'V' by Tony Harrison
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 11 ก.พ. 2025
- WARNING: Contains extensive use of profanity. 'V' is a poem by Tony Harrison written during the 1984-1985 miners strike. The poem aroused much controversy when broadcast in a film version on Channel 4. It describes the author's visit to his parents' grave in a Leeds cemetery "now littered with beer cans and vandalised by obscene graffiti". The cemetery in question is Holbeck cemetery in the Beeston area of Leeds which overlooks the Elland Road football ground, close to where Harrison grew up. The poem gives description of the graffiti on the grave, and pays particular notice to the use of the word united, exploring its ambiguous meaning, either as the name of a football club or a feeling of unity.
Harrison was born in Leeds and educated at Leeds Grammar School and the University of Leeds, where he read Classics and took a diploma in Linguistics. The material of much of his poetry is provided by the memories of his working-class childhood, drawing extensively on his northern roots. He has written adaptations and translations for plays and film scripts, always in poetic form. These often involve northern actors speaking translations of classical Latin or Greek verse. His poems and translations show a powerful command of rhyme and an expert adaptation of colloquial speech.
Harrison is noted for his outspoken views, particularly those on the Iraq War. In 1999 he also made a very public refusal over his candidacy for the post of Poet Laureate. In a scathing 94-line anti-royal poem, entitled Laureate Block, and dedicated to the Queen, Harrison set out in rhyming verse why he didn't want the job.
Following the broadcast of 'V' after widespread press coverage, Gerald Howarth MP said that Harrison was "Probably another bolshie poet wishing to impose his frustrations on the rest of us". When told of this, Harrison retorted that Howarth was "Probably another idiot MP wishing to impose his intellectual limitations on the rest of us".
This anguish, so well expressed shines as a literary pearl. Is anyone writing verse like this today? Verse that expresses such power, but with rhyme and rhythm seems to be beyond our blank verse poets.
This version is 38 minutes long but anyone wanting a version without the swearing can find it on TH-cam. Its the best 20 seconds of poetry you'll ever hear.
@Richard Luca I mean this in a nice way but why are comments I made years ago that I have no recollection on suddenly getting lots of replies telling my about "Flixzone"
Had the great fortune to meet and collaborate with Harrison on my student film. A life changing experience for me.
Lucky you ! I recently by chance came across a collection of Harrison's verse. What a truly brilliant poet he is !
This may very well be the best thing on You Tube right now!
Fantastic! Amazing, passionate, accurate, love the man and his work!
i left school in '80, and this world he speaks of was mine,here in Leeds - we are Leeds , after-all
Thanks for uploading. Fantastic.
Yeah, thanks , that is poetry, and a man behind. A bard..
We are having it large
god, this is so affecting
Whatever happened to The Blasphemers Banquet, one of the greatest TV moments of the late Twenrieth century?
th-cam.com/video/p19sQwyCO-0/w-d-xo.html
Tony Harrison is 84
Brilliant
Thatcher >:(
This is an outrage!
If that's what you think then YOU are an outrage!
Why?
Lmao!!! I know where you're coming from (Boosher)
this is not original
Wet yout
+Tom Read The original poem starts at 7:06 following Tony's own introduction from 2:35. The beginning from 0:00 to 2:35 is an edited cut, meant only to give a taste of what's to come for those not familiar with Tony's work or the poem. The intention was not to corrupt the poem but to draw people in who would not otherwise be interested in this great piece of work by such a great artist.
@@spartikirk109 well said.