Helen Tookey
@helentookey.bsky.social
Poet. Writer. Based in Liverpool, UK. Published by Carcanet Press and Liverpool University Press.
I’ve really enjoyed Hemisphere, by @petegreensolo.com (published by @longbarrowpress.bsky.social ) - it’s a set of prose poems describing imaginary travels, but in the process ruminating on all kinds of things. Moving, in more than one sense!
October 26, 2025 at 11:28 AM
I’ve really enjoyed Hemisphere, by @petegreensolo.com (published by @longbarrowpress.bsky.social ) - it’s a set of prose poems describing imaginary travels, but in the process ruminating on all kinds of things. Moving, in more than one sense!
I really hope someone brings this to Jarvis’s attention because he would surely LOVE it.
The BBC are accidentally running the subtitles to Mrs Marple over the Mercury Prize, and it’s rather wonderful. A few of lines could plausibly have been written by Jarvis.
October 17, 2025 at 11:54 AM
I really hope someone brings this to Jarvis’s attention because he would surely LOVE it.
Support small publishers! Including the very excellent @longbarrowpress.bsky.social. Lovely to see our exploration of the Nova Scotian landscape travelling around.
Sheffield-based @longbarrowpress.bsky.social has been exploring the intersections of landscape, history and memory since 2006; recent titles include Martin Heslop & Helen Tookey's 'To the End of the Land'. You can find them at #smallpublishersfair25 on Fri 24 / Sat 25 Oct
smallpublishersfair.co.uk
smallpublishersfair.co.uk
October 17, 2025 at 11:38 AM
Support small publishers! Including the very excellent @longbarrowpress.bsky.social. Lovely to see our exploration of the Nova Scotian landscape travelling around.
This was a great event in a lovely venue. Home-made cakes and bicycles repaired! (That’s one for any Jennings fans out there.) Thanks to Mary, and Brian, and everyone who came along.
Thanks to everyone who joined us for the Longbarrow showcase at Mecycle in Southport last night. Very special thanks to @maryearnshaw.bsky.social for organising & hosting the event. Some excellent readings from @cwjoneschris.bsky.social Fay Musselwhite @helentookey.bsky.social & @petegreensolo.com.
September 4, 2025 at 11:43 AM
This was a great event in a lovely venue. Home-made cakes and bicycles repaired! (That’s one for any Jennings fans out there.) Thanks to Mary, and Brian, and everyone who came along.
Reposted by Helen Tookey
"Those places are so resonant, they speak of the past, but that inevitably makes you think of the future..."
@helentookey.bsky.social and @martinheslop.bsky.social on their new text/audio collaboration 'To the End of the Land'. Full interview here:
longbarrowpress.substack.com/p/on-the-air
@helentookey.bsky.social and @martinheslop.bsky.social on their new text/audio collaboration 'To the End of the Land'. Full interview here:
longbarrowpress.substack.com/p/on-the-air
July 15, 2025 at 12:44 PM
"Those places are so resonant, they speak of the past, but that inevitably makes you think of the future..."
@helentookey.bsky.social and @martinheslop.bsky.social on their new text/audio collaboration 'To the End of the Land'. Full interview here:
longbarrowpress.substack.com/p/on-the-air
@helentookey.bsky.social and @martinheslop.bsky.social on their new text/audio collaboration 'To the End of the Land'. Full interview here:
longbarrowpress.substack.com/p/on-the-air
For those of you in Liverpool, this is in stock at the fantastic @deadinkbooks.bsky.social on Smithdown Rd, along with all kinds of intriguing books you won’t find in other bookshops… so get down there and check it out!
'all the way to the end of the land'
To the End of the Land: a text & audio collaboration between @martinheslop.bsky.social & @helentookey.bsky.social, grounded in the landscapes of Nova Scotia.
Published today by Longbarrow Press. Order the pamphlet & CD here:
longbarrowpress.com/current-publ...
To the End of the Land: a text & audio collaboration between @martinheslop.bsky.social & @helentookey.bsky.social, grounded in the landscapes of Nova Scotia.
Published today by Longbarrow Press. Order the pamphlet & CD here:
longbarrowpress.com/current-publ...
July 5, 2025 at 12:50 PM
For those of you in Liverpool, this is in stock at the fantastic @deadinkbooks.bsky.social on Smithdown Rd, along with all kinds of intriguing books you won’t find in other bookshops… so get down there and check it out!
Published today! Text and sound work by me and Martin Heslop, derived from a residency at the Elizabeth Bishop House in Nova Scotia, beautifully produced by Longbarrow Press.
'all the way to the end of the land'
To the End of the Land: a text & audio collaboration between @martinheslop.bsky.social & @helentookey.bsky.social, grounded in the landscapes of Nova Scotia.
Published today by Longbarrow Press. Order the pamphlet & CD here:
longbarrowpress.com/current-publ...
To the End of the Land: a text & audio collaboration between @martinheslop.bsky.social & @helentookey.bsky.social, grounded in the landscapes of Nova Scotia.
