i=1000722862165

https://open.spotify.com/episode/1LWvsDW952wVgRecJWSko8




Sunday, 17 August 2025

LKN - Part 1 (Spoken Label, August 2025)

 












Latest up from Spoken Label (Spoken Word / Poetry Podcast) and the first part of a full-length two-part Podcast is with LKN (Lkn Yrteop)

 LKN is a poet who won the UK's Wordplay Awards 2023. He was nominated for the Pushcart Prize (2023, 2024), T. S. Eliot Prize (2024) & Forward Prize (2025). He was part of A Given Grace by Squircle Line Press, winning the gold medal, both at America's eLit, and the Independent Book Publishers Awards 2022. 

LKN has been featured at literature festivals in Toronto, Nottingham and Singapore. His poems were showcased at History Channel's HistoryCon, Weiner Holocaust Library & the Poetry Society of New York, HCE Magazine's Fire & Dust and the Polyglot Magazine.LKN was 1st runner-up at 2019 Singapore Poetry Slam and a finalist at the 2020 Toronto Poetry Slam. 

He has performed as a busker and street performer in Manila, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore.

https://heylink.me/thelknpoetry


*

https://www.instagram.com/p/DNc_PaLu68V/?fbclid=IwY2xjawMOyelleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFHN0tuUm1zakxuQzRJdXNFAR6YnIHxNQyefCa5tScADSSRqYj-K915wL_aFhVVMj1wviFMZdd76Tu0X8nPjA_aem_qIVZ-9_0Cpq8cvjYFrou8w

https://www.audible.co.uk/podcast/LKN-Spoken-Label-Part-1-August-2025/B0FMBXZMSR?ref_pageloadid=not_applicable&pf_rd_p=a202f891-0d90-47a2-ac3f-8ebc4b2943db&pf_rd_r=AE2WTRRW57H378D66XPW&plink=tu486nwAnKxbvVEO&pageLoadId=lzmSCsGOVBx0lwKG&creativeId=43463e8d-6f2b-4d01-a759-854a1034c4b8&ref=a_podcast_S_c4_lAsin_0_0&fbclid=IwY2xjawMOyedleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFHN0tuUm1zakxuQzRJdXNFAR6ddAq7dAmN8tdr6KoAWRbUlZl7hADabwfER8dZMy-hNXDRDqJvpiYNlArnLw_aem_cjSyp5d9uY7QU5jLGcQB_g

https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/bae49616-2295-4e7c-b931-91415a724cb6/episodes/f81d4c74-7ca1-4fac-96ae-b3a999db13ae/spoken-label-lkn-spoken-label-part-1---august-2025?fbclid=IwY2xjawMOyeVleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFHN0tuUm1zakxuQzRJdXNFAR7OBJ_4a0i4mKY24Fxb5gOSb2FWA67o-JtawmOQDd4bpDOViTyvf-p-Qnf5GA_aem_aYbvLbrK1t7plgXpF9gClw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-CaH0qpgTGU

https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/spokenlabelpodcast/episodes/LKN-Spoken-Label--Part-1---August-2025-e34si6a

https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/lkn-spoken-label-part-1-august-2025/id1501847969?i=1000721863284

https://open.spotify.com/episode/759tuDAxEs5pUGNIT85ltg?fbclid=IwY2xjawMOye1leHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFHN0tuUm1zakxuQzRJdXNFAR6irYtsQVMs9PNP5EsWF9evxwERjsqvSyXppEW0QtbYA2Cw75nCabkLaOXsNQ_aem_D4kaqunE-_bKt0Jm7kEr_Q



Wednesday, 13 August 2025

New Spoken Label Podcast - Andy Farhan

 












The latest up-and-coming artist from Spoken Label, making his debut, is Andy Farhan. Andy Farhan is a Manchester-based stand-up comedian, Theatre Actor and Poet. Been a Theatre Actor for 3 years now. Been on the Radio 4x. Been doing stand-up comedy for over 1 year and runs his own Stand Up Comedy Open Mic in Manchester.

