Readers from the floor welcome
Cheryl Mclennan is an exceptional poet and spoken word artist with northern working-class roots, who understands the nuances of all kinds of invisibility.
Her insightful and witty writing navigates social and personal landscapes with a unique blend of playfulness and depth.
Her work is infused with hyperrealism, reflecting the impact of politics and discrimination on people's lives. Cheryl has over two decades of experience in directly supporting individuals struggling with their mental health, women leaving prison and homeless people in CRISIS cold weather shelters. Later she volunteered with WinVisible (women with visible and invisible disabilities) at Crossroads Women's Centre. Originally a member of the RRANTS collective, Cheryl has been featured at Bang Said the Gun, Paper Tiger Poetry, Kiss the Sky, Utter, The Poetry Cafe and many other events. Cheryl is published with Queen's Wood Writers and in several national poetry anthologies. She has also contributed to podcasts and recorded a CD.
Charlotte Harker is a visual artist, poet, writer and performer.
Her poetry and prose have been described as ranging from satires of the banal to celebrations of the absurd, exploring the real and imagined where the surreal seeps into the ordinary.
Her first collection of poetry and drawings ‘The Wear and Tear of Conversation’ was published by Dempsey and Windle in 2018. Her work has been included in poetry anthologies, including with Dempsey and Windle and the Writers Forum London e-zine in 2023.
A collection of illustrated short form prose and drawings ‘The Novel and Other Incidents’ was published by TSL Publications in 2022 and ‘Model Boat Club Blues and Other Predicaments’ in 2024 also by TSL Publications. Her story ‘About Edward’ was shortlisted for London Borough of Tower Hamlets Short Story Award in 2022.
As a visual artist her work has been supported by, amongst others, Arts Council England and the Pollock Krasner Foundation, New York. In collaboration with Poet Louise Warren and inspired by St Pancras old Churchyard, London she produced a series of drawings for ‘Sometime in a Churchyard’, a collection of illustrated poetry published by Paekakariki Press in 2022. Her work has been shortlisted for the Jerwood Drawing Prize and has been exhibited widely both in the U.K. and abroad.
www.tslbooks.uk/charlotte-harker
www.dempseyandwindle.com/charlotteharker
www.instagram.com/charker2001
www.axisweb.org/artist/charlotteharker
