The 'Bard' of Cornwall Grove

Local poet Tony Inwood on his latest collection, A Day at the Zoo

Tony Inwood, a local poet, has just brought out a book of his poetry called “A Day at the Zoo”. This is a mixture of poems that reflect his views on life, his Christian faith and his sense of humour.

Tony was brought up in care in the 1960’s. Both his parents had mental health issues and were treated for depression. His time spent in care was a mixture of good and bad experiences. The childrens’ home he was in provided some stability and a sense of belonging. However, alongside that were the problems with his parents, fostering that went wrong and holidays spent being shunted from one place to another.

Tony discussing his work during an interview

He says, “All this took its toll on me emotionally. Then to cap it all when I was 15, my father died from a cerebral haemorrhage.”

So when he left school, he, too struggled with depression. He got involved in the drug scene and had spells of being homeless. Then, in a way that he can’t explain, he says, “I had an experience of the reality of God and knew that I had to pull myself out of this situation, which he eventually did with the help of other people."

He subsequently moved into a house here in Chiswick with a man he had known slightly at school and so began a long-standing relationship that was both mutually supportive and stable. This provided him, for the first time in his life, something of real and lasting value. They have now shared their house in Cornwall Grove for 45 years. Tony says of this partnership “I have found warmth, kindness and fun and enjoyed a stimulating lifestyle. And I have come to experience the value of human friendship in way that was just not there for me as a child growing up.”

Tony has been a member of Christ Church, Turnham Green since 1994 and after some years he came to see his need of personal healing for things that were locked up in his past, that were inhibiting his growth and development in a number of ways. Of these healing sessions, Tony says; “I was told at one point that God can heal our subconscious mind, without our even being aware of it. Now I have to say that despite being a long time believer, I was more than a little sceptical of that.”

But that is exactly what happened. He found it to be huge release and then began, at the age of 50, to open up in all kinds of ways, most notably through writing. He produced several booklets of his poetry, wrote and put on 2 short plays and also concerts and art shows in his Church.

He also says “I then started to take much more interest in other people and the world in general and got so much more satisfaction from life. I now realise that healing is something that takes place throughout the whole of our lives, but that was such a massive move forward.”

His book, which really reflects all of this in poetic form, is now available on Amazon priced £6.96.
You can also see him talking about his life in this interview on Chiswick Buzz TV.

February 11, 2017