Category: Events

We’d like to think we’ve got a pretty good track record when it comes to having cracking ideas and putting them into practice. Yes We Cant is one (more about that later). PASTA is another. And now we’ve a further one to add to the list – Midlands Fringe.

It’s an idea we’ve mulled over for two or three years. We already programme a Fringe day as part of the city’s Lit Fest each February, so why not do the same in the summer, and bring a little of that Edinburgh magic to the Midlands? This year, we’re delighted to say we’re turning that idle chatter into reality.

Oh yes. We’ve secured funding from Arts Council England to put on fifteen Fringe shows in three venues in Wolverhampton city centre over the weekend of 25-27 July. Midlands Fringe will be supported using public funding by the National Lottery through Arts Council England, and we couldn’t be more excited about it. Put those dates in your diaries, because it’s going to be amazing!

We want to create a festival which showcases a diverse range of talent and genres, and over the next few weeks, we’ll be booking in shows. If you’ve got a Fringe show and want to apply, we’ve created a simple form for you to fill in. You’ll find it here. All submissons need to be in by June 7th, after which we’ll be selecting the shows we can put on. Given the size of the venues we’re using, we’ll be looking at shows with one or two performers, no more. If you think you’ve something which fits the bill, and want to be part of the first ever Midlands Fringe, fill in that form!

And while we’ve got your attention… Yes We Can returns to the Great Western in Wolverhampton on Sunday 1st June, when we’ll be bringing you not one, but TWO headline poets: Martin Figura and Helen Ivory. As always, this will be a PAYF event, we’ll be streaming it on Zoom (let us know if you want to join us on that platform) and in-person attendees can order one of the pub’s huge and delicious cheese & onion cobs in advance (these are £2.75, highly recommended, but not for the faint-hearted) If you’d like to put your name in the hat for one of our ten open-mic spots (five can be booked in advance, five on the door on the night) let us know. See you there!

As the Bank Holiday sun shines over Wolverhampton we find ourselves stuffed with cheese and onion cobs, still hungover from the poetry liqueur, and the shelves straining under the weight of another couple of poetry books. Last night was another Yes We Cant. This time we reverted to our old format. Ten open mics, one ‘Alf Ender and one Headliner.

We’re not sure if it’s the wonderful beer in the Great Western, the atmosphere we try to instil in our gigs or the aforementioned cheese and onion cobs but it was another superb night of poetry. The open mics gave us as eclectic a mix as we always get and warmed everyone up perfectly for our ‘Alf Ender, Si Griffiths. Si read from his new debut phamplet “Debone & Fold” which explores food, labour, and endurance. We suspect his follow up might include something about cheese and onion cobs.

After the break we enjoyed more open mic followed by our headliner, Heather Wastie. Heather has a new book out called “You Are Here” about the legacy of lockdown. It was an engaging and thought-provoking set which pulled up a mix of emotions about that time. It reminded us of how strange that whole period was. And also how wonderful it is that we can now all come back together into places like the Great Western and celebrate poetry again.

We’ll be back on 1^st June, with TWO headliners, bringing you Martin Figura and Helen Ivory, book purchasing, and cheese and onion cobs. If you want to join us either in person or online then stay in touch.

Over the last few days we have taken time to reflect on last week’s ruling by the Supreme Court in Scotland, and we want to be clear to anyone who comes to one of our nights or supports us in any way: PPP is an organisation based on inclusion. And we always will be. We know trans people, we have trans friends, and we support trans rights. Ever since we first set up as a collective, we have tried to ensure that our events are safe spaces for everyone, that they are places where a wide range of voices can be heard. We will continue to do so, and that means our events will remain – as they always have been – trans-friendly, and trans-inclusive.

It would be naive not to recognise the right-wing pressure which seeks to roll back the progressive gains made over the past fifty years, and the role it plays in caricaturing trans people as a threat. The smears now are a carbon copy of the anti-gay ones used at the time of Section 28, and are just as contemptible. History tells us that an attack on one minority is only the precursor to attacks on others, and we recognise how vitally important it is for people to stand together and oppose it. It’s 2025. Saying there should be room for all of us to live as we please should not be a radical take. But here we are. Let’s all do what we can to look out for each other and make the world a little better than it might otherwise be.

Thank you.

It’s Monday morning, ths sun is shining, Spring is in the air, and we are happily basking in the glow of last night’s Yes We Cant. A Yes We Cant held in an actual physical space! We’ve been wanting to move back to that format – while additionally retaining the online element so we don’t abandon those people who’ve stayed with us over our years on Zoom – for a year or more, but finding the right venue proved to be trickier than we’d hoped or expected. We do have quite a list of requirements, in fairness: available on a Sunday evening, free, accessible, good transport links, plenty of parking, decent internet connection for starters – and the Venn diagram intersection of all those factors in the Wolverhampton area turned out to be vanishingly small.

So we were delighted when the Great Western – a legendary real ale pub just a stone’s throw from Wolverhampton’s train, bus, and tram stations – said yes, they’d give this poetry lark a whirl. We rocked up last night, giving ourselves plenty of time to work out how best to set up within the space available, plug the PA in, and check that the Zoom link worked. Reader, it did. Yes We Cant was up and running.

Those of you who follow what we do will know that at Yes We Cant we normally have a headline poet, an ‘Alf Ender (poet with a new book out), and ten open mic poets. Seeing as we were testing the waters here, and finding out how the Great Wester/Zoom/PPP interface performed, we made the decision to keep this first event an open mic, pure and simple. Our huge thanks to everyone who came along, whether as audience or performer, in the flesh or on Zoom. It was great to see faces we’ve not seen in years, too. We. Had. A. Blast.

We plan to be back at the Great Western in May (presuming they’ll have us) when we’ll be returning to our traditional format. Keep your eyes peeled for more information about that. And for those of you interested in the tech side of how we pulled together a rudimentary hybrid event, it involved a Zoom account and two laptops (one to film the performers, the other so Emma could chat with folk online and ensure they felt part of the evening). And Steve stood in as MC while Dave rebuilds his back. While this doesn’t give us the facility to share work from online attendees (and we hope to work towards that) it’s a simple first step. If you run an event, and you’d like to chat to us about this in detail, drop us a line – we’re happy to share what little we know. Putting on events isn’t a competition, after all.

Finally, a quick word about food. The Great Western does incredible cheese and onion cobs, the size of small houses. While these aren’t yet an essential part of a poetry evening, we think they probably should be. If you tried one last night, you’ll know.

PPP
7th April 2025