Name: Roger McGough (b. 1937) Nationality: English
Fact: Roger McGough is an English performance poet, broadcaster, children’s author and playwright. He presents a programme on BBC Radio 4 called ‘Poetry Please’.
The fi rst poem you will read in this collection is about this poet’s process of writing poetry. As you read it, think about whether it refl ects anything that cropped up in your class discussion.
‘Smithereens’ BY ROGER MCGOUGH
I spend my days Collecting smithereens. I fi nd them on buses in department stores and on busy pavements.
At restaurant tables I pick up the leftovers of polite conversation. At railway stations the tearful debris of parting lovers.
I pocket my eavesdroppings and store them away. I make things out of them. Nice things, sometimes. Sometimes odd, like this.
