First collection of verses in 37 years

John Cooper Clarke is to publish his first poetry collection in 37 years – as well as an autobiography revealing his ‘extraordinary life’.

The memoir covers an ‘extraordinary life, filled with remarkable personalities’ such as Chuck Berry, The Clash, Buzzcocks… and Bernard Manning.

Publisher Picador described as-yet untitled memoir as ‘a much-anticipated and extraordinary story told entirely in John’s unique voice’

Meanwhile, the poetry will be Clarke’s first new collection since Ten Years in an Open Necked Shirt  in 1981.

Poetry publisher Don  Paterson told trade website The Bookseller: ‘JCC was crucially influential in getting my own generation into poetry in the first place. 

‘He gave us the courage of our non-Home Counties, non-RP voices, encouraged us to pay attention to politics and social history, and showed us how to articulate our anger and how to time a punchline.

‘Most crucially, he taught us that page or no page – if it doesn’t work when it hits the air, it’s a waste of time.’

Now 69, Clarke began performing poetry on the Manchester club circuit in the late 1970s, hallmarked by a dry, sarcastic wit. But he developed a heroin addiction in the 1980s and faded from the public eye. 

After his recovery, his reputation also turned around with a new generation of musicians citing him as an influence, and he has collaborated with the likes of Alex Turner and Plan B.  He was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Salford in 2013 and now uses the title whenever he performs.

Latterly, he has made several guest appearances on  8 Out Of 10 Cats Does Countdown

The poetry collection will be published this autumn with the autobiography following next year.

Here he is performing some gags at the Komedia in Brighton in 2009:

Published: 21 Feb 2018