London Magazine winter front cover; and the British Library exhibition and more

In haste, so not a brilliant picture but here is the cover of the December/January issue with my image from Some Light Remains  - and James' new Christmas carol poem is inside.....
Christmas cheer from the London Magazine......
and talking of London - we really enjoyed the Harry Potter exhibition at the British Library yesterday - something for everyone, really beautifully displayed as usual, and some really beautiful old books and the fabulous Ripley Scroll, over 6 meters long - alchemical hand-painted diagram  from the 17th century in Britain, really gorgeous; lots of exciting objects from the excellent Museum of Witchcraft in Boscastle too.

More beautiful painted diagrams too in the Wellcome Institute Galleries Ayurvedic Man display too about Indian medicine...free and wonderful, the Wellcome always a good place to visit....

Attending the Michael Marks Awards for Poetry Pamphlets dinner and presentation was really interesting  and enjoyable in the evening - many thanks to the British Library for this invitation,.

Guest Blogger for British Library Poetry blog

My post has just gone live at
http://blogs.bl.uk/english-and-drama/2017/11/artist-and-poet-collaboration-carolyn-trant-and-james-simpson.html

Workshops, Websites and belly-worms was a hard act to follow......but I am very honoured to have been invited....

Meanwhile - just back from the Bodleian show PV yesterday, now open from today....
with an exciting display in the glass case of contemporary work in the entrance hall of the Weston Library; the exhibition of medieval books is a stunning and interesting collection; it is open now until 22 April 2018 - well worth a visit
https://www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/weston/news/2017/nov-21

Sue Doggatt won the first prize - her book is right in the middle of the picture

and Paul Johnson, who was teaching bookbinding at the course at Schumacher College where James Simpson and I first met, won third with his wonderful rendering of the tale of the Wife of Bath shown above.
The  view across towards the Bodleian Library looked pretty good too.....

What a week - the Women in Print Symposium in Sheffield was a joy; six talks centred around Love and Friendship alongside the Rav&Co exhibition at the Millenium Gallery it was inspiring and uplifting, lovely fellow speakers and a real sharing of research and ideas.
Women discussed included Peggy Angus and Tirzah Garwood, Enid Marx and Barron and Larcher, Ethel Mairet and Hilary Bourne, and Mary Hope Greg.
Sheffield looked lovely and was very welcoming - some wonderful artworks in the Graves nearby, there is a Ruskin room in the new Millenium Gallery, a Christmas market and bright golden angels in the lovely wooden cathedral roof with a green man and a sheila-na-gig; still a handsome city.