This was such an honour and one of the most exciting events of my Laureateship so far. The Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce were absolutely lovely to work with, from the initial email communication and online meeting, through to all the tech check meetings, rehearsal, and the evening itself where I found myself sitting in a virtual green room with the presidents of the Chambers, all dressed in our finery, read to speak - or in my case perform a poem. It was actually quite terrifying as the compere was muted so that there wouldn't be sound bouncing about when it was our own individual turn to perform so my only cue was waiting for the moment my own face appeared on the TV screen in the studio, then I'd know I was live! It was great fun though and I loved the opportunity to learn more about these areas of Staffordshire in my research for the poem which encompasses Sutton Coldfield, Lichfield and Tamworth, and Cannock Chase areas, as well as the celebrations of the awards ceremony. Thank you to Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce for a wonderful opportunity and congratulations to all who worked so hard behind the scenes to make such a fabulous event happen online, as well as those who won an award! #poetry #staffordshire #StaffordshirePoetLaureate #spokenword
