Door-to-door poet to perform at Sunderland's Peacock pub

Rowan McCabe is to appear at The Peacock pub, in the city centre, later this month where he will talk about his experiences knocking on people’s doors and asking strangers whether he can write them a poem.

South Shields-born Rowan started his door-to-door poetry service two years ago and has since pounded the streets of Tyneside, offering to write poems based on ideas suggested to him by whoever answers the doorbell.

He has appeared at the Edinburgh Fringe, The Royal Albert Hall and Glastonbury and has been appointed Poet in Residence at The Fire Station, Sunderland. He has appeared on Radio 2, Radio 4 and BBC Breakfast TV and is seen as a rising star in the world of poetry.

“The show is based on my experiences over the last two years and features 11 poems written for people I spoke to on the doorstep. I’ve written poems about pets, love, World War Three, hatred of snakes, and everything in between,” explained Rowan.

“Basically I just turn up on people’s doorsteps, ask them what’s on their minds, looking for things that might make it on the page. I return a week or two later with a finished verse in hand, to perform it live. If the recipient isn’t home, I leave a note, and return later to try again.

“I’m really looking forward to appearing in Sunderland and talking about some of the people I’ve written poems for – the show will last about an hour and 15 minutes and will also feature some of my other work.”

•Rowan McCabe is at The Peacock on April 20. Tickets are available at www.ticketsource.co.uk