Hello! I hope this briefing finds you well and that your 2021 has got off to a good start, with positive vibes and negative swab results.

I wanted to share a few bits of good news from Stew HQ and The Pink House Studios… (next slide please.)

Today, one of my poetry videos “Love Is Blind” has been selected as a UK entry to part of Jermyn Street Theatre’s “Butter Wouldn’t Melt” project closing a 28 day celebration of European poetry across their YouTube channel. Think Eurovision for poetry… and I’ve gone full Bucks Fizz. There are some fantastic entries and it’s a total dream to be involved – let’s hope Brexit won’t affect the votes! The poem is an (almost) true story about the time I accidentally asked my optician on a date – click here to watch it if you’ve got a spare few minutes. Every view counts! 

In impeccable timing I also hit a milestone 1,000 plays of my new poetry podcast. It’s not about the numbers and they’re just a bit of fun but knowing so many of you are enjoying them really means a lot. If you haven’t tried them yet click here to listen to the podcast for free – I’d love to hear your thoughts and some of your poems too!

In other news there’s a lovely new website on t’interweb that my super talented sister, Maddie has designed. In October we launched #Bushtus🌵 where we’ve been posting music, film, tv and book reviews. It’s been a really exciting startup with a Queen album review that practically went viral amongst Adam Lambert fans, a TV review that Game of Thrones star Brigitte Hjorte Sørensen loved and shared with her fans, a book review that author Stuart Turton was proud of and there’s even a few interviews with the likes of Foo Fighters and AC/DC! With loads of reviews, monthly playlists and a new “what’s on” streaming guide you’re bound to discover something you’ll enjoy – click here to check it out. 

On your radio we’ve been having all the usual fun with music, guests, poems and laughs on a Friday lunchtime plus a good rock-out every Saturday night. I’m about to celebrate my second radio birthday and my 250th show on Phoenix FM; if you fancy tuning in live or listening back on-demand, click here for all of it. 

Very soon I’ll be publishing my first ever e-book, Pandemic Poetry: The Covid Collection featuring Maddie’s illustrations and a whole bunch of my poems that reflect the silliness of a year in lockdown with titles like “Tiers Of A Town”, “A Whitty Ditty”, “Oh How I Long To Be In A Conga” and lots of others that capture this peculiar moment in our lives. As soon as it’s ready I’ll let you know!

In the meantime, stay safe, be good and if you can’t be good be careful.

With much love, many thanks and a new post-lockdown beard 

Stew