One of Britain’s best loved poets, Dr John Cooper Clarke, will be touring the U.K. in November/December 2018. Due to high demand two new dates in Liverpool and York have been added to the tour for February 2019. Tickets for these shows go on sale 10am Thursday 13th September for the Liverpool performance and will available to purchase from the Philharmonic Hall Box office.
John will perform live shows across some of the U.K.s most iconic venues including a headline date at Manchester’s prestigious Bridgewater Hall and a very special show at one of the most famous theatres in the capital city, the London Palladium. John will also be joined by very special guest acclaimed comedian Simon Day who will be performing as Yorkshire poet Geoffrey Allerton.
The show is a sensational showcase of spoken word – a chance to see John perform material both classic and brand new as he delves into his vast back catalogue, as well as his prolific collection of new work, all read from his trademark battered notebooks, delivered in John’s legendary, rapid fire style and iconic Salford drawl.
John’s first collection of new poetry for nearly 40 years The Luckiest Guy Alive will be published by Picador on 1st November and this tour will be a chance for fans to see this hugely anticipated collection of work performed live as part of a new show for the first time.
Combine this with John’s hilarious observations, gags and off the wall chat and it adds up to the chance to see a living legend at the top of his game.
John Cooper Clarke is as relevant and vibrant as ever, and his influence just as visible on pop culture. His influence can be heard in the keen social observations of artists such as Plan B and the Arctic Monkeys. Alex Turner, frontman of the Artic Monkeys cites him as a huge inspiration and this was highlighted by the band’s cover of JCC’s I Wanna Be Yours on their critically acclaimed fifth studio album AM. U.K. rapper Plan B featured John’s poetry in his directorial film debut Ill Manors – their duet Pity The Plight appears in the movie and on the films hit soundtrack.
These collaborations mean that John has been involved in 2 global number 1 albums in the last few years.
As well as his regular television appearances on the likes of Have I Got News For You, Never Mind The Buzzcocks, Would I Lie To You and 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown, John also hosts 6 Music shows and his own B.B.C. Radio 4 Show John Cooper Clarke Live at the B.B.C.
Dr John Cooper Clarke recently produced the first anthology of his work, a unique 3CD/DVD bookset collection of his work Anthologia. Released through Sony on 16th October 2015 this includes an expansive archive of poems from Evidently Chickentown, I Wanna Be Yours and live performances from the Manchester Ritz and Hulme Playhouse. The one-off collection truly encompasses Cooper Clarke’s wicked humour, originality and his mastery of the spoken word in a career spanning five decades.
John Cooper Clarke has also recently collaborated with The National Trust creating a coastal poem to celebrate the nation’s enduring love affair with our beautiful coastline. The poem Nation’s Ode to the Coast, also marks 50 years of their successful Neptune Coastline Campaign.
Tickets for John Cooper Clarke at the Philharmonic Hall in Liverpool on February 22nd are available to purchase from Thursday 13th September.