Hey friends.
In the dark clouds of covid and lockdown we couldn't have live performance in the same way, but one silver lining in that dark cloud was that I (Harry Baker) started a podcast, which I don't think anybody else in the world thought to do in that time. Each week a different guest would join and we would share something old, something new, Something Borrowed, and something blue. Sometimes it was poems, sometimes it was music, mostly it made us all feel a little less alone.
One glorious UK Tour later and I realised the thing I want to do most in the world is have a monthly night in Margate so we're back baby! After a glorious rebirth in 2023 we are back for the new year in the one and only Forts with a bang(er) in the form of Special Guest Georgie JOnes!
As well as some chat and performance from me and Georgie, there will be an open mic where you are welcome to come and perform a poem or song (either your own or Something Borrowed (!) from someone else), as well as somewhere warm and cosy to escape the winter.
Harry Baker is the World Poetry Slam Champion and champion of the people. His TED Talks have been watched by millions of people and translated into over 20 different languages. He has two books published with Burning Eye and the latest, Unashamed, was accompanied by an Edinburgh fringe show and 40-date tour of the UK. He is the only person to have sold out the Tom Thumb Theatre three nights in a row and he is yet to find anywhere that does a better French Toast than Forts.
Georgie Jones is a poet and performer known for her humour and heart. Her poetry combines spoken word, stand up and storytelling with (more often than not) a heavy-handed dollop of oversharing and the occasional dance routine thrown in for good measure. She was a Roundhouse Poetry Slam finalist before joining the Roundhouse Poetry Collective and subsequently spent a year as Roundhouse Resident Artist. It’s all very Roundhouse centric isn’t it? But WAIT, there’s MORE! Georgie’s long-form poetry shows have been commissioned by China Plate, MAC, LPAC, Warwick Arts Centre and generously supported by the Arts Council. She has amassed over 120k followers online and has performed in theatres, at festivals and on radio stations all over the UK. Outside of writing and performing, Georgie very much enjoys devouring ’sharing’ bags of crisps and falling over whilst attempting to roller skate.
Forts opened its big glass doors during lockdown and opened our hearts shortly after. Run by dream team Will Pits and Chris Rye, Everything is delicious and everyone is lovely. If this goes well we can do it monthly, then the logical progression is obviously to make it fortnightly, then Forts, nightly.
You are wonderful and if you've read this far you are absolutely my kind of person, so I would love to see you there. As with all my shows there is an option for a free ticket if you can't afford to pay for one in this moment, no questions asked. There are only 30 seats available so make sure you book early!