Infliximab Man - the continuing story of my lungs

So, tomorrow I will spend most of the day at Merlin Park Hospital getting my first intravenous infusion of a drug called Infliximab. It's a new treatment for my lungs' sarcoidosis.

I had a poem and article about the condition in the Irish Times health section in September. See here.

 For further details see here.

The Free David Drumm Campaign

This is Fintan O'Toole, one of the great brains of liberal Ireland. His mind is said to contain a detailed blueprint of the country Ireland could be if only we stopped voting Fianna Fáil, which of course we already have.

This is David Drumm, former CEO of Anglo Irish Bank, currently in jail in Massachussets pending an extradition hearing. The authorities here in Ireland would like to (ahem) talk to David about some stuff. 

Last week, in the hallowed and posh pages of The Irish Times, Fintan O'Toole launched a campaign to get David Drumm released from jail. 

I agree with Fintan. In fact I'd go further. I think David Drumm is the Nelson Mandela of our time. He should be released immediately and allowed roam freely through whatever countryside he wishes. 

I have composed a small poem The Lonesome Incarceration of David Drumm to support Fintan O'Toole's campaign. This is one of the great injustices of our time. It's time we made a stand. 

Nelson Mandela, the David Drumm of his time.

Making Love To John Prescott - 'Blair's Advice' - poem written at suggestion of Danny Morrison

A couple of days after the recent U.K. General Election I posted this Tweet.

Tony Blair needs to just go away. I hear he has an article in today's Observer I'd rather make love to John Prescott than read it.

— Kevin Higgins - poet (@KevinHIpoet1967) May 9, 2015

It prompted the following response from Danny Morrison.

@KevinHIpoet1967 Write a poem about that!

— Danny Morrison (@molloy1916) May 9, 2015

A tall order indeed!

The resulting poem 'Blair's Advice' is published on The Bogman's Cannon and on the UK based political blog Socialist Unity, which is edited by Andy Newman who was the Labour candidate for the Chippenham constituency on May 7th. 

Cliff Cocker, the Arts Editor of The Morning Star newspaper, emailed me yesterday to say he'd read the poem on Socialist Unity and would like to re-publish it in The Morning Star. It is republished in today's issue of the paper. 

UPDATE 22/5/14 The Irish Times have also republished the poem today on their website.

Ross O’Carroll-Kelly and Me

My recent book of poems The Ghost In The Lobby is reviewed by John McAuliffe in today's Irish Times, alongside collections by Valentin Iremonger & Gabriel Fitzmaurice. You can read the review here.

Among other things John McAuliffe says the book is: “often as laugh-out-loud funny as Paul Howard’s Ross O’Carroll-Kelly”. Ironic that, as I once went out with a cousin of O'Carroll-Kelly's creator. Indeed, said brief but politically significant relationship may even be the subject of the odd poem.

Buy your copy of The Ghost In The Lobby here.