Charlotte reviews a conversation with Maxine Peake at the Ledbury Poetry Festival 2024

Ledbury’s Burgage Hall was abuzz on the last day of this year’s festival. One of the final events of the Ledbury Poetry Festival 2024, ‘My Life in Poems’ with Maxine Peake, was a standout performance. Despite being a late addition to the festival schedule, this reading had rapidly become sought after.

A prominent actor and BBC drama regular, Bolton-born Peake shared ten poems that relate to various aspects of her identity, from her Northern, working-class background and experiences of womanhood to her political and humanitarian values. Sitting down in conversation with Amy Howard, Director of Ledbury Poetry, Peake managed to create an intimate atmosphere in which to share her chosen poems, despite the challenge of doing so with such a packed audience. Her delivery when reading the poems was as professional as one would expect from such an acclaimed actor; every sound enunciated, every emotion elicited.

The first poem Peake shared was William Wordsworth’s ‘I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud,’ which she credits as her introduction to poetry. Before coming across this poem, Peake never thought poetry was “for [her]” due to her background. Fittingly, she followed this recollection by reading ‘Sans Pretension’ by Henry Normal. This poem criticizes those who use ostentatious euphemisms rather than straightforward words or phrases — for example, “‘cul-de-sac,’” “‘nouveau riche,’” and “‘avant-garde.’” Normal instead encourages us to “call a spud a spud, / No more lies or elaborate word contortions.” At this point, Peake recalled a Grayson Perry quote she has long related to: “Trying to justify yourself with false intellectualism is one of the most annoying habits artists have.”

Both ‘Sans Pretension’ and the next poem Peake read, ‘Turns’ by Tony Harrison, are tied to her identity as coming from a working-class, Northern family. She recalled her feelings attending the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts (RADA), where her Northern accent stuck out and she felt great pressure to fit in. Poetry, however, helped her overcome this pressure and feel pride in expressing her Northern roots; in a dramatic poetry reading assignment at RADA, Peake chose to read ‘Sans Pretension.’

Peake also read Anne Sexton’s ‘Her Kind’ and Rebecca Tamás’ ‘WITCH FIRE,’ two poems focusing on female rage resulting from societal inequality. Despite the historical backdrop of both poems, the critical sentiments they convey are levelled at the inequality still present in today’s society.

However, the most prevalent theme throughout Peake’s readings was undoubtedly her compassion and concern for those suffering as a result of war. Peake read Alice Corbin’s ‘Fallen,’ an extract from Percy Bysshe Shelley’s ‘Masque of Anarchy,’ Ahmed Masoud’s ‘For Khalid,’ and Ilya Kaminsky’s ‘We Lived Happily During the War.’ Each of these poems tackles a different aspect of living during warfare. The most moving of these was ‘For Khalid,’ dedicated by Palestinian writer Masoud to his brother, who was killed by Israeli forces in January 2024. Masoud writes, “You will be in a smokeless, bombless place, / so wait for me, brother. / […] I am coming, I won’t be long.” Peake, who knows Masoud personally, revealed the strength of her conviction and compassion for others through sharing these poems, inviting the audience to reflect on the state of our world today rather than turning a blind eye to the unnecessary suffering of others.

This event showcased Peake’s empathy, values, and striking personality in the best of lights. The compelling array of poems she shared offered a fascinating insight into who she is as a person; one we could all strive to emulate in our own lives.