MAKE POETRY WEIRD AGAIN

Recorded in Holy Week, beneath the St Pancras New church, among the 557 dead that reside there. Nols makes poems with HOLD SPACE poetry festival residents Emma Keun and Maria Cohut. Some voices you have to go down to reach. This one we recorded in the dark of Holy Week, in the crypt where sixteen poets kept their residency like a wake that refused to be sad; candlewax and cold stone and the partic...

In February 2026 Nols Nathankski had the honour of sitting down with Robert Stanley Adams: a 73-year-old Canadian poet who writes from the seam where the divine and the erotic are not two things but one breath. This podcast only happened because Robert walked out of the open mic with Nol's coat! Some books arrive late because they had to be lived first. After a chance meeting at the Word Zoo open...

This week Nols is joined by Mikey Kirkpatrick flautist, singer, composer, improviser and performer and writer, who makes work for street, stage, film and radio. Mikey records and tours internationally as Bird Radio, his singular take on new British folk (voice, flutes, loops, bones, homemade instruments and the famous red suitcase kick drum). He’s an associate lecturer at Goldsmiths and founding d...

Nols and Ameer make poems on the first day of Hold Space Poetry festival on April fools day 2026 Ameer Azad is a Pakistani-Bengali poet and author living in London. His work often covers surrealism, social satire and spirituality. Usually seen yelling at open mics in a scary voice. In this episode, Nols and Ameer write to a set of prompts and talk through making poems when no one knows where you c...

Nols Nathankski and H Phillips sit down to make poems in the crypt during HOLD SPACE poetry festival. H is a London based queer and silly poet. H began her open mic journey by doing a poetry for performance course @citylit. H talks from grief through objects and absurdity. A resident at Hold Space festival. H displayed poetry on the walls of the crypt and can be found headlining at the Hold Space...

Nols takes a register of ten artists, poets, and authors who were told by courts, critics, markets, and silence that they had failed. They had not failed. This is their work. Read it. Look at it. Go toward it. Nols improvises ten poems in response to their stories and encourages you to do the same. Send your responses to nols@makepoetryweirdagain.com prompts below provide list of prompts in one se...

Nols Nathankski delves into the sublime with Molly O'Leary Molly May O’Leary is an interdisciplinary performer. Her art has always and already been from/for the body but she has recently been approaching its rebellious and growing multi-dextrous power more directly… with ever-increasing glee and ever-evolving results. follow her on @mollymayinsta for developments The pair discuss philosophy, depre...

Nols Nathankski talks community with Dean Atta on the podcast! Dean Atta is a BAFTA-winning British poet, author and filmmaker, current chair of the Society of Authors Poetry and Spoken Word Group. Of Greek Cypriot and Jamaican heritage, Dean was named one of the 100 most influential LGBTQ+ people in the UK. He’s been commissioned by Tate Britain, Tate Modern, the National Portrait Gallery and Kea...

Nols Nathankski introduces the Make Poetry Weird Again series of summer workshops raising money for HOLD SPACE POETRY FESTIVAL 1-5th October 2026 as part of the Bloomsbury Festival. Nols takes listeners through how he designed the workshops and how you can do them all too wherever you a re either solo or preferably with some other poets and friends. PENANCE POETRY WORKSHOP monthly / Make Poetry We...

Nols sits down in the crypt in february with Hebah Aboud and Cassie with a special feature from Richie Bliss of Ava' Word. Hebah Aboud is a poet, writer and community organiser. She runs poetry events in Rome and London. Check out @ancharnia for her poetry events. Cassie is a writer, art consultant and creative director from London @ceceqt Rich Bliss is a poet and open mic host from London checkou...

Nols sits down in HWK in Hackney Wick to speak to MIKE the beautiful soul that has allowed MPWA to take up residence in their venue over the summer for the HOLD SPACE POETRY FESTIVAL FUNDRAISER OPEN MICS (see link below for tickets) mike runs HWK, a venue in hackney wick and the home of hold space open mic nights through summer 2026. he talks to nols about what it takes to run a space that holds p...

Nols Nathankski gets spiritual with Chloe Smith a South Londoner who fell in love with reading and words 8 years old by reading the magical far away tree. Chloe then discovered poetry through substitute teachers at school. She was published as a young writer in primary school. As a teenager she navigated hormones and layers of identity through journaling, leaning towards song lyrics, leaving poetr...

Fresh from our Hold Space Poetry Festival in the Crypt Gallery @nolsnathankski was given tickets for @spitnights biggest ever show @theroundhouse in Camden by his friend the sensational poet Hebah Aboud. @hebah_a Nols decided to make some guerrilla radio by gauging audience reactions to a sell out night of spoken word & improv jazz in front of 1500 in a legendary venue. The response from the c...

