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 RACING IN THE STREETS BLOG

No. 9 @ Poetry Jam. Waddington St Community Centre, Durham
Thursday 1st August 2024

“I think this is right Tony but shall we ask that stork on the right? Cos I can definitely see our Premier Inn, mate but there’s no sign of Lenny Henry yet.”

Me and my PA for this gig, Tony Kinsella, both looked across at the metal sculpture of a stork perched eagerly on the river bed, as the noise of the river flowed under the bridge. Tony had helped me out before and accompanied me on the Sale gig when the tour first began, so it was lovely to catch up again. His son, Jamal also studied in Durham Uni for 3 years, so he had good memories and a little prior knowledge of the area.

On leaving Durham train station it's pretty straight forward to get to the City Centre with only really one crossing at the traffic lights, then a walk over the bridge but it's still quite steep, as you wind your way down the paths. As I've mentioned before in the blogs; practicality always has to take centre stage before you can relax a bit with the chair. I was aware of the amazing scenery of the cathedral, the castle and rolling green hills but probably not as leisurely as someone able bodied would be. I was thankful too, having the power chair batteries and good brakes, and whilst I’m in no way an expert on any disability other than my own, I would say that if you have someone just to steady you or give a push here and there, if in a manual chair, then it's still do-able and not the trickiest place I've been in.

After going the long way around and winding up and down a few more streets just off the city centre, we did eventually find our Premier Inn. A few of the paths did have cobblestones which are always a way to slow me down and I need to be cautious when I drive over them but again this isn’t a major drawback for me personally. Tony and I were quite impressed with the Premier Inn. My room was really spacious, in a good location and with everything you need. I also felt confident and safe using the shower with the drop down seat because it seemed they’d really thought about just how many handles to have and had placed them in the right positions. Whilst the hotels I’ve stayed at when I’ve travelled are usually good, it’s the well-known chains that really succeed in having accessible bathrooms.

We’d arrived for the gig in plenty of time so after unpacking our bags in the hotel room we had a stroll around Durham. The market tavern was our first port of call for something to eat. I really liked the olde world feel of the little square and the buildings for the most part seemed to only have a small step and were accessible for me. After our food we headed back to the hotel to relax for a while before a 2 for-1 offer on cocktails in the hotel bar seemed a fitting way to countdown to the main event and our hope that Google would guide us, like an ultra-futuristic nativity to the venue, bearing the gifts of poems and chats.

What you can never really legislate for when travelling are the random pubs and buildings that you just might come across and think ‘let’s have a quick drink while we’re early’ which is what we did. The Bridge Hotel cosy inside with only a slight step at the entrance to get up with my chair. The bar staff were warm and friendly too but when I’d asked where the disabled loo was, there was a big stack of tables and chairs in the little narrow hallway and inside the toilet it was packed to the rafters with various store-cupboard items including one bucket, a Henry Hoover vac, three chairs and a table. I’m not pointing this out to be vindictive or malicious because the staff were really nice but no wonder he looked at me sheepishly as he opened the toilet door and yes, it does happen regularly.

I really don’t understand why accessible toilets are always used as a store cupboard because it’s the most basic human right. You know people need to use toilets! And I’ve yet to see an able bodied toilet used in this way.

I did eventually manage to use and reverse back out of the toilet but ironically I’d be doing a poem in my set later called, ‘Stolen for a Store Cupboard,’ which is about the very same thing.

On to the night itself. I really loved the fact it was in a community centre first and foremost and it just felt to me like being in someone's home. There was in fact a little fireplace so it probably had been someone home at some point. You could also see how much the community centre was being used, with an array of activities and words of affirmation doted about on the walls. It was really great to see it valued in this way.

The format of the event was unusual. It was fun, enjoyable and fast paced. People took it in turns to get up one poem at a time until the headliners came on. It reminded me of the tv show ‘Mock the Week’ and I’d not seen a poetry night done like this which kept a nice flow to the evening.

I did go to the toilet and did my detective bit and no such problems as earlier in the pub. I even spotted a sensory, quiet room on the way out which was good.

Overall the night was how I think poetry should be; honest, raw welcoming and without snobbery. It was great to hear a wide variety of stories and I was glad to be on the bill with such sound people and do my bit. I was happy to be there as a headliner but also just to watch everyone’s own unique approaches to telling a story. Besides myself there were two other headliners on. I liked the humour and stories in the Glaswegian accent of Mandy Maxwell. To me it’s like the broad Northern accent which always seems to make it funnier anyway and I was impressed with the tongue-twisting, fast-rhyming from other headliner, just think phil because there’s no way I’d have remembered all that from memory without tripping up.

I’m always hesitant to praise myself but I think I went down well and I was surprised to sell a good amount of my books again. I’m flattered that people take time to comment and then take my thoughts and words away with them after we’ve chatted.

Steadily over the tour I’ve been selling my books and just being heard outside of Wigan’s walls is a lovely new exhilarating experience. Tony also got to perform a new poem and was pleased with how it came across, so it was a successful night all round and another venue I know I’d love to revisit in future.

The next day we were up early to take in a little more of Durham and have a leisurely cafe breakfast before heading for the train home around lunchtime. With the extra time to kill we decided to amble up to the Cathedral and the massive structure that we’d seen dominating the cities scenery throughout our trip. It looked even more majestic up close and inside. The imposing cathedral in bright sunshine seemed the perfect way to end this trip. I turned to Tony and said “ Yea that was nice and another surprise access wise too, cos God usually forgets.”