Arts Events

Roger McGough, ‘the godfather of modern British poetry’, is appearing in Wigan!

Thurs 19th May 2022
The Old Courts


@TheOldCourts

Book tickets here: www.theoldcourts.com

He has managed to keep going for a long time, hasn't he.

He has, Ena M, and long may he continue!

Definitely has! Roger McGough must now be in his mid-80s.
He certainly looks good for his age - must be down to that 'medicinal compound'.

Leigh’s The Turnpike Gallery reopens with 50th anniversary celebration (BWCN)



The Drawn In exhibition will run from Sat 2nd April - Sat 11th June

Tues - Sat, 10am - 4pm
Free entry

It will feature local, regional and nationally renowned artists many of whom had their first major exhibition at the gallery. The work of Henry Moore, who was the first artist to have his work shown at the gallery in 1971, will be returning along with paintings by L S Lowry, whose work was exhibited at The Turnpike in 1972.

The Turnpike Gallery,
Civic Square,
Leigh. WN7 1EB

For more info, email: theturnpikegallery@wigan.gov.uk

‘Medicinal compound’ as invented by Lily the Pink, IanP?

I could do with some of that!

Me, too!
Thanks for another informative post. Roger McGough must have a lot of great stories to tell due to his extremely interesting life and the people he has known and met. He probably spent time with Lennon and McCartney, because of his connection with Liverpool and with his time with Paul's brother.

The Scaffold's version of 'Lily the Pink' is a sanitised version of a bawdy drinking song, (we would probably call it a rugby song today) that particularly saw popularity amongst the soldiery of 1914-1918.

Lydia E Pinkham's product was widely condemned as quack medicine, but she pushed back strongly, pioneered much of what today we recognise as high-pressure selling, and was hugely successful. It gets mentioned a lot in textbooks concerning marketing in the pharmaceutical industry.

In some respects the song is taking the p---!

A song satirising the way a product was sold. Wonder if that is unique? Do you know of others?

Who remembers Liverpool Lou

Ena M: Are there any other songs that satirise the way a product was sold?

That’s a good question, Ena! I don’t know.

I hadn’t heard Liverpool Lou before, Roylew. The Scaffold’s cover of the song by Dominick Behan.

The current edition of Local Life - Wigan includes an article by Nicola Gray about notable local artists, James Lawrence Isherwood and Theodore Major: p.20 - 22, and a few more on p.23.

Free to read: here

The Turnpike’s new exhibition looks brilliant, I’m looking forward to seeing it!

A Twitter Video: @LeighFilm


Pic - @CrossStreetArts

Cross Street Arts,
Standish Links
Sat 6th Aug, 11am - 4pm



I went along a few years ago and enjoyed looking around.

There’s also a new exhibition, Farther, by Matylda Augustynek at Cross Street Arts:



Tickets: Link