A Gallery to Play to: The Story of the Mersey Poets

In the summer of 1967, Tony Richardson of Penguin Books took a chance. Then Penguin’s poetry editor, Richardson devoted the tenth volume of the highly prestigious Penguin Modern Poets series to three unknown writers from Liverpool: Adrian Henri, Roger McGough, and Brian Patten. Little did anyone anticipate that the book produced, The Mersey Sound, would become one of the best-selling poetry anthologies of all time. A Gallery to Play To is an intimate account of the lives and careers of the three poets featured in that 1967 volume—and with unparalleled access to the lives of Henri, McGough, and Patten, the author has produced an indispensable volume for anyone interested in British poetry, popular culture, and literary society over the last forty years. Originally published in 1999, this revised edition includes new interviews with Patten and McGough, as well as a fully updated text and introduction.

Phil Bowen is a poet and playwright. He has previously published two volumes of poetry, Variety’s Hammer and Starfly and edited two anthologies, Jewels and Binoculars: Fifty Poets Celebrate Bob Dylan and Things We Said Today: Poems about The Beatles.