Alan Plater- By The Tide of Humber I Walked Among Poets (talk given to the PLS 28/11/98)

Tiny In All That Air

This episode features a writer who would be familiar not only to Hull residents but also to keen telly watchers, radio listeners and theatre goers across the country. Alan Plater was born in Jarrow in 1935 but having moved to Hull when he was just three years old, the city was pleased to adopt him and he lived there for much of his life. His most famous writing credit was probably Z Cars. Alan Plater was also a huge fan of jazz music and his ITV comedy drama The Beiderbecke Affair staring James Bolam and Barbara Flynn in the mid 1980s was a massive success. He went on to win countless awards and accolades for his wonderful writing.

Alan Plater was enormously generous with his time, and made a huge contribution to the Hull arts scene of the 1960s and 70s, developing a gentle friendship with Philip Larkin along the way. This speech was recorded on 28th November 1998, and was given at that year’s PLS AGM.

Thank you so much to Alexandra Cann who is the agent for the Alan Plater Literary Estate Ltd for giving us the initial approval to use this recording, and to Steve Plater and John Rubinstein who are the joint Directors of the Lit Estate.

If you are interested in seeing an Alan Plater play this summer, then the Stephen Joseph Theatre in Scarborough is putting on a production of the Blonde Bombshells of 1943 which is full of swing and jazz, from 2-26th August 2023.

https://sjt.uk.com/events/blonde-bombshells-of-1943

References:

Alfred Bradley https://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/about/successes/alfred-bradley-award/

· The Occasional Smell of Fish (poem)

· Waiting for Gladys (Becket parody)

· Bete Noire (Hull poetry journal)

· Z Cars One Day In Spring Street

· Jazz Notes- BBC radio programme

· On Sunday January 4th I had Mild Constipation

· Names (poem written for Three Trawlers fundraising) ‘my only grown up poem’

· Swallows on the Water (play)

· The Fosdyke Saga sonnet ( BBC radio tripe themed -parody of The Forsyth Saga,)- sent a copy to Larkin who responded with a signed copy of the High Windows calling him ‘sonnetteer extraordinaire’

· Sweet Sorrow (1990) Plater’s play about Larkin

Matthew Arnold, Ogden Nash, Dylan Thomas, Alan Bleasdale, Ted Hughes, Barry Hines, Vera Wise, Henry Livings, Alex Glasgow, Carla Lane, Adrian Mitchell, Allan Ginsburg, Carole Mills (rude songs and low down blues), Robin Kay (flamenco guitarist), Max Boylett (jazz pianist), Ian Clarke and Chris Rowe, Sid and Norm (artists without category), Joe Orton, The Beatles, John Ford (director of westerns), Roger McGough, Jimmy James (music hall performer),Ken Wagstaff- (footballing hero), Fleur Adcock, Jeff Nuttall (had a pee in a bucket on stage), Roni Scott, Suzi Quatro, Mike Bradwell (theatre director), Jess Stacy (jazz pianist), Shakespeare, Max Wall, Peter Brooke (director), and many more Hull poets listed by Plater.

Pubs mentioned – (in Leeds and Hull) The Bluebell, The Bull, The Fenton, the Hayworth Arms,

Philip Larkin judging poetry competition for the Hull Arts Centre at Spring Street in 1970 which eventually became Hull Truck Theatre.

The loss of the three Hull trawlers in winter of 1967, 59 trawlerman died- the poets organised a reading and Plater wrote ‘Names’.

Produced by Lyn Lockwood and Gavin Hogg

PLS Membership and information: The Philip Larkin Society – Philip Larkin

Theme music: 'The Horns Of The Morning' by The Mechanicals Band. Buy 'The Righteous Jazz' at their Bandcamp page: https://themechanicalsband.bandcamp.com/album/the-righteous-jazz