Spoken Word, Poetry

Loud Poets

with Courtney Stoddart, Kevin P. Gilday, Mark Grist & Len Pennie

(Fri 7 Oct: 7.30pm)

Showcasing the top spoken word talent from Scotland and the UK! From laugh-out-loud funny, through the wonderfully surreal, to the thoughtful and emotional – Loud Poets continue to prove that Spoken Word has something for everyone.

Mae Diansangu is a Black, queer poet from Aberdeen who writes to continue conversations started by people who are now long gone. These conversations are felt in the body before they are expressed on the page, making each poem a visceral response (to a question that will probably remain unanswered). Mae has been commissioned by The National Library of Scotland, Aberdeen Performing Arts and Fringe of Colour Films. Her work has been featured on BBC Big Scottish Book Club and BBC Radio Four's Tongue and Talk. Mae writes in both English and Doric.

Len Pennie is a poet who writes predominantly in the Scots language. She is passionate about the promotion of minority languages and the destigmatisation of mental illness. Len grew in popularity during the Covid-19 Pandemic through her ‘Scots word of the day and poetry videos on Tiktok and Twitter. She has written poetry for Lidl and performed for the University of St Andrews and the National Trust for Scotland.

Kevin P. Gilday is an award-winning poet, writer and performer from Glasgow. He is the founder of poetry performance collective The Scribbler's Union and was co-founder of much loved spoken word cabaret night Sonnet Youth. He is a National Theatre of Scotland Breakthrough Writer, a BBC Writersroom Scottish Voice and one of Scotland’s most celebrated contemporary poets. Kevin has performed all over the world, from Hollywood to East Kilbride, including major festivals (BBC 6Music Festival, Glastonbury), Fringes (Edinburgh, Toronto, Vancouver), book festivals (EIBF) as well as large-scale tours of the UK, Europe, the US and Canada. He has supported artists and public figures such as Akala, Saul Williams, George the Poet, Jackie Kay, Liz Lochhead, Sage Francis, The Silencers and Jeremy Corbyn MP.

Mark Grist is an ex-teacher, poet, rapper & battle rapper based in Peterborough in the UK. Over the past ten years, he’s won various slams, titles and awards for his work and has gained over 40 million views for his poetry & rap videos online. Previously a secondary school English teacher, a lot of his poetry is designed for teenagers/young adults/teachers/children.

Mae Diansangu has unfortunately had to drop out and will be replaced by Courtney Stoddart.