*

Podcast can be streamed/downloaded from:

https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/andy-farhan-spoken-label-august-2025/id1501847969?i=1000720933667

https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/spokenlabelpodcast/episodes/Andy-Farhan-Spoken-Label--August-2025-e34khsv

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_WrZF-iZGPs

https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/bae49616-2295-4e7c-b931-91415a724cb6/episodes/90e8be08-c1b4-45f1-b0f2-b6a978b06ddc/spoken-label-andy-farhan-spoken-label-august-2025

https://www.instagram.com/andynpoet/reel/DNKqOUPgX-A/

https://www.audible.co.uk/podcast/Andy-Farhan-Spoken-Label-August-2025/B0FLF7QXYM?ref_pageloadid=not_applicable&pf_rd_p=a202f891-0d90-47a2-ac3f-8ebc4b2943db&pf_rd_r=V8T6MMPH6N2AMZTM9TQM&plink=FTn3QbyPP2RlpStJ&pageLoadId=ETScXpvdnKWN2aY0&creativeId=43463e8d-6f2b-4d01-a759-854a1034c4b8&ref=a_podcast_S_c4_lAsin_0_0

https://open.spotify.com/episode/5SGo93RWAiYFEPvmqTv3Kx







Monday, 4 August 2025

Echoes of August - The End of Summer II

 













The season ends. The story continues.

Celebrating the 10th year anniversary of his second full length poetry collection, Andy N has returned to this series of poetry with a brand new collection called ‘Echoes of August (The End of Summer II).
Told again in taut, flickering fragments, these pieces map the fading edges of summer through memory and dying lights, geographic imprints and love, loss, and abolescence to be read over and over in the wind.
'The End of Summer II' as well as being a direct sequel to ‘The End of Summer’ deepens the emotional arc begun in the first volume, leaving readers adrift in beauty, haunted by nostalgia, and quietly changed.
For fans of Epic 45 and July Skies, Hugo Williams, and the delicate melancholy of watching a gate blow gently in the breeze of late August.

Out on Amazon with more places to follow. 









Sunday, 3 August 2025

Martin CM - Spoken Label (New Podcast, August 2025)

 










Latest up from Spoken Label (Spoken Word Podcast) features making his debut is the wonderful Martin CM.

Martin tells his work are "are written to make people smile—or better yet, laugh. They’re intentionally different from the well-meaning, earnest, intense, political kind. His work leans towards the disrespectful: often irreverent, occasionally rude, and usually self-deprecating.

These are poems with little in the way of hidden meanings — written to be performed, not puzzled over. That said, they do often carry a thread of social commentary.Martin has performed across various venues in the North West. A career highlight? Making the Top Four at the Liverpool Fringe—something he proudly (and constantly) reminds his family of.

His book Poems for People Who Don’t Like Poetry is available on Amazon—and has sold dozens!

https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/martin-cm-spoken-label-august-2025/id1501847969?i=1000719600621

https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/spokenlabelpodcast/episodes/Martin-CM-Spoken-Label--August-2025-e34j3if

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aSPQ6ond9Gc (Chat)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_CuNqIIMqA (Reading)

https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/bae49616-2295-4e7c-b931-91415a724cb6/episodes/b7b2b9b2-040f-4e29-afec-4b7bfca16f82/spoken-label-martin-cm-spoken-label-august-2025

https://open.spotify.com/episode/3VellOwtfZd8l7QomQsCrl

https://www.instagram.com/andynpoet/reel/DM4nK69NATw/ (Chat)

https://www.instagram.com/andynpoet/reel/DM4nVmUuNrW/ (Reading)

The tik tok preview is at: https://www.tiktok.com/@andynwriter/video/7533350873435540758

Sunday, 27 July 2025

Anthony Doyle - Spoken Label New Podcast July 2025

 









Latest up from Spoken Label (Poetry/Spoken Word Podcast) features the return of our friend Anthony Doyle in a full-length Podcast.

Anthony Doyle was born in Dublin and raised in Wicklow, Ireland. He has been living in São Paulo, Brazil, since 2000, where he works as a translator of fiction, non-fiction and film scripts from Portuguese. 

In addition to short stories and poems, he published the children’s book O Lago Secou (Companhia das Letrinhas, Brazil, 2013) and the novel Hibernaculum (Out Of This World Press, USA, 2023). 