Published today by Longbarrow Press. Order the pamphlet & CD here:
longbarrowpress.com/current-publ...
June 18, 2025 at 12:08 PM
Published today! Text and sound work by me and Martin Heslop, derived from a residency at the Elizabeth Bishop House in Nova Scotia, beautifully produced by Longbarrow Press.
Here’s the text of one of the pieces from To the End of the Land, by Martin Heslop and me, out next week from Longbarrow Press longbarrowpress.com/featured-poem/
Featured Poem
Lake | Martin Heslop and Helen Tookey this country has a lake in it hour after hour the blue of it unfolds at my hand quiet companion the blue of it like an earth hum a low song long salt water …
longbarrowpress.com
June 12, 2025 at 8:03 AM
Here’s the text of one of the pieces from To the End of the Land, by Martin Heslop and me, out next week from Longbarrow Press longbarrowpress.com/featured-poem/
Reposted by Helen Tookey
"It’s as though you’re able to stand outside the present and see yourself as a kind of ghost..."
@helentookey.bsky.social and @martinheslop.bsky.social on their new text/audio collaboration 'To the End of the Land'. Full interview here:
longbarrowpress.substack.com/p/on-the-air
@helentookey.bsky.social and @martinheslop.bsky.social on their new text/audio collaboration 'To the End of the Land'. Full interview here:
longbarrowpress.substack.com/p/on-the-air
June 12, 2025 at 6:20 AM
"It’s as though you’re able to stand outside the present and see yourself as a kind of ghost..."
@helentookey.bsky.social and @martinheslop.bsky.social on their new text/audio collaboration 'To the End of the Land'. Full interview here:
longbarrowpress.substack.com/p/on-the-air
@helentookey.bsky.social and @martinheslop.bsky.social on their new text/audio collaboration 'To the End of the Land'. Full interview here:
longbarrowpress.substack.com/p/on-the-air
So pleased to have this work coming out with the fantastic @longbarrowpress.bsky.social!
I hold out my hands to show they are empty
that we’ve come for a while to the end of things
'To the End of the Land': a new collaborative work by @martinheslop.bsky.social & @helentookey.bsky.social, published as a pamphlet and an audio CD. Out 18 June.
longbarrowpress.com/current-publ...
that we’ve come for a while to the end of things
'To the End of the Land': a new collaborative work by @martinheslop.bsky.social & @helentookey.bsky.social, published as a pamphlet and an audio CD. Out 18 June.
longbarrowpress.com/current-publ...
May 28, 2025 at 7:02 PM
So pleased to have this work coming out with the fantastic @longbarrowpress.bsky.social!
Really looking forward to this event at @deadinkbooks.bsky.social Smithdown Rd on 24th - Jake will be reading from his fantastic new book and we’ll be chatting about it:
Scousers: the next Salt & Ash event is at your mega indie bookseller on Smithdown Road, @deadinkbookshop.bsky.social where I'll be in conversation with my friend and colleague, the wonderful writer Helen Tookey. Get doon!
April 10, 2025 at 12:40 PM
Really looking forward to this event at @deadinkbooks.bsky.social Smithdown Rd on 24th - Jake will be reading from his fantastic new book and we’ll be chatting about it:
Oops, pressed post too soon. Thanks to the AHRC for supporting this project. It started from thinking about Lowry’s stories in Hear Us O Lord from Heaven Thy Dwelling Place, which refer to the Isle of Man and have an overriding concern for the natural world.
An exhibition showcasing the sounds of the "extraordinarily rich environment" beneath the surface of the surrounding sea has opened at the Manx Museum.
Led by Alan Dunn and @helentookey.bsky.social, it's aimed to help people "develop a deeper appreciation for the island's diverse marine life"
Led by Alan Dunn and @helentookey.bsky.social, it's aimed to help people "develop a deeper appreciation for the island's diverse marine life"
Exhibition explores sounds found beneath seas around Isle of Man
Hear Us: Sounds of the Sea features underwater recordings made in the waters around the Isle of Man.
www.bbc.com
January 19, 2025 at 5:34 PM
Oops, pressed post too soon. Thanks to the AHRC for supporting this project. It started from thinking about Lowry’s stories in Hear Us O Lord from Heaven Thy Dwelling Place, which refer to the Isle of Man and have an overriding concern for the natural world.
Thanks to
An exhibition showcasing the sounds of the "extraordinarily rich environment" beneath the surface of the surrounding sea has opened at the Manx Museum.
Led by Alan Dunn and @helentookey.bsky.social, it's aimed to help people "develop a deeper appreciation for the island's diverse marine life"
Led by Alan Dunn and @helentookey.bsky.social, it's aimed to help people "develop a deeper appreciation for the island's diverse marine life"
Exhibition explores sounds found beneath seas around Isle of Man
Hear Us: Sounds of the Sea features underwater recordings made in the waters around the Isle of Man.
www.bbc.com
January 19, 2025 at 5:30 PM
Thanks to
The Mersey, rippling across itself like a kind of static
January 12, 2025 at 1:24 PM
The Mersey, rippling across itself like a kind of static
The Mersey this morning. (The tiny thing in the middle is a channel marker buoy.)
