John Cooper Clarke A little information about mighty punk bard
John Cooper Clarke is a performance poet from Salford, born in the winter of 1949 in Greater Manchester, England. He is a from a Roman Catholic background and is affectionately known as the Bard of Salford. He is often referred to as a punk poet, having initially achieved recognition in the late 1970s amidst the flourishing punk movement. He performed as an opening act for such bands as The Sex Pistols, The Buzzcocks and Elvis Costello. His set was characterized by his lively, rapid-fire renditions of his poems, which were usually performed a cappella. Having released a handful of records into the early 1980s, Clarke performed his live act less frequently and spent much of that decade battling a heroin addiction. When he did appear he was a good gig. An appearance in a UK commercial for Sugar Puffs in 1988, taking second billing to the Honey Monster was strange but part of keeping his name in the public's memory. He notably had a 'domestic partnership' with singer Nico. More recently, Clarke has turned his stage act away from an emphasis on performance poetry and towards more of a stand-up oriented affair. He has turned up on BBC programs like Radio 4's Loose Ends with Ned Sherrin and Radio 2's Mark Radcliffe and is entertaining. He can often be seen supporting The Fall on British tours or performing as a headlining act in his own right. He is now living outside Colchester in Essex but retains his northern sound at least when I heard him on the radio. 10th August marks the start of The Summer Sundae Weekender in the grounds of De Montfort Hall, Leicester with poet John Cooper Clarke headlining.
