It is now February; I've got one month to spend all the Arts Council money and finish the script. The writing is coming on Ok at the moment. I have about nineteen minutes of tightish poetry and probably another fifteen of loose poetry! There is about five minutes of poetry that should be there that isn't but at least I am starting to see the finished piece.

The website is under construction and I've seen some proofs of the pages which have been done so far (very pleased with the way that they look). I have booked another spoken word
Arvon course and paid for it; this one is in May in Devon and John Hegley is the guest poet. The puppets are being mocked up by my cousin at the moment. I have commissioned a Punch hat for me to wear (Alison Westall-Jones is a local textile designer and she has taking on the challenge; she's done work for Hugh Fernley-Wittingstall and Laurence Llewellyn-Bowen in the past. Do you think they are all members of the same double-barrelled club?). I have to start buying props this month and the materials to make the fit-up (I am making this myself, probably out of plastic plumbing pipes and canvass - I used to be a sign-writer and have done scenery construction and painting in the past so I should be able to do it).

I'm making tentative enquiries for possible venues for putting the production 0n at. I can't see it being ready to perform much before summer because I still have to learn everything once it is written but if I have a complete script to send to the Arts Council just after the 1st March then that should be OK.