Nols Nathankski flys through the sky with Jo Morrigan Black (They/Them/It) Jo is a Paris-born writer, visual artist and performance poet. They have worked with indigenous leaders in Colombia, left stray feathers in Berlin and stalked the streets of Dublin as a vampire. Their stage performances combine Spoken Word, physical theatre and surrealist costuming to celebrate the queer and the unknowable...

Nols sits down on a rainy February day with Jake Nathan a poet and artist, from East London. They talk about mental health, masculinity, social justice and being working class in England. The show explores how Jake went from hip hop to open mic and the challenges of open mic burn out. Jake is a multiple-time poetry slam winner and grand poetry slam champion. Based in Essex, he performs his poetry...

Nols Nathankski provides all you need to know about the Hold Space Poetry Festival. A sober gift to the London Open Mic scene in collaboration with the Crypt Gallery running from the 1st - 7th April 2026. A festival dreamed up and produced in only 2 weeks to run during the most sacred days of the Christian calendar. Of course it begins on APRIL FOOLS DAY! After an open call fifteen poets will take...

Nols Nathankski makes a very chaotic field recording of day 4 in the Crypt gallery London during the February residency. Expect all kinds of phantasmagorical goings on. Nols made poems with N00mi, Rosie Reed Gold, Jo Delvauney, Pid'Or, Choral Poetique and Tanyeli Taze. The episode is endurance art and some have said impossible to listen to! You be the Judge! Give the poets a follow; @n00m_i @rosie...

Nols Nathankski sits down to tell stories with Adam RW, a poet, writer and literary tour guide based in London. Adam runs Bookmarked, a literary walking tour company, and Storytime, a weekly storytelling night. His first poetry collection was published in December 2023. Adam and Nols discuss the creation of Story Time, and it's unique place in the London Open Mic Scene. They talk to what makes a g...

Nols Nathankski sits down with Maddy Kilsby-McMurray a non-binary poet & writer based in Southend-On-Sea, UK. Maddy describes writing as their therapy, a way to process a world that is too harshand too fast for their queer, disabled heart. Nols and Maddy talk 'Trash fire poetry' written in haste and often destined to be burnt. They fortunately burn less poems now. Maddy and Nols make poems fro...

Nols Nathankski makes poems in the crypt on Day 2 of the Make Poetry Weird Again Residency. No other poets show up so Nols has a bit of an existential crisis about the project and works through a series of prompts. Does his pages and meditates on what a successful residency is. Mainly he speaks his poems to walls and ghosts. The prompts are below. Write a poem that erodes. What is it made of ? Wha...

Nols Nathankski sits down in the Crypt gallery with Teresa Rendell, a poet and creative director based in London. Teresa makes sense of the world in fairy tales and nursery rhymes. Her poetry deals with very serious themes of childhood trauma, listener discretion is advised. Nols and Teresa speak to the London open mic scene and how to put together a one person show. @choralpoetique provide songs...

Nols Nathankski sits down in the crypt with Dan Webber an award winning LGBTQ+ poet, performer, producer and events coordinator based in Derby. Who while yet to win a slam won Nols's heart with his tales of gothic queerness. The pair made poems as part of day 3 of the Make Poetry Weird Again Residency at the Crypt Gallery in London. Dan can be found on insta @imgenrefluid Find out more about his p...

Nols Nathankski's field recording of day 1 of the crypt gallery residency. Nols has created a series of poetry prompts on day 1 of the residency. Poets are welcome to come to the crypt between 16th - 20th February 2026 to create poems and perform them under penance conditions. Prompts. Write a poem to the people underground who are not sleeping. Write a prayer to say goodbye to winter. Write a poe...

Nols Nathankski and his friend the Bulgarian Pop Star Ivka Fox decided to record a catch up episode onFriday 13th February 2026 to talk to Ivka's new role as a pole dancer at a central London strip club and how this has influenced her writing. However the bad luck lived up to its favourite Friday and two attempts at recording failed due to a black out and an unexplained technical error. This show...

Nols Nathankski sits down with Kestral Gaian (They/Them) Queer Writer and Poet, to talk about making poems on the Tube, The best sandwich and why we need to make poems that burn down data centers. Nols and Kestral make love poems with prompts from Kim Addonizio's book Ordinary Genius. You can buy Kestal's poetry book Tubelines below! Tubelines – Reconnecting Rainbows Press They can be found at www...