Sometimes you get to take a truly deep dive on something you love. More often than not you get moments to talk about your passion. Sometimes thought you get to dance the light fantastic with someone else in conversation, someone who is just as passionate about the world as you are.
April 30th 2024, 1600 people sat in rapt attention at the Bristol Beacon as Blindboy read out the opening story of his new book Topograhia Hibernica. Moments later the place burst into applause. This book tour had been sold out for months. I was backstage, sat in the wings, having just listened to his story. It was a beautifully crafted, nuanced take on grief and animal welfare and family dynamics. I was sat there, happily basking in the joys of someone else’s creativity. Then it was my turn to join him on stage.
The art of a good question is that it can lead you anywhere. Often interviews are formulaic and prosaic, focused on achieving a certain answer that the interviewer wants. The questions themselves are thin and impoverished, which in turn impoverishes the potential for where the conversation can go. This was not an interview, and the questions that came opened up the world.
Being in conversations like that is like being on an amazing dance floor. I never knew what tune was going to play next but I knew it would be epic. Whatever moves and shapes I threw on the dance floor I knew my partner was going to match them and outdance me whenever he could. We talked about everything from weaponisation of mythology to the fact that whales wear dead salmons as hats. We talked about the role of the storyteller, and what to wear on a mythic Halloween. We moved through the languages of plants and the cultural behaviour of crows.
All the while 1600 people sat as though they were holding their breath for two hours, only once in a while bursting into bright applause. We ran over on time but no one seemed to notice. Here’s to the conversations like that that crack open all our hearts.
It was a truly inspirational night. I left with my heart feeling full and a sense that I had no idea how much I needed it. I’ve had the same feeling listening back to it this week. Thank you so much! I can’t wait to see you again in Bristol in September!
Ayms, a full heart is a great feeling these days. I am so glad to hear it. See you at the Wardrobe or TFT with bells on!
It was a rare privilege and pleasure to hear you and Blindboy trip the light fantastic on the dance floor of your conversation.
I think some of his guests are a little too guarded or apprehensive of letting go and allowing the experience to just happen.
You were great coversational partners and I’m glad to know of you and very much look forward to being at one of your storytelling events. Us Welsh people love good stories and have a similarly if more broken history. Being a quarter Irish I’m lucky to have kissed the Blarney Stone and love a yarn myself.
The very best of luck,
Simeon
Thanks Simeon. You Welsh have an enormous oral tradition, with as huge a love of the spoken or sung word as us Irish. We are cousins I’d say, culturally speaking.
Dear Clare…Your occasion with Blindboy was one of the best bants ever and I have heard almost all of his podcasts and seen him once in Edinburgh…what a joy of an episode and I look forward to your return gig with the masked marvel of discourse X
Thank you Gordon. It was a real joy to surf those verbal waves.
so beautiful – many thanks to you both !!