He is a member of the Old Scratch Press short-form collective.This Podcast talks primarily about his new book Jonahs Map of the Whale and other poems which is described as "Dive into the mythic in Jonah's Map of the Whale and Other Poems, a daring and dazzling collection from Anthony Doyle (author of Hibernaculum). 

In the submerged world of Flounder- part everyman, part flatfish-shipwrecked longing, philosophical wit, and lyrical precision converge.Doyle's sea-born metaphors shimmer with heartbreak, absurdity, and revelation across the tide pools of memory and myth. From underwater boathouses to data-streamed cubicles, Doyle threads ancient voices through postmodern pulses. Featuring Flounder, Blundra, Alex Iden Gray, and more, this collection drifts between high poetry and sly humor, from trenches of despair to flickers of grace. Jonah's Map of the Whale and Other Poems is a poetic deep-sea dive into the soul accessible to poetry and literature fans alike."

Podcast be streamed / downloaded from: 

https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/anthony-doyle-spoken-label-july-2025/id1501847969?i=1000718566111

https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/spokenlabelpodcast/episodes/Anthony-Doyle-Spoken-Label--July-2025-e34j2h6

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mzpzZAS1zLY (Chat)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mmW3yJumv-8 (Reading)

https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/bae49616-2295-4e7c-b931-91415a724cb6/episodes/1b98ded2-616b-4b90-a0d9-d7d3dc5d6870/spoken-label-anthony-doyle-spoken-label-july-2025

https://www.instagram.com/andynpoet/reel/DMnE-g2NCQV/ (Chat Segment)

https://www.instagram.com/andynpoet/reel/DMnFETBOY-5/ (Reading Segment)

https://www.audible.co.uk/podcast/Anthony-Doyle-Spoken-Label-July-2025/B0FJLJBX2H?ref_pageloadid=not_applicable&pf_rd_p=a202f891-0d90-47a2-ac3f-8ebc4b2943db&pf_rd_r=4M9XAAGFWTSDNMHMWX8B&plink=6VNaZPt8bLMRA3sk&pageLoadId=gfTRMdiPOmcppmih&creativeId=43463e8d-6f2b-4d01-a759-854a1034c4b8&ref=a_podcast_S_c4_lAsin_0_0

https://open.spotify.com/episode/5rP6gXNu2YT2qtpan2njgW

The tik tok preview is at: https://www.tiktok.com/@andynwriter/video/7530704671648877846




Sunday, 20 July 2025

New Spoken Label - Peter Humphreys

 














Latest up from Spoken Label (Author / Poet Podcast), the long overdue return of our friend,  Peter Humphreys. 

Peter is a writer of speculative fiction and poetry; editor and podcaster based in Lancaster, UK. 

New novel Adrift (2025) sees couple Leighton Tiding and Serena Brinks torn between Covid-ravaged 'broken' Britain and a new life in South America before their lives are upended by an old schoolfriend and the US businessman he tried to kill. Released on Pine Goat, 13 March '25.

Buenos Aires-set 'Justice' longlisted for the BBC National Short Story Award 2021.

Satirical thriller Hong Kong Rocks (Proverse, 2019), shortlisted for the Proverse Prize and released as an audiobook in 2023.

First novel the Blaggard (2004) won the Dawson Jackson Prize. Other novels include Oblivious (2016) and In English (Please!) (2006). 

Regular reader at poetry events in northwest England. 'Anti-Algorithm Technique' appeared in Wordarium Journal (2024). More poems in Lancaster Textures (2025).

Co-editor of fiction anthologies Another Hong Kong (2014) and Hong Kong Future Perfect (2016). Short fiction has been published by Comma Press, Cha: An Asian Literary Journal and Far Enough East. 

