mark gwynne jones

MGJ@RonnieScott's,Soho1 — *^{Mark @ Ronnie Scott’s, Soho}*

Inspired…one of the most accomplished performance poets in the land…drawing the audience into a world where things are not quite what they seem. The Guardian

I always stipulate that whoever is on with me hasn’t got to be any good. This one got past me… I don’t know how, but heads will roll! John Cooper Clarke

Astonishing… You’ll love this show! The Daily Mail

On this website you can find Mark’s publications, performances caught on film, audio recordings, and dates. Here too, is Voices From The Peak – a poetic trip through Mark’s native Peak District. An ongoing project with three new audios bringing the current series to six episodes. Our mission… to rediscover our connection with the land; to record a disappearing world; and to reveal the poetry of things people say…

In other news…

Mark’s conversation (12/01/24) with Jumoke Fashola on BBC Radio London is now on BBC Sounds. To hear a 6 min extract click below:

Voices From The Peak is currently featured in ‘Vera’ – Virgin’s transatlantic glossy magazine. We even landed on the front cover alongside Dolly Parton. Dolly in a full-length-picture, and Voices From The Peak in a few-short-words: “Country Music – Sounding out England’s Landsape”. Music journalist, Jack Needham, digs deep into the sounds and ideas behind the project. Full article page 46…

Vols 1-3 of Voices From The Peak – is out on Talking Elephant Records, a double CD featuring the first 3 chapters.

Combining archive recordings, voices from today, music and humour, Voices From The Peak features the atmospheres, wildlife, and unheard stories of the UK’s first National Park – the Peak District. A strange and beautiful land of contrasts. Order your copy here.

The series was recently reviewed in The Times and featured on BBC Radio 4’s Front Row with Samira Ahmed, who interviewed Mark on the work’s creation. Voices From The Peak audio was also used in the dazzling projections on Cromford Mills and Chatsworth House, and the series has now been recognised by the International Year Of Sound – a global initiative to highlight the importance of sound in all aspects of life.

Mark is now creating three new chapters in the series. One on the subject of water and well dressing, another on the return of ravens to the Peak District, and a third on the enduring popularity of our stone circles. The new audios will be published on the Peak District National Park’s website from October 2023.

We’re delighted to announce Voices From The Peak – Live!… featuring spoken word, soundscape, and film. The pilot show won the award for excellence in spoken word at the Buxton Festival Fringe, July 2022. To read the review, click here, and for forthcoming dates keep an eye on our Events Page.

On May 26th 2021, BBC One ‘Breakfast’ interviewed Mark on the newly named Seven Wonders of the UK. To see the feature, click here.

To celebrate the 90th anniversary of Derbyshire Life, the magazine commissioned Mark to write a prose-poem for the county. The new work, follows the River Derwent the length of Derbyshire from its source on Bleaklow to Derwent Mouth at Shardlow.

On the subject of all things Peak District, we also recommend Kate Chappell’s Hope Valley Journal. With stunning images and articles, every issue is a work of art, reflecting the sometimes wild beauty of this region. Issue One features an interview with Mark, and issue Three his prose-poem, Snow.

In 2015, Mark toured Southern India and later the UK with poet and playwright, Dr Mamta Sagar. To hear a sample of their unique collaboration, recorded live at Ledbury Poetry Festival, click here.

When resident poet for London’s Regent’s Park, Mark explored what is meant by ‘common ground’ in 21^st century Britain. For one of the park poems recorded live at Ronnie Scott’s, see: Whose Common Now?

And before leaving this home page, we’d like to feature a poem Mark wrote 27 years ago, Plasticman. A poem that once had him thrown out of a Supermarket… (as filmed by Andy Lawrence)