It is with deep regret and sadness, that we have learnt of the death of Audrey Blackburn, who died peacefully in Harrogate District Hospital on Wednesday 12th February 2025 after a short illness.
Her funeral is to be held at 2.30pm on Thursday 20th March at Maple Park Crematorium, Skipton Bridge, Thirsk. YO7 4SA and afterwards at Ripon City Golf Club.
Audrey’s son, Steve Clegg, has written to say that he knows how much Audrey enjoyed being part of Ripon Writers’ Group and how much she benefited from the friendships and writing skills she developed as a member.
Although Audrey has been unable to attend meetings for quite some time, she will always be remembered for her lively contributions and for all the hard work she put in during her time as Chair. We shall miss her.
A somewhat belated Happy New Year to all our members past, present and potential!
The full programme for this year is now up on its own page on this website. Please take a look, as there have been a couple of changes to the draft already circulated.
Ripon Writers’ Group’s first meeting of 2025 went ahead despite a low attendance as a result of the cold and icy weather.
Caroline shared her detailed comments on each of the entries before announcing the results. The winner was Susan Perkins with a poem called ‘Evelyn at Crafternoon’.
Sheila Whitfield took second place with ‘This Poem’ and Peter Page came third with ‘The Voice of Experience’.
As Susan was unable to be with us, the trophy will be presented to her later on.
What a pleasure it was to see a crowded Little Ripon Bookshop at the launch of Tina Shingler’s new book ‘Hair Apparent’. Back in the days when RWG met at the YMCA, we often heard about Tina’s struggles with her hair as well as her experiences growing up in Ripon, working in Italy, the USA and finally as a press officer in the UK. The new book reflects all these things and much much more. Available on Amazon, it’s a cracking read.
Maggie needed no convincing and couldn’t wait to buy a copy.
Tina’s plans for the future include the possibility of republishing her children’s book ‘Princess Katrina and the Hair Charmer’, which enjoyed considerable success a few years ago.
Adjudicator Ewan Craig was pleased to hand Charlotte Wilson the Janet Barclay Cup for humorous writing. I think it was the first time that any of us had heard a story told from the viewpoint of a bar of soap and ‘The Downfall of Roger Gallet’ intrigued us to the end.
Ewan had obviously put a great deal of thought into his general comments and his assessment of the individual entries. As these included poetry, short stories and a playlet, it had been difficult for him to choose between them. Charles came second with ‘The Dating Agency’, set in Barnsley and told from the point of view of a men’s underwear salesman disconcerted to find himself matched with a lady plumber. Susan came third, but we will have to wait until the next meeting to hear her entry and those of the other members who took part in the competition.
Just a reminder that this year’s Ripon Poetry Festival is imminent. We shall be co-hosting the open mic event on Thursday with Write-On! Ripon.
This link will lead you to the official website and all the information you need. https://riponpoetryfestival.co.uk/
Andy Croft from Smokestack Books gave us some fascinating insights into the dos and don’ts of getting our work ‘out there’. As it was an open meeting, we were pleased to welcome guests, including several members of Write-On! Ripon to join us. The two groups are looking forward to co-hosting the open mic curtain raiser for this year’s Ripon Poetry Festival, which is due to take place from Thursday 19th to Sunday 22nd September.
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