Nationalist Makar puts poetry above politics
SCOTLAND’S National Poet yesterday made her first public performance since taking up the post – in front of the Queen at a ceremony at the Scottish parliament.
Kathleen Jamie was appointed Scots Makar in August and yesterday recited a specially written poem, The Morrow Bird.
Her performance followed the Queen’s words on COP26 and calls for action on climate change, with a commissioned piece of work about humanity’s relationship with the natural world. Although the poet is an outspoken supporter of independence, she made no overtly political statements in her performance – although she did make references to ‘governance’.
One excerpt from the poem includes the words: ‘The rest, we cry “history” – kye and castle, empire, mine and mill, ’til we win the right to be governed according to our will.’ The poem ended with the words: ‘So please, let the morrow-bird’s handsel be wisdom, leavened with music and song. We seek good governance, Parliament. Act bold. Be kind. Stay strong.’
The Scots Makar position was established in 2004 by the Scottish Parliament, with Edwin Morgan the first poet to receive the honour, followed by Liz Lochhead and, most recently, Jackie Kay.
Mrs Jamie, 49, grew up in Edinburgh and is now based in Fife.
In 2014, she wrote that the referendum was ‘a choice between a maimed culture and a whole country’ and that ‘Unionism has no new songs’. The comments were not as controversial as those of Mr Morgan, in a poem he penned to mark the opening of the Scottish parliament in 2004.
Asked for his opinion of the royals, he said: ‘There are many of them and I’ll just have to think of a phrase that sums them all up.’
He added: ‘I think they are a somewhat dysfunctional family.’