Three Poets. One Show Review

A cracking poetry event

We start the final Sunday of Midlands Fringe 2026 with a poetry event at Waterstones which platforms three diverse voices from our region, and brings together three poets to perform together for the first time. 

Lichfield poet Gary Longden kicks things off with a blistering set of poems delivered one after the other with barely a pause for breath. There’s some skilful work and images in there, and Gary keeps a close eye on the time, finishing bang on his allotted fifteen minutes. He’s followed by Saida Chowdhury from Birmingham – she explains how and why she got into reading and writing poetry, how that led to the publication of her first book (now on sale in Waterstones) and reads a selection of poems from it in her quiet, assured style. Finally, Wolverhampton poet Kupid the King brings the event to a close with a confident set which takes us from a whirlwind tour of our city’s history through to personal tales which highlight the difficulties and racism which still confront the Black British community today. There’s some song thrown in there for good measure, too.

All in all, a cracking poetry event. Our thanks to Waterstones for being the ‘extra’ venue in this year’s Midlands Fringe.