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Metamorphosis
Springwatch is such a good programme, isn’t it? In the past, I’ve never bothered to prioritise watching it over all of the other wonderful options that you have on the outside but in here, along with its sibling, program, I make sure I watch it. The natural world is stunning and awe inspiring. On of…
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A request from me to you
I was speaking to a guy a couple of days ago who is relatively recently arrived, although it turns out he has been in here before, back in the ’80s. It gave me the chance to hear from a primary source the difference between prison 40 years ago and the prison today. It was a…
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Last night, I cried
Today I want to once again write about being wrongfully convicted. Last night, I watched a lot of the reruns of Shetland on ITV3 and at the end, I cried and cried and cried. Please allow me to explain why. This series of six episodes told the story of the murder of Lizzie Cormuir and…
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The Damage of One
I am fairly confident that my writing today will resonate with many people. I will pose a question: do you remember that teacher at your school who was utterly horrible and treated you, and maybe everyone else, like dirt? If you have been to hospital, do you remember that one nurse who seemed to hate…
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I’ll argue the case for prisons.
I have been pretty critical of prisons in these articles but today I thought I’d try to do something different. I’m going to try to argue that actually prisons are doing a good job and that they are necessary. One of the key roles of the prison system is to remove people from a society…
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Big, tough, viscous criminals miss…flowers.
I’ve just been speaking to a load of guys at the gym. I’m sure you can build a picture in your mind: big bodybuilder, tough guys who can bench press double decker busses. Hard men, gangster enforcers, me I would never have met and should never have met. Well, we all agreed that we really…
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You know what? Maybe prison does work!
Ooh blimey, that title was a surprise for me when my pen wrote it. Has my pen gone mad and developed a delusional mind of its own? Has it been in prison for too long? Before we cast judgement on the poor, ball-pointed device, let’s think. Allow me to have a look around me. Is…
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Things that go bump in the night.
Prisons are very murky, shadowy places. They are dark and dangerous at the best of times but at night, they take on a whole new level of ominousness. When that cell door closes at the end of the day and you know it won’t be opening for the next 12 hours, it fills you with…
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Patience reveals opportunities.
Oh my word! The delusion of so many prisoners makes me so frustrated! I hear lots of stories about the lack of opportunities in here but actually that isn’t true. The longer I am here, the more I realise the importance of driving patiently. Prisoners need to have the determination to make things happen but…
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[Poem]The Wizard
My door is open if you forget about the lock.I am not late if you ignore the clock.My world is light if you forget about the weight.My life is happy if you ignore the hate. I’m driving fast if you forget about the slow.I’m climbing high if you ignore the low.It’s not drowning if you…
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[Poem]I’m Getting Angry Now
Blindsided with the punch of a hundred fond memoriestransformed by toxicity to torture and terrors.Tears cascading down my red raw cheeksshowing me exactly how much I’ve become weak. The conversations I’m having belong in a far away placethe thoughts in my mind put me in a very dark state.My enemy I cannot hold, I cannot…
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[Poem]What Am I?
Was I ever a whole person?Just one complete versionof what a human should be?Have I ever been a whole me? I leaned on my parents until last yearand my friends helped me through plenty of tears.I’ve always had loving partners with whomtogether we battled every doom. I have brothers and sisters and cousins and kidsbut…