***

Can be downloaded/streamed from:

https://www.instagram.com/andynpoet/reel/DMSQ1w_R06i/?hl=en (Chat)

https://www.instagram.com/andynpoet/reel/DMSlFKuurH9/?hl=en  (Reading)

https://youtu.be/SRxIRNIkEuE (Chat)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lwsKPUKJzXA (Reading)

https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/spokenlabelpodcast/episodes/Peter-Humphreys-Spoken-Label--July-2025-e355u01

https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/peter-humphreys-spoken-label-july-2025/id1501847969?i=1000717457702

https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/bae49616-2295-4e7c-b931-91415a724cb6/episodes/a0e0d56c-1211-4336-80db-22e18a15ab24/spoken-label-peter-humphreys-spoken-label-july-2025

https://www.audible.co.uk/podcast/Peter-Humphreys-Spoken-Label-July-2025/B0FHP5KJDG?ref_pageloadid=not_applicable&pf_rd_p=a202f891-0d90-47a2-ac3f-8ebc4b2943db&pf_rd_r=CQWZE8KZFAPNHJ5BN3NE&plink=OeRmHNoGl5fYh1VS&pageLoadId=iAaWddEI5XhphNK4&creativeId=43463e8d-6f2b-4d01-a759-854a1034c4b8&ref=a_podcast_S_c4_lAsin_0_0

https://open.spotify.com/episode/7jxwaifFWCc2kAAlD3Xvgv




Saturday, 19 July 2025

The Writing Way Podcast Episode 2

 











New episode from the Writing Way with Andy and Amanda, our writing podcast.

This month, we open up the podcast to our first guest.

Phil Woodford is an experienced trainer and lecturer, specialising in marketing communications, media, business psychology, copywriting and creativity. His company, Here Comes the Cavalry Ltd, helps to develop the potential of businesses and organisations across a variety of sectors.

Phil writes/talks about the reality of AI and the risk to jobs on his Substack page Redundant Human and has written the book AI and The Redundant Human.

https://andynartist.substack.com/p/the-writing-way-podcast



Tuesday, 15 July 2025

Polly Ocean radio interview a year ago

 











This was me and Polly Anna Rose as Polly Ocean on the lovely Ruth O'Reilly show for ALL FM, somehow a year ago. The masters are now done for the second album which has a title of 'War Within', with hopefully two singles to come before the album, the first before summer finishes, nd the second just after and the album to follow in early Autumn I hope.





Saturday, 12 July 2025

New Spoken Label Podcast - Richard Sparks

 












Latest up from Spoken Label Tik Tok (Author / Artist Podcast) features making his debut, Richard Sparks.

Richard's bio advises "One morning in 1979 I got a call from an understandably excited Rowan Atkinson. “John Cleese just called. He’s asked me to be in his new charity show – and can I do The Schoolmaster?”

Er, yes.

I’d written The Schoolmaster for Rowan the previous year, for a revue at the Hampstead Theatre (Rowan with Elspeth Walker and Peter Wilson). John and his co-producer, Martin Lewis, had seen it; and a year later, Rowan and I were backstage at Her Majesty’s Theatre, meeting John and other members of the cast of The Secret Policeman’s Ball.

Rowan went on stage an unknown, with his gown and clipboard and pen, and came off a star. The Schoolmaster became his signature piece, the encore of his live shows. Eventually, he got tired of doing the same old routine and wrote another (ruder) version, generously giving me half the royalties.
By that time, I’d cut my teeth on various TV shows, from HTV (Wales) to ITV (Southern and Central) to the BBC. I’d also written some stage shows (reviews, original plays, and adaptations of Goldoni comedies), and done a lot of freelance script editing. In 1992, I was hired by Columbia Picture Television to work with Blake Hunter and Marty Cohan, the creators of Who’s the Boss?. My wife and I moved with our young daughter to her parents (converted) garage and we’ve lived in Los Angeles since.

I’ve written a number of libretti for operas, almost all for the LA Opera – some original pieces, some translations from German or Italian. My writing partner, the composer, Lee Holdridge, was – in a way – once G.R.R. Martin’s ‘writing partner’ in that he composed the scores for the TV series Beauty and the Beast, for which Martin was a script writer.

I’d been a hard-core RPG gamer for years when the idea for these books just fell out of the sky one morning, and I started writing. I have hardly had a moment to log on to any game — I’m too busy exploring the New Rock stories as they unfold.

