2025

 

This was the year that was not the year

This was the year that was not the year

I repaired the bathroom tap

and emptied out the kitchen drawer

of a lifetime’s worth of crap. 

This was the year that was not the year

in which I launched a new career. 

A West End hit eluded me 

as did Time Person of the Year. 

This was the year that was not the year

I became a household name. 

Action figures were not sold of me. 

I wasn’t made a dame. 

This was the year that was not the year 

I spent less time on my phone. 

Nights of passion did not happen

in boutique hotels in Rome. 

This was the year that was the year 

I didn’t get that much done – 

much the same as the year before, 

much like the one to come.

Brian Bilston