Half scripted, half improvised, the poet faces interrogation at the local cop shop. Was his poem in Pix 6 stolen and did anyone read Pix 6? Are all the poet's poems stolen anyway? And if he has stolen them, did he not then murder them? This is

Interlude: a short poem

Oct 5th, 2022 1m 57s

The picture restorer’s invoiceUnder honeysuckle sprays, a cinder path runs up to the barn and around its brick footingsto a thick archway of clipped privet, through which lies the picture restorer’s door. He stands mixing pigments with linseed

Autobiography 1974-7 - me and poetry

Sep 6th, 2022 10m 11s

Stable Press, Haverhill Poetry Group, Ipswich Poetry Workshop and the Jubilee... with a poem, The Corn Dolly dole queue blues,' to round it off.

The Factory: autobiography 5, 1974-5

Aug 25th, 2022 8m 57s

From skimming the pit in the meat factory to riding the Lansing Bagnall across the factory floor, while trying to hang on to a dream.

Autobiography, part 4: 1973-4 - art school, poetry, arson and drugs

Jul 15th, 2022 10m 2s

Back from Liverpool I returned to education, briefly, but was I born to tip my cap or was I a fire raiser after all?

Autobiography 3: Making a Film, Thunderclap Newman and Poverty 1972

Jul 8th, 2022 9m 5s

Called back to Liverpool from Clare, Suffolk, to help make a film. Here too is 'Something in the Air,' the Woodside Ferry and the reality of poverty in the city.

Autobiography, part 2: Working at The Haverhill Echo 1972

Jun 22nd, 2022 10m 52s

The Haverhill Echo was an independent newspaper in Suffolk. Now long gone, I look back at my highs and lows working as a trainee reporter there in 1972

Autobiography, part 1: Acting Up To The Tyranny Of A Rural Education

Jun 9th, 2022 13m 18s

Here is part one of my autobiography (1967-1971). This autobiography will cover my enthusiasms in drama, art and poetry over the years. In part one, an English teacher saves me via a play, a drama course makes me and a spell in Liverpool find

Playwriting Diary 2 - from theatre courses and Silent Witness to Max Wall

May 26th, 2021 9m 24s

A diary exploring playwriting. In this edition: theatre courses, psychology in plays, 1968, Silent Witness and remembering Max Wall.

Playwriting Diary 1 - From Line of Duty to Nursery Rhymes

May 6th, 2021 8m 10s

A fortnightly diary on playwriting and culture. First episode: Line of Duty, the existential threat and writing an audio play. Coming up: my journey in staging a play.

Five Sonnets - Rupert Mallin

Apr 13th, 2021 7m 19s

These five sonnets came out of exciting workshops with Norwich Theatre Royal’s ‘Doorstep Shakespeare’ project, with poet Ashley Hickson-Lovence, and through a most valuable input from the Royal Shakespeare Company, from January to March this ye

Ferlinghetti, 1919 to 2021 - Cultural Revolutionary

Feb 25th, 2021 9m 32s

An appreciation of poet Lawrence Ferlinghetti, who died this week. Through him, I discovered poetry and a lot more besides.Note: apologies for pronouncing the poet Rimbaud as Rambo - but hey, Rambo The Poet is quite cool...

Characters, on the road (out of Clare)

Feb 11th, 2021 11m

Raised in Clare, West Suffolk, here are some characters from my childhood and other encounters as I attempted to leave the village, mostly using my thumb.

Communism at Poslingford Corner - Rupert Mallin

Jan 28th, 2021 10m 36s

I grew up near Poslingford Corner, Clare, Suffolk, close to A.L. Morton, communist historian and author of 'The People's History of England.' Here is a recollection from the time I was six, 1959.

Writing Through Objects

Jan 20th, 2021 8m 55s

An encounter with a dinosaur and all the world in a sharpened pencil: an exploration of why I like to write "through objects."

The Other Side of Countryside - four poems by Rupert Mallin

Jan 13th, 2021 11m 14s

These four poems were written in the late 1970s/early 1980s and are variously about the "other side" of countryside. Includes Stubble Fires which became part of the narration for my BBC Radio 4 play 'Overspill,' 1993.I 've purposefully left thi

Five Love Poems by Rupert Mallin

Jan 7th, 2021 5m 39s

I began writing poetry at fourteen (1967) and here are five short, early love poems.

This Christmas - Rupert Mallin

Dec 16th, 2020 5m 54s

This Christmas. Phil of NR3 is listening to BBC Radio 4, counting out his money to see if he can afford jam from the corner shop. He puts on his mask but will he make it out of the door?

2020: Fifty-two questions and rising

Dec 2nd, 2020 10m 55s

From conspiracy theories and sabbaticals to the seat of government itself; from lockdowns and hardships to Boris's imaginary friends, here is a look back at the year, to look forward to the next.

THE MUTE'S SONG by Rupert Mallin

Oct 14th, 2020 8m 37s

Two monologues from a group of interlocking monologues. Though there are four characters, it can be played by two actors.

My Long Apprenticeship in Playwriting 1 - Rupert Mallin

Sep 23rd, 2020 11m 1s

I have written plays since 1980. Despite some success in the 1990s, work cut me off from my life-long interest after the crash of 2008. Whether my new plays find success or not, I love the process of writing for performance. Here is both my jou