The lives of French poets Arthur Rimbaud and Paul Verlaine sound like something from a Rick Mayall sitcom. Theirs is a tale of forbidden love, drunken rows and cross-channel debauchery, with knife fights, a shooting and even a fish-slapping incident thrown in for bad measure. During a particularly stormy period in 1873, the two Frenchmen lived together at 8 Royal College Street, Camden Town, and there wrote some of their most enduring poetry.
News
Events around Arthur Rimbaud
2009
17
Apr
Poet in the city invites you to Rimbaud & Verlaine
Catherine | 17/04/2009 | 21:16
An event celebrating the life and works of two of France's greatest poets, chaired by Alan Jenkins, featuring Graham Robb, Dominique Combe, Martin Sorrell, Yann Frémy and the distinguished actors Bill Homewood and Estelle Kohler.
2009
18
Feb
An Arthur Rimbaud Drift
Catherine | 18/02/2009 | 00:16
Poet in the City, as an innovative poetry charity, is championing efforts to save 8 Royal College Street, the house in Camden formerly occupied by the celebrated French poets Arthur Rimbaud and Paul Verlaine.
2008
25
Oct
Arthur Rimbaud: Insulting Beauty
Catherine | 25/10/2008 | 18:46
"As Rimbaud sought to reinvent love, he reinvented writing - and violently." A look at how an iconoclastic young writer revolutionized the poetic form. With readings by Rosanna Warren
2008
15
Oct
An Arthur Rimbaud Drift
Catherine | 15/10/2008 | 15:55
Niall McDevitt leads a poetic walk tracing the steps of the legendary Frenchman and his fellow communard/poet/homosexual/alcoholic Paul Verlaine.
2008
23
May
Bismarck's Dream (a fantasy)
Catherine | 23/05/2008 | 21:49
Here is a translation of Bismarck's Dream by Niall McDevitt. Many thanks to him.
2008
22
May
Unknown Rimbaud text found in France
Catherine | 22/05/2008 | 21:24
An unknown work by the French 19th-century poet Arthur Rimbaud has been uncovered in a newspaper back issue in his hometown in northeastern France, a local bookseller said on Thursday.