December 26, 2024 at 11:35 AM
The Mersey this morning. (The tiny thing in the middle is a channel marker buoy.)
In possibly the most Viz-like thing I’ve ever done, I have just used jam-jar labels to organise the airing cupboard. (People of a certain vintage might recognise the duvet cover at the bottom, an artefact from c. 1987).
December 24, 2024 at 3:30 PM
In possibly the most Viz-like thing I’ve ever done, I have just used jam-jar labels to organise the airing cupboard. (People of a certain vintage might recognise the duvet cover at the bottom, an artefact from c. 1987).
Ran into my former BSL teacher yesterday and was chuffed to remember enough to have a decent conversation. I’ve only managed Level 1 so far but I’m still pretty proud of that. And it’s a fascinating language to learn.
December 24, 2024 at 1:26 PM
Ran into my former BSL teacher yesterday and was chuffed to remember enough to have a decent conversation. I’ve only managed Level 1 so far but I’m still pretty proud of that. And it’s a fascinating language to learn.
I can highly recommend The Blue Hour by Angelina D’Roza. I’m halfway through, reading it slowly to savour the language and imagery. It’s melancholy, but at the same time rich and vivid. Like a gorgeous and sad film.
Last minute shopping? Orders to Sheffield delivery addresses (postcodes S1-S12) received by the morning of Monday 23 December will be delivered (by hand, on foot) on or before Tuesday 24 December. We can also gift-wrap at no extra cost. Order here:
longbarrowpress.com/current-publ...
longbarrowpress.com/current-publ...
December 22, 2024 at 10:50 AM
I can highly recommend The Blue Hour by Angelina D’Roza. I’m halfway through, reading it slowly to savour the language and imagery. It’s melancholy, but at the same time rich and vivid. Like a gorgeous and sad film.
This, from my @rilch-ljmu.bsky.social colleague Jake Morris-Campbell, will be excellent:
My new book, 'Between the Salt and the Ash', is just four months away!
manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk/9781526175366/
manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk/9781526175366/
December 16, 2024 at 5:50 PM
This, from my @rilch-ljmu.bsky.social colleague Jake Morris-Campbell, will be excellent:
Gregory Kearns has been making these excellent and very in-depth podcast interviews with poets about all things poetry - search The Poems We Made Along The Way
Charlotte Shevchenko Knight talking about a special railcard for poets from the most recent episode of The Poems We Made Along The Way.
Listenable on all podcast platforms.
#PoetryCommunity #Poetry #trains
Listenable on all podcast platforms.
#PoetryCommunity #Poetry #trains
December 13, 2024 at 3:52 PM
Gregory Kearns has been making these excellent and very in-depth podcast interviews with poets about all things poetry - search The Poems We Made Along The Way
Husband goes to the dentist, comes back with this little lot, from Oxfam (apparently they’d only arrived yesterday). Got no excuse now, have I…
December 13, 2024 at 2:12 PM
Husband goes to the dentist, comes back with this little lot, from Oxfam (apparently they’d only arrived yesterday). Got no excuse now, have I…
So there’s Bobby Gillespie in the Guardian the other day saying he really likes Cliff Richard’s ‘We Don’t Talk Any More’, and there’s me at our MA Christmas social yesterday putting on a YouTube 70s’ party mix and the FIRST tune up is ‘We Don’t Talk Any More’. Spooky.
December 11, 2024 at 5:04 PM
So there’s Bobby Gillespie in the Guardian the other day saying he really likes Cliff Richard’s ‘We Don’t Talk Any More’, and there’s me at our MA Christmas social yesterday putting on a YouTube 70s’ party mix and the FIRST tune up is ‘We Don’t Talk Any More’. Spooky.
This looks good…
WINTER GIVEAWAY ❄️
This week, we have 3 signed copies of Oksana Maksymchuk’s new collection Still City up for grabs!
To enter, like, repost, and make sure you’re following us - entries close on Sunday 15th December. Good luck! ✨
This week, we have 3 signed copies of Oksana Maksymchuk’s new collection Still City up for grabs!
To enter, like, repost, and make sure you’re following us - entries close on Sunday 15th December. Good luck! ✨
December 11, 2024 at 4:57 PM
This looks good…
If this doesn’t persuade you to follow this account, nothing will.
Anyway this is to confirm that our suspicions about D & R were definitely confirmed for us on Sunday evening both by Julie & the waiter. So naturally I just had to let you know. I gather that D does all the flowers & makes all the cushions. Also that the vicar's dog collar was found in D's bed.
December 10, 2024 at 4:48 PM
If this doesn’t persuade you to follow this account, nothing will.
Here’s the Research Institute for Literature and Cultural History at LJMU - we run events and seminars in Liverpool and we’ll be posting here about anything we’re up to.
December 9, 2024 at 11:17 AM
Here’s the Research Institute for Literature and Cultural History at LJMU - we run events and seminars in Liverpool and we’ll be posting here about anything we’re up to.