Then came Cheshire's first ever official poet laureate, who was none of the above (although he was a teacher), the role being created by Cheshire County Council with the aim of dispelling such outdated views.

Five years and five laureates later, the project has been a resounding success, with a network of poetry evenings (usually in pubs) quenching the thirst of an ever-increasing group of budding writers in the North West.

Many had travelled to Goostrey for last Friday's opening night of the "Bunch of fives" tour, all five laureates performing a selection of their own work, cleverly linked around a boxing theme (hence the title — geddit?).

Clearly wanting to make the evening fun, they entered the "ring" to the "Rocky" theme, gloves on, hoods up, and went into "ding-ding — round one!" — "Relationships", followed by "Places" and an amusing overview of nearby Twemlow Green (yes, it's a kink in the road on the way to somewhere else). All five writers juxtaposed humour - John Lindley donning flat cap and footy scarf to talk about whippets and pies — and often delivered at breathtaking speed, with heart-stopping pathos. This was most notable after the break, with round four revolving (in candlelight) around "Death and life", with Andrew Rudd's piece about Auschwitz, a personal highlight of the evening.

Always incredibly observational, one ends up thinking these guys can find inspiration when pushing a shopping trolley, but all in all this was both incredibly slick (and remember it was the first night!) and hugely entertaining.

With over 60 poems performed — and that's the key thing, this was a PERFORMANCE, not a recital - and all from memory (no small boy hiding in a prompt box), it's easy to see why they were chosen to champion their passion throughout Cheshire.

"A bunch of fives" tours for the next few weeks in the North West, including a date in Knutsford and Congleton's own "Room at the top" coffee shop in Victoria Mill on Friday, 9th November. For further details, call in there (best breakfast in town), Congleton Info Centre or click onto www.bunchoffives.shorturl.com

                "WORDSWORTH GRUMPY"