Les Barker

Les Barker (30 January 1947 – 14 January 2023) was an English poet who was best known for his comedic poetry and parodies of popular songs, but also produced some very serious thought-provoking written works.

Barker was born in Manchester, England, on 30 January 1947.

He studied accountancy before he realised that he had a talent for writing.

At the beginning of his career he toured around folk music venues as a solo performer, and later with The Mrs Ackroyd Band (named after his mongrel dog Mrs Ackroyd.) Barker was not a singer and the Mrs Ackroyd Band, with classically trained vocalists Hilary Spencer and Alison Younger, and keyboard player Chris Harvey, enabled his parodies to be sung live.

He toured around Britain and such countries as Hong Kong, Australia, New Zealand, the United States and Canada.

Barker authored 77 books and released 20 albums.

His books contain a mixture of monologues, comic songs, and serious songs.

The monologues tip the hat to Marriott Edgar.

Like Edgar, Barker has created several recurring characters and themes such as 'Jason and the Arguments', 'Cosmo the Fairly Accurate Knife Thrower', 'Captain Indecisive', 'The Far off Land of Dyslexia' and 'Spot of the Antarctic', which have become trademarks of Barker's work.

Both his comic and serious songs have become standards for other singers such as Waterson–Carthy and June Tabor.

Barker was also one of the few writers (alongside Stephen Sondheim, with his parody "The Boy From...") to get the Welsh place named Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantisiliogogogoch into a song successfully (it forms the main chorus of a song of the same name, and is sung four times).

In the mid 2000s, Barker moved to Wrexham, Wales, and learnt Welsh, producing two books of poetry written in the Welsh tongue.

In 2008 he was awarded the NIACE Inspire Award as Welsh Learner of the Year, and recited his poem "Have you Got Any News of the Iceberg?"

in Welsh at the presentation in Swansea.

After a heart attack in January 2008, Barker began solo gigging again.

Barker remained firmly rooted in the circuit of folk clubs and festivals.

He has also performed as part of a double act with Keith Donnelly under the name "Idiot and Friend".

After being diagnosed with cancer and undergoing chemotherapy, he announced his retirement from touring in October 2022, but intended to maintain his online presence via YouTube.

On 14 January 2023, Barker attended a match of The New Saints F.C. at Park Hall in Oswestry, Shropshire.

Afterward, he returned to his car and died from an apparent heart attack at the age of 75.

His body was found in his car by maintenance staff the following morning.

Barker also wrote a poem called Guide Cats for the Blind which later became the title track of a double fundraising CD for the British Computer Association of the Blind (BCAB).

The Association runs a program called EyeT4all, which aims to make computers accessible to people who are blind or visually impaired.

Barker also agreed to the recording of a series of albums.

Over £40,000 has been raised.

Five "Guide Cats" albums have been produced, Guide Cats for the Blind, Missing Persians File, Top Cat, White Tie and Tails, Cat Nav and Herding Cats.

The CDs contain performances of Barker's poems by members of the folk world such as June Tabor, Martin Carthy, Steve Tilston, Mike Harding and Tom Paxton and well known figures including Jimmy Young, Nicholas Parsons, Brian Perkins, Terry Wogan, Nicky Campbell, Robert Lindsay, Prunella Scales and Andrew Sachs.

In 2009, a campaign by his folk fanbase sought to have him chosen as the British Poet Laureate.