My publisher, Caezik SF & Fantasy, is a company of enthusiasts who love these genres. I am delighted to join their family of authors, and to be working with their executive editor, Lezli, Robyn.
Three sequels – New Rock New Realm, New Rock New Rules, and New Rock New Roads, have been completed and will be published in due course. I’m currently working on the fifth book."

More details including where to buy Richard's books can be found at: https://richardsparks.com/

*

Podcast can be downloaded from / streamed:

https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/richard-sparks-spoken-label-july-2025/id1501847969?i=1000716437677

https://www.instagram.com/andynpoet/reel/DMAcXNTt1MU/ (Chat)

https://www.instagram.com/andynpoet/reel/DMActnhtVQj/ (Reading)

https://www.audible.co.uk/podcast/Richard-Sparks-Spoken-Label-July-2025/B0FH4HW27J?ref_pageloadid=not_applicable&pf_rd_p=a202f891-0d90-47a2-ac3f-8ebc4b2943db&pf_rd_r=1PH2F9EQMGMTNT42YSDK&plink=LM0c6lWyBQgV9UZD&pageLoadId=BdrKfB5NjcPPqVS4&creativeId=43463e8d-6f2b-4d01-a759-854a1034c4b8&ref=a_podcast_S_c4_lAsin_0_0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LDWyHrxoX0o&t=71s (Chat)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ac7UpQQOhCQ&t=29s&pp=0gcJCb4JAYcqIYzv (Reading)

https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/spokenlabelpodcast/episodes/Richard-Sparks-Spoken-Label--July-2025-e34j194

https://www.audible.co.uk/podcast/Richard-Sparks-Spoken-Label-July-2025/B0FH4HW27J?ref_pageloadid=not_applicable&pf_rd_p=a202f891-0d90-47a2-ac3f-8ebc4b2943db&pf_rd_r=577WDZP2Y5RKRT0C4K0A&plink=LQWtSgthyKfqHIsu&pageLoadId=HliJJUeGt4B7qEOT&creativeId=43463e8d-6f2b-4d01-a759-854a1034c4b8&ref=a_podcast_S_c4_lAsin_0_0

https://www.tiktok.com/@andynwriter/video/7525187448696065302  (Podcast Preview on Tik Tok)

Monday, 7 July 2025

Genevieve Ray (Spoken Label, New Podcast - Part 2)

 












Little bit late this week for Spoken Label (Spoken Word / Poetry Podcast) features the 2nd Part of a longer Podcast featuring Genevieve Ray.

Genevieve Ray is a Spoken Word Artist, Poet, Director, Producer, Playwright, Actor and Spokeswoman based in Bedfordshire, East England.

She has been published in over 25 publications ranging from anthologies to digital and print magazines.

She has been a guest star in 12 podcasts and a headline act for performances across the UK.

She has been invited to be a Spoken Word Artist/Speaker in the USA (Massacuettes, New York), South Africa, Nigeria and Bhutan.

She has produced a show with Diaspora Dames in collaboration with the National Trust in June 2025.

Her debut book 'Free Roaming Adult Woman' is out now.


*

https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/genevieve-f-ray-spoken-label-july-2025-part-2/id1501847969?i=1000715375078

https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/spokenlabelpodcast/?fbclid=IwY2xjawLZD11leHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFnS25uNndJMXE1Z0JuSVYzAR4jPgCsHeLw41T9swoVZE8aBtbXZFYYZ2_51eGa9gzgiKA8Z9T8EkmvSkoyOA_aem_QS_mUyE3W6IwrLgJuGRWEw

https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/bae49616-2295-4e7c-b931-91415a724cb6/episodes/4261dfe0-30f3-4b12-b3c3-28d59326d16a/spoken-label-genevieve-f-ray-spoken-label-july-2025---part-2

https://www.instagram.com/andynpoet/reel/DLwikJoODr5/ (Chat)

https://www.instagram.com/andynpoet/reel/DLwiwt9u_Wq/ (Reading)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPdHP49_zuc (Chat)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pFiZ3IrfAWM (Reading)

https://open.spotify.com/episode/0kvUDNBa3c4TtVu9ze0KcF








Friday, 4 July 2025

Speak Easy thank you's for July 2025 and how to book for September 2025

 












Another stellar night at Speak Easy last night (Our Spoken Word Open Mic night at Dulicmer, Chorlton) with at least forty-five or so people there, with Phillip Carter doing a simply wonderful job of hosting.

