3 September 2025

Pauline Plummer

We are delighted to welcome back Pauline to perform for us.

Pauline has had four collections of poetry published, most recently 'Life Pours Ordinary Plenty' (Red Squirrel Press) 2024, and a verse novella ' From Here to Timbuktu' (Smokestack Press) 2012 - this was a Read Regional choice by New Writing North.

She has also had a collection of short stories published, called: 'Dancing With a Stranger' (Red Squirrel Press) 2015.

A new collection of stories will come out in 2026.

Pauline's poems and stories have won prizes - in Welsh Poetry Competition, Poets and Players Manchester, Autumn Voices, Cafe Writers, Wolverhampton, Ilkey Lit Fest.

Poems and stories have appeared in anthologies by Iron Press, Bloodaxe, Biggar Science Festival, and appeared in various small press magazines and websites.

Pauline has taught creative writing in schools, universities and adult education in UK and in Sierra Leone.

Currently, Pauline is teaching English to asylum seekers and refugees in Byker. She is from Liverpool but has lived in the North East since 1980s, (apart from when working in Sierra Leone).

She is also the editor of Mudfog Press, a Teesside based community press that specialises in pamphlets for first time writers. She is a member of several writing groups, a prison visitor, and a member of Tyneside Citizens.

Increasingly Pauline is spending more time painting.

And, happily, being a Grandmother.

Andrew Charleton

I am so pleased to finally be welcoming Andrew to our monthly event! Though he has performed as the guest writer before, we have not had him playing for us, so this will be a real treat.

I asked Andrew to tell me a little bit about his music.

I started playing guitar in 1978. Since then I have been in a number of bands and played venues far to numerous to mention throughout the north east.

I have taught guitar for a number of years and also featured on BBC radio two's Folk on Two programme ( twice).

I have also composed guitar music for the National park and the National Trust to accompany their promotional videos.

I enjoy all types of guitar music but now I mainly play acoustic finger style with a helping of flat picking when in the mood. I am also interested in American bluegrass music and rattle out a few tunes on the five string banjo and steel guitar!

Over the years I have had the huge honour of sharing a couple of tunes with some legendary folk musicians such as Alistair Anderson, Joe Hutton, Lynn Tocker and Kathryn Tickell to name a few.