Praise for Night Porter
“A fine, poised, self-contained piece that I enjoyed very much”
– Nick Asbury, Sphinx
“Restrained, attentive and wise, Matt Bryden’s poems flash light into a world of work and hurried lives which remain a closed book to many poets.”
– Alison Brackenbury, Under the Radar
‘An interesting unfolding narrative on a summer of night shifts in an eccentric hotel. Bryden unpacks each episodic poem quietly and with succinct brevity’
– Niall Campbell
‘[Bryden] uses the cumulative effect of excellent observation to make the hotel come to life… There’s much both to admire and doubt in this snapshot of Bryden’s work’
– Matthew Stewart
About Night Porter
A winner of the 2010 Templar Pamphlet and Collection Awards, this pamphlet explores the experiences of a night porter working in a hotel in York, and introduces readers to a range of characters and scenarios – both modern and Dickensian.
Launch at the Derwent Poetry Festival in Matlock Bath (photos by Paul Maddern)
The Poems
George
A new face at half six.
I was manning Reception
when he came through the doors.
On a couch he told me about the kitchens
in Scotland. His uncleaned teeth
smelt earthy as sweat.
‘I came to England to get a break. That’s a joke.’
He showed me bank statements
of when he was £10,000 in the black.
Matt Bryden Poetry 