He had everybody laughing throughout the full of the whole night. Well done and thanks m8 – I know he has a few really good auditions coming up, so on behalf of me, Amanda, and Steve, we would like to wish him all the best.

Big thank you to all of the following who read, we had people coming over from South Shields, Lancaster and Todmorden alone last night, which was really touching.

Readers, in order, we would like to say thank you for reading are the following:

Phillip Carter
Mark Quinn
Martin Elder
Humphrey Peters (Peter Humphreys)
Olga Gerke
Lee McShane
Pip Fowler
Michael Hulley (Volodya Gorky)
Andy N
Amanda Nicholson - Author
Maria Roberts
Steve Smythe
Andy Cash
Anne Delargy
Martin CM (Martin Corlettmoss)
Norman Dearlove
Rachel Hammond
Dylan
David Bond
Patrick Hollis
Andy Farhan

*

We are taking a well-deserved break from our night in August but will be back on Thursday, 04 September 2025, when we will be celebrating our 10th anniversary, and I can already announce that David Hartley, the founding father of Speak Easy, will be back to guest host for us on that night.

Bookings shall open this Sunday, 07 July 2025, for it by emailing me at aen1mpo@yahoo.co.uk from Noon onwards.

We strongly recommend booking in advance for a slot to read, and even if you just turn up in advance wishing to read, we will try, of course, to find a slot to read, but we cannot guarantee it.

Pictures from the night can be found here:

https://www.facebook.com/media/set?vanity=speakeasymanchester&set=a.1255240299728085





Sunday, 29 June 2025

New Spoken Label Podcast - Genevieve F Ray (Part 1)

 












* New from Spoken Label *

Part 1 of a longer podcast with Part 2 to follow next week, today's Spoken Label (Poetry/Spoken Word Podcast) features its debut, Genevieve F Ray. Genevieve is a Spoken Word Artist, Poet, Director, Producer, Playwright, Actor and Spokeswoman based in Bedfordshire, East England.

She has been published in over 25 publications ranging from anthologies to digital and print magazines.

She has been a guest star in 12 podcasts and a headline act for performances across the UK.

She has been invited to be a Spoken Word Artist/Speaker in the USA (Massacuettes, New York), South Africa, Nigeria and Bhutan.

She has produced a show with Diaspora Dames in collaboration with the National Trust in June 2025.

Her debut book 'Free Roaming Adult Woman' is out now.

*

Podcast can be downloaded / streamed from:

https://www.tiktok.com/@andynwriter/video/7520002255244791062
(Prologue to Podcast)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=utlBWvD6hZw

https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/genevieve-f-ray-spoken-label-june-2025-part-1/id1501847969?i=1000714441044

https://creators.spotify.com/pod/show/spokenlabelpodcast/episodes/Genevieve-F-Ray-Spoken-Label--June-2025---Part-1-e34iqmo

https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/bae49616-2295-4e7c-b931-91415a724cb6/episodes/f07b90f9-089b-46a9-9df1-5f237a2ea7f7/spoken-label-genevieve-f-ray-spoken-label-june-2025---part-1

https://www.instagram.com/andynpoet/reel/DLaWPSEAV8V/

https://www.audible.co.uk/podcast/Genevieve-F-Ray-Spoken-Label-June-2025-Part-1/B0FFG2YWYP?ref_pageloadid=not_applicable&pf_rd_p=a202f891-0d90-47a2-ac3f-8ebc4b2943db&pf_rd_r=WM5N15XB024H61VAKDPG&plink=wUqC4GzhLvziFsIV&pageLoadId=fZtELepNfmZyoG0j&creativeId=43463e8d-6f2b-4d01-a759-854a1034c4b8&ref=a_podcast_S_c4_lAsin_0_0

https://open.spotify.com/episode/52grxvYmNR2QXGlRDrzps6

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=utlBWvD6hZw