Take it easy, Harry. Everything's fine.

Feeling seen by an Italian stranger.

Hello friends,

Last month I had a holiday. Not just an I’ve-finished-tour-and-I-live-by-the-sea-so-by-default-every-day-is-a-holiday holiday (Here’s looking at you, August), but an actual intentional going-away-and-not-being-able-to-do-any-jobs holiday. We took the small boy to Italy for a week, and learnt that Italians love babies, and reaffirmed that we (three) love eating ice cream and pasta every day, so everyone was a winner. We’d borrowed a cot from the second place we were staying in to use in the first, so on the day of changing over it was just a case of carrying said cot across town along with our bags, and dropping them in the foyer of the building we were about to stay in while the cleaners got it ready for us. Having made it back to a café to have breakfast with the boy I got a message saying actually to might be safer to take everything up to the first floor, to which I replied yes of course, I’ll be right over once I’ve finished feeding the boy. At which point I get the following message which cuts right through to my soul:

“Take it easy, Harry. Everything’s fine.” 6 words I had no idea I needed to hear so badly.

And I realise she is of course right. I have spent the last two months slightly on edge trying to figure out finishing tour/planning the next tour/getting the final edits in on my new book/being present at home/wondering if anyone will come to my Christmas shows but feeling like it’s way too early to mention Christmas (and so on), but in this moment I am sat in the sun having a Tiramisu at 9:30am aka living the absolute dream and somehow still carrying enough stressy energy that a lovely stranger feels the need to reassure me that it’s okay. The combination of this and reading Oliver Burkeman’s Meditations for Mortals has been enough to flick a switch internally to appreciate things for what they currently are, and I have spent the last couple of weeks genuinely feeling much more settled in myself, which is no small thing. Either that or I just really needed a holiday.

Almost all my holiday pics are of the boy which I can’t share here, but I did take this to send my friend Sam showing off that I’d managed to find an iced filter coffee in the land of espresso.

Everything is fine… with the book.

Very much so. Not only did I finish writing the acknowledgements and dedication last week so it is actually done-done.2.0.final.exe (at least until the next thing), this week we got to do an official cover reveal!

As well as getting to show it off in all of its peachy glory, we heard from Waterstones (!) this week that they are going to have 500 signed editions on their website available to pre-order, which is even dreamier than a breakfast tiramisu, and that’s saying something. This is only possible because of legends such as yourselves who have pre-ordered already putting on their radar, so if that is you thank you so much, I will sign your copy in person AND give you a hug to say thank you. If that isn’t you and you would like to order a signed copy you can now do so here and join the legendary gang!

Everything is fine… with the Christmas shows.

Not only have half the tickets sold with two months to go, but I decided to hire the brilliant James who did my tour posters to Christmas-ify it up to the max and I think you can agree that the below is worth every penny, regardless of how the gigs themselves go. I have booked some of my all-time fave poets from across the country to join me at these that I will be revealing over the next week or two, and hopefully some of my all-time fave people (that’s you) will be able to join us too. Tickets are on sale already in Leeds, Glasgow, London, Nottingham, Bath and Exeter,

Everything is fine… with next year’s tour.

I am just trying to lock in some Welsh and Irish dates, and if anyone knows or runs a 200+ capacity venue in Newcastle I would love to hear from you. There will be a big shiny poster once everywhere is on sale, but in the meantime I have just added a Margate launch to the existing March events in Leeds, Brighton, Bristol, Birmingham and Edinburgh - a couple of these are in massive spaces so if you wanted to help me to take it easy then getting in there early would be much appreciated too.

Everything is fine… here and now.

The day I got back from Italy I was able to tick off a poetry bucket list item of performing at Dreamland in Margate, and I’ve got two more bucket list items in the work that I’ll hopefully be able to tell you about soon. Two days later I was performing at Spit Nights in London with a full improv jazz band including a spontaneous Taio Cruz Singalong. Not only did we have a lovely Harry and Chris reunion gig last Saturday but we have got a show on Jazz Fm at 9pm this Saturday which will be very special indeed. In two weeks I kick off Something Borrowed in Margate with the glorious Caitlin O’Ryan, and have just confirmed Rachel Long and Georgie Jones for November and February respectively (taking a break in-between for the Christmas shows) before it’s all things book from March. Grace has just got a new job so I am taking the boy for more days each week and he is the absolute best. finally after YEARS of requests I have finally done some prints of my dust poem with the fab Medley Design Studio and they are completely stunning. See below or click the link above to choose your fave!

All this is to say I am very aware that everything is not fine in the wider world. But I see things like the incredible Together for Palestine Concert, or the fact that a far right march was planned in Margate but only 7 people showed up and it was overwhelmed by public support and love for immigrants, and I have hope. I am trying to do what I can in the place that I am, and I feel deeply grateful and lucky to be able to do so. Hopefully I can see you at as upcoming Something Borrowed/Christmas/Tour Show, otherwise there are new episodes of the podcast coming and lots more videos to post on IG/TikTok in the coming months too.

Look after yourselves and stay brilliant x