A Reader Requests...

Sally P. from Humberside emailed me to ask if I could reprint one of Grayson's poems that she remembered from school but has been unable to find. I think the poem Sally refers to is called 'Innocence 14:11'. The text is from 'Badgers & Owls', which is sadly no longer in print. However, I can confirm that it is in the forthcoming collection of Grayson's work, 'Septic Bubblegum'. It's typical of modern education that a writer like Grayson should fall out of favour. Hopefully, such a major volume of his work should reignite the public's interest.

I spoke to Grayson today on the phone and he was delighted by the blog (kudos to Simon who helps us with the graphics) and he hopes to send us some of his unpublished poems in the near future. When I mentioned this poem, he growled 'why the hell do you want to reprint that s***?' which I think says much about the humility of the man.

Innocence 14:11

I lost my virginity at Whipsnade Zoo,
To tigers, llamas, the Peruvian gnu,
Long before Vera took it that night
In the back seat of her red Austin Sprite.
For what is innocence but the belief
That we are so much more than beast,
Before passion rears its ugly head
Staining the sheets in my unmade bed?
I saw that day, as a wide eyed child
That we are but one hunger from wild,
And that ours is a true sexual intellect
That makes men walk perpetually erect.

Grayson Ellis (c) 1979
From ‘Badgers and Owls’