About Katherine Gallagher
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Biographical Notes

I am a widely-published Australian poet resident in London since 1979.
I started writing poetry in the mid-1960s at Melbourne University after discovering the Penguin Book of Australian Verse and my first poem was an anti-hanging piece against the execution of Robert Ryan titled Lifeline, in Poetry (Poetry Society Magazine, Sydney, 1966).

Publications

See also Arc Publications

Awards and Fellowships

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Biography

1987 - Representing Australia at the Struga 26th International Poetry Festival

(one of 5 poets reading for Australia's year)

1992 - Introducing the Barnet Poetry Competition

Adult and Junior, which continued every year until 2019. I judged the Junior Section. BBAC published illustrated anthologies each year.

2002 - Appointed Writers' Inc Education Officer

2002 - The Palmers Green Stevie Smith Centenary Poetry Festival

In September 2002, with Joanna Cameron of the Palmers Green bookshop, I co-ordinated 'Ten Days with Stevie Smith - 13th -22nd September 2002' - The Palmers Green Stevie Smith Centenary Poetry Festival.

2004-2005 - Young Writers' Mentorship Project

In 2004-5, I co-ordinated on behalf of Writers Inc an Arts Council-funded Young Writers' Mentorship Project to work in twelve secondary schools in the Boroughs of Barnet, Ealing, Enfield, Haringey and Islington. Other participating poets were Mario Petrucci whose idea it was originally and Sue Hubbard. The Project was very successful and showed the need for such one-to-one mentoring as a spur to fledgling writers for they rarely have such direct access to established writer-tutors.

2006 - Parks and Arts Healthy Lifestyle Walk

On July 17, 2006, I was Poet in Residence for the third annual Parks and Arts Healthy Lifestyle Walk in Hornchurch Country Park, London Borough of Havering organised by their Parks, Arts and Regeneration Services.
Co-ordinated as an Arts Walk by Arts Officer Chris Cole, the idea was to use the Walk to celebrate walking and healthy eating. There were 50 participants under very sunny skies. Part of my brief was to write a poem of the Walk to accompany the photographs, poems and reflections sent in by the participants. The poem was displayed as a poster in libraries and around the Borough and sent to local media.

2007 - Palmers Green Stanza

In March 2007, I started a Poetry Society Stanza Group around the Palmers Green-Southgate-Tottenham-Hornsey-Wood Green area, listed by the Poetry Society as the Palmers Green-Tottenham Stanza, later as London North. In May 2008, we had our first Stanza Poetry Reading at Wood Green's Big Green Bookshop and have had various readings since in other venues. Like many of the Poetry Society's Stanzas, ours has prospered. However, we have since become the Palmers Green Stanza and have kept this title, with Stevie Smith always as our guiding spirit.

In 2007, as a result of the Stevie Smith Festival and an increased interest in poetry in Palmers Green, Joanna Cameron, Myra Schneider and I set up the Poetry in Palmers Green twice-yearly readings. Some time after, we were appointed Poets in Residence at the Palmers Green Library and we have done regular workshops and occasional readings there.

2009 - Poems featured on the ABC's POETICA, Radio National,

repeated 2011.

2012 - Parnassus Poet representing Australia

at the Derry Tall Ships Homecoming Celebrations, Northern Ireland.

2012 - The Guardian Poem of the week: "The Year of the Tree"

The Guardian Poem of the week 5th Nov. 2012: The Year of the Tree by Katherine Gallagher. Nature and mythology combine in this playful account of lugging an oak tree through the London Underground Here's the link on The Gardian's website.

2012 - Anglo-French Bilingual Festival of Literature at St. Clementin, France

2015 - THE YEAR OF THE TREE- made into a film by Andrew Spicer

Listen here to a short of my poem, 'The Year of the Tree', on Vimeo.
Click on: The Year of the Tree. The film presented by Molly Bourne, Andrew Spicer, with an appearance at the end by Katherine Gallagher, was made in 2015.

2015 - Anglo-French Bilingual Festival of Literature at Charroux, France

Following two very successful Bilingual Literary Festivals at St. Clementin in 2012 and 2014 (See below), now there was a delightfully innovative Anglo-French Bilingual Literary Festival from the scenic nearby city of Charroux (Limousin) 27-29 August 2015. I participated in several events as follows:

2016 - June 24-26, St. Clementin, France Bilingual Literary Festival

Katherine Gallagher participating with a Reading, Workshop and participation in a Translation Forum.
See Facebook St. Clementin Festival.

2016 - Poetry & Voice and other Workshops, viz Second Light, Stevie Smith

I stopped doing my long running Poetry & Voice Monthly Workshop at Torriano Meeting House in July 2016. However, I continued doing one-off workshops at Palmers Green Library or for the Second Light group.

2017 - Acres of Light's promotion in Australia

Trip to Australia, August-October 2017 to promote Acres of Light, including readings in Bendigo, Maldon, Canberra and Sydney.

2018 - I've written a Christmas poem for Candlestick Press, 'Instead of a Card' programme.

1985 - 2021 - Barnet Workshop

I continued with my long-running monthly Barnet workshop, normally held at the Friends' House, Leicester Road until 2020 when we were able to use Zoom. The number in this group has varied but despite Covid-19, we've kept going, with Lindsay Fursland hosting us via Zoom. The dates for the 4 next months are: Sept 14, Oct 12, Nov. 9, Dec 7, . . .

2021 - Poetry in Progress

Interviews

2000 - Ted Slade for the Poetry Kit Interview

March 2000 with Ted Slade for the Poetry Kit on Poetry Kit.

2006 - Pr. Lidia Vianu Interview

January 2006 with Professor Lidia Vianu (University of Bucharest) on Lidia Vianu's site.

2006 - Interview with Michael Brennan (Poetry International),

2007 - Elena Nistor Interview

February 2007 with Elena Nistor.
Published in Caiete Internationale de Poezie - International Notebook of Poetry Nr. 8/2007. Poems in Translation: East and West Essays on Poets and Poetry.
This International Notebook is an annual publication sponsored by the Romanian Writers & Artists' International Association - LiterArt - XXI.
The interview is accompanied by 10 Poems from Circus-Apprentice translated into Romanian by Elena Nistor.

2009 - ABC's POETICA Krystana Kubiac Interview

Interview by Krystana Kubiac, (Australian Broadcasting Commission) for the POETICA
I was very fortunate to be interviewed in June 2009 by Krystyna Kubiak for the long-running ABC Poetry POETICA programme, Radio National. The programme, a mixture of chat, poetry from my 4th full collection Circus-Apprentice, and music appeared on 27th June 2009 and the following week 2nd July. The programme was repeated two years later.
Sadly, a few years on and despite vociferous protests, the POETICA Programme was axed, victim to cuts in ABC funding. The closing down of this very popular slot, facilitated over many years by Mike Ladd and his team, bringing poetry and translations from across the world, is an inestimable loss to poetry-lovers in Australia and overseas, and to poets themselves. A great shame. Not by bread alone . . . .
Many thanks to Mike Ladd and Krystyna Kubiak.
To listen to the recording of the interview, please click here and wait for five/ten seconds until it starts.

2015 - Orizont's Monica Manolachi's Interview

Monica Manolachi's Interview with Katherine Gallagher published in Orizont Literar Contiporan, May - June 2015
Click on Monica Manolachi's Interview to read the interview.

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