Half Beard Half Poet (Spoken Label, April 2026)

Half Beard Half Poet (Spoken Label, April 2026)

From Spoken Label by Andy N

April 10, 2026 · 1h 10m

About this episode

This episode features Half Beard Half Poet, who discusses his return to poetry after a long hiatus.

Latest up from Spoken Label (Spoken Word / Poetry Podcast) features making his debut is the wonderful Half Beard Half Poet. A product of the early 2010s Mancunian poetry scene Half Beard Half Poet (then using the alias Benny-Jo Zahl) burned bright but briefly. Three years after discovering poetry in 2009 he was published as a member of the Working Verse collective alongside Kieren King and Dave Viney Via Flapjack press (The Prequel to the Sequel), co-wrote and performed two plays with Working Verse that debuted in the Lowery theatre (Amateur Thematics – 2012, Writer's Retweet – 2013) and co-hosted Bang Said The Gun: Manchester. In May 2014 at the Evidently poetry night in Salford he gave his last performance, until one fateful day in October 2023, when he walked into a therapist’s office holding notebook and pen… What some people have said about him: “The great ape swings again! I’ve admired these poems for years, but for too long they’ve not been on our stages. It’s amazing to see not only their return but also even more exciting, emotive, excellent new words coming from this engaging and inspired writer and performer. Yes, heavier than metal, and shining twice as brightly! –…

People in this episode

Host: Andy N

Guest: Half Beard Half Poet

Topics covered

  • poetry
  • spoken word
  • performance
  • Mancunian poetry scene
  • artistic return

Keywords

  • Half Beard Half Poet
  • poetry
  • Mancunian scene
  • performance
  • spoken word

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Working Verse, Flapjack press

Places: Lowery theatre

More episodes of Spoken Label

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Spoken Label podcast page.