From the blog
The Wrong Enemy
It is so often the case, in relationships and friendships passing through periods of change or upheaval, that I find myself wanting to say—usually after the moment has passed: "I'm not your enemy, and you are not mine. The battle you're fighting won't end if I am...
From Adversity to University: A Different Route into Higher Education
Mike Jenkins These, days many of us are aware that higher education doesn't always guarantee highly paid jobs. I have been lucky enough to study at A-Level, Further Education College, at The Guildhall School of Music and Drama (one of London's most prestigious and...
Recovery, wellbeing and the people who help us along the way
Recovery, wellbeing and the people who help us along the way Mike Jenkins Over the coming months, I will be sharing articles and reflections on my website about recovery and wellbeing. These are subjects I approach through lived experience. I have been in recovery...
Sun Over England from Mexico 2026
Sun Over England from Mexico 2026Mike Jenkins 16th July, 2026 4am the sun came upall over England as if inaftermath of a miscaluated warmen, women and childrenstumbled bleary eyed through the daythinking perhaps:is this what is was all for? This lighta certain kind of...
Belfast by Mike Jenkins
Audio Recording You Are Better Than My PenA powerful new voice in contemporary verse. From the streets of a Belfast childhood to wandering in Downtown New York, from meditations on life in rural, cathedral-town Sussex to the deep, flowing rivers of desire, this first...
The Alchemy of Giving
Lately, there have been times when I have felt I did not have the strength, resilience, or resources to face the challenges ahead of me. Moments when I wondered how much longer I could keep going. In the last seven days, two friends, unconnected and very dear to me,...
Stopping for Stoppard
23:17 Stopping for Stoppard Saturday 4th April 2026 Listening to Tom Stoppard (1937-2025) on R4, the programme is Archive on 4, Tom Stoppard: Verbatim.This weekend there is and has been a celebration of his life and work. I've listened to some of the programmes and...
Mothering Heights
Audio Recording You Are Better Than My PenA powerful new voice in contemporary verse. From the streets of a Belfast childhood to wandering in Downtown New York, from meditations on life in rural, cathedral-town Sussex to the deep, flowing rivers of desire, this first...
There’s a Place for Stonepillow
In Dec 2023 Stonepillow asked me to write a poem for their Winter Appeal to raise awareness and funding for their local hubs. At the Big Sleep out event in September 2024, I read the poem at Chichester Cathedral. I wanted to write a poem that conveyed the positive...
Ships (in Leonard’s Yard)
Ships (in Leonard's Yard) by Mike Jenkins 19th August, 2024 I wrote this mostly as a stream of consciousness and quite quickly heard the melody of Leonard Cohen's song 'Suzanne' as the rhythm of the poem took hold, so I let it lead. I added the subtitle, 'in Leonards...
WORKSHOPS
Experienced in designing & leading theatre, acting, and creative writing workshops, Mike can work with young people in schools and colleges and with adults in businesses and community groups.
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WRITING
Mike writes plays, scripts, poems, articles and blog posts and has a particular interest in writing about meditation and spiritual practice. Discover new and emerging work and get in touch if you’d like to collaborate.
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PERFORMANCES
View details of upcoming events where Mike will be performing, find out how to hire him as a speaker or a performer for an event and read about some of the productions he has appeared in over the years.
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POEMS
Read and listen to selection of original poems here, purchase a copy of Mike’s first full collection of Selected Poems and connect with Words Out Loud.
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A powerful new voice in contemporary verse. From the streets of a Belfast childhood to wandering in Downtown New York, from meditations on life in rural, cathedral-town Sussex to the deep, flowing rivers of desire, this first collection of poetry from Mike Jenkins mixes the numinal with the everyday, the earthy with the spiritual, and the romantic with the carnal.
With stories of hope, love, and happiness in fleeting moments, and pain, longing, and despair in others, these poems are never less than beautiful, honest, and breathtakingly original – sharing the voices of mothers, fathers, lovers, and – at times – of darkness itself. But at the heart of this collection is a simple idea: trying to capture the essence of moments that are sometimes more powerful than the pen.
