During the two years of Poetry Central Julie and Roz worked in partnership with a number of festivals in order to promote poetry and to sponsor events for emerging and established artists.  There were many successful projects during these two years including the various residencies which included the Royal Horticultural Society residency with Penny Harper in post and the Botanical Gardens residency with Don Barnard in post. There were a number of other mini residencies around the region and  Roz became resident at St Martin’s church  which enabled her to establish the Poetry Party workshops and readings that still continue to be popular there.

 Residencies:  Julie has been Poet in Residence at a number of schools and for some festivals.  Her  residency at Symphony Hall began  in 2004 and continues to date. During the first two years of the residency she mainly focused on promoting the work of others (David Hart’s photography and poetry exhibition, the Playing with Words initiative, publication of poems in programmes and the SH diary and the publication of 24 women writers in the anthology ‘Bluebeard’s Wives’).  During the residency she has  managed to write the Amorous organ  for the Valentine’s Day organ recital and to write a sequence of sonnets  in response to the work of Bartok  She is currently workinng on Poems from the Piano Room.  She encourages others to send their work in so that it can be published in programmes as part of the Playing with Words project.  Julie is intrigued by the relationship of poetry and music and often performs her poetry with musicians. Reviewers of her work often comment upon the musicality of her language and so what better place to continue this exploration of poetry and music than at the Town Hall and Symphony Hall in Birmingham… and what better place to do some people watching too. She will be in conversation with Fiona Sampson and Kathy Hinde during the Pre Concert Talk, before the Messiaen concert in December.