Clowning and Climate Change

‘Climate Xchange — Re:versing the Damage — Notes from the Climate Journey’ was described in the OLF programme guide as a ‘creative journey through climate change’. This lead me to suspect an audio/visual aspect to the event. To some extent this was true.

When I arrived there was a bloke chancing it with a guitar. My alarm bells started ringing. Then I saw the guitar had stickers on it. Shit – I was hemmed in. The chap next to me wondered if I was a poet. Arse, this was getting worse…

Let’s get something straight – in my house, I am the guy who insists Climate Change is happening. I think projects like ACME Climate Action are fantastic. And I have plenty of sceptical friends – would a night like this really have changed their minds?

I dread to think… Introduced by the funny and affable Steve Larkin the evening was a mix of poets and writers, working in conjunction with Climatexchange, a DEFRA sponsored thinktank at Oxford University, telling us that climate change was a clear and present danger and that we’re all going to fry.

Many of the ‘spoken word artists’ came from Oxford wordsmiths Hammer and Tongues (www.hammerandtongue.co.uk). In particular, Danny Chivers was dextrous with his rhyming and very funny with it, he’s a star in the making.

Pete Bearder took the idea of ‘beat poetry’ a step (literally) further by having the audience beat on the floor for pedestrian power and shout throughout his performance. This alerted the authorities downstairs where the chaps from QI were trying to have a conversation about animals. Pete bravely continued with his piece while a steward, complete with prefect-esque blue sash watched him from the door and winced every time he stamped his feet. The audience continued to join, but now more muted. You can change the planet – just do it quietly.

A lot of it was funny and intelligent. Some of it was dull; some of it tiresome. A rant against Richard Branson fell flat for me; people cheering “government lies” made me roll my eyes and when it got to the guy in the hat singing on the stickered guitar about ‘dancing on the body of a multi-national corporation’ I’d just about had enough.

Poetry and Song can change the world, we know this. Just not these particular poems and songs… Still, at least someone is making a stand in the Arts – we must, I suppose, be grateful.