Poetry at the Dusty Miller
Sarah-Clare Conlon, Literature Editor
Calder Valley reading series Poetry at the Dusty Miller is a now monthly night with invited readers, organised by Carcanet Press-published Carola Luther and Judith Willson in the Coiners’ Room in the Mytholmroyd pub – and it’s back for 2025.
Since its first outing in December 2023, Poetry at the Dusty Miller has gathered steam, so far welcoming the likes of Lucy Burnett, Steve Ely, Rebecca Hurst, Tom Jenks, Andrew McMillan and Kim Moore, winner of the 2022 Forward Prize for Best Collection. This month’s guests are Sally Baker, Jack Faricy, Mary Marusz and Robert Powell.
Sally Baker was born in Suffolk and now lives in the Pennines. Her poems have appeared in various places, and her pamphlet The Sea and The Forest was published by The Poetry Business. She works as Reader in Residence for The Reader as well as teaching poetry, and is currently studying for a PhD in Place Writing at Manchester Metropolitan University.
Jack Faricy is a teacher and poet based in Slaithwaite, West Yorkshire. He regularly attends workshops with Huddersfield’s Albert Poets. His poems have won prizes and appeared in magazines, and his debut collection, Traces, is published by Calder Valley Poetry. He is currently working on a PhD project, which is a poetic exploration of the M62 and the landscapes it connects.
Mary Matusz writes about journeys, relationships, loss and her own cultural heritage. Love of the natural world also features in much of the writing. Her poems have appeared in anthologies, including Hallelujah for 50ft Women (Raving Beauties, Bloodaxe), Diversifly (Fair Acre Press), Over Land, Over Sea: Poems for Those Seeking Refuge (Five Leaves), Postcards from Malthusia (a home for pandemic poems) and Apocalyptic Landscape (Valley Press). They have also been published in magazines, including Spelt, Poetry Salzburg Review, Pennine Platform and The North. She lives in Huddersfield.
Robert Powell lives in York. Since 2007 he has published five collections of poetry – Harvest of Light, All, Riverain, Lost & Found and Time Town. He has been writer in residence with the Kone Foundation in Finland in 2018 and with York Civic Trust in 2023. He has co-produced short films and performances and written Punch Porteous – Lost in Time, a drama inspired by the history of York.
The organisers of Poetry at the Dusty Miller say just turn up, no booking is necessary and all are welcome. The event is free, with a hat passed around at the end of the evening to contribute towards the performing poets’ travel expenses, and there will also be books for sale – so remember to bring some readies. Getting there is not too difficult, with a bus stop outside and Mytholmroyd Railway Station a five-minute walk (and regular trains from Victoria if you’re heading over from Manchester).
