Poetry in motion
Nov 17 2009 by Martin Green, The Journal
When three North East poets set out to compare the Tyneside and Moscow Metro systems, things didn’t go wholly to plan, as Martin Green finds out.
Bill also got on the wrong side of a member of the militsya – somewhere between a policeman and a soldier – when taking photographs in the station.
He said: “You are not supposed to take photographs in the station. I had got a bit blasé and started taking pictures of the 1950s stuff, not realising I was standing in front of a militsiya booth.
“This armed guy came tearing over to the Metro and began to arrest me.”
His translator rushed to the scene and said two words that saved Bill - “English” and “idiot”.
Bill said: “Once he thought I was a few roubles short of a load and an Englishman he let me off but it was tense. The translator, Sonya, dragged me away just as I was trying to explain that I was actually Scottish.”
In general, all three poets were agreed that Russians are extremely friendly and hospitable when you break through the inscrutable front they put on.
Bill said: “The Russians seem very stand-offish but it’s just their culture. Russians do not smile; they think you’re a bit mad if you smile.
“They actually have a very strong welcoming approach.”
In Soviet times, Russians were only allowed to read certain books. Three Men in a Boat was permitted because Jerome visited the Soviet Union and they made films about his book.
On their final night in Moscow, the three poets watched the film in their hotel room.
Bill said: “It was made on a low budget, had little to do with the original and was a musical
“It was a really weird version of Britain. It was the perfect end to the trip, though.”
The resulting book is a piece of travel writing in the form of poetry and comprises 60 poems written in Pushkin stanzas, which is a very characteristic Russian form.
It details the poets’ love of the Russian underground and the art that adorns it, and offers intriguing contrasts with Metro stations in places such as North Shields.
Bill said: “I think it’s a very interesting book and genuinely collaborative. It’s not just a guide book to the Metro – it’s about what it is like to go from one culture to another.”
Andy, a member of the Communist Party for many years, takes a very upbeat, optimistic line in his poems; Bill’s are a little more cynical, taking note of the drunks and social problems. In his sweet lyrics, Paul - currently in Australia - incorporates both attitudes. The three poets gel extremely well and it shows. Their book has been a hit in Bulgaria, Russia and Albania, and has received critical acclaim both here and abroad.
It successfully circumnavigates not just Moscow, but the cycles of cultural history that the Metro represents and continues to evoke. It is the culmination of a project which, like the Metro itself, combines multiple levels and appeals to a broad audience.
* Three Men on the Metro is published by Five Leaves Poetry at £7.99.
