keeping the ‘R’ down

(with humble apologies to Gil Scott-Heron, God rest his soul)

You will not be able to stay home, brother.

You will not be able to plug in, turn on and cop out.

You will not be able to lose yourself on Netflix or

bunk off to the fridge for beer during ad breaks,

because the virus alert will not be televised.

The virus alert will not be televised.

The virus alert will not be brought to you by iPlayer

in 4 parts without commercial interruptions.

The virus alert will not show you pictures of BoJo

changing a nappy or leading a charge by Matt

Handcock, Dominic Cummings and Nigel Farage to quaff

champagne confiscated from French fishermen.

The virus alert will not be televised.

The virus alert will not be brought to you from

the Royal Albert Hall and will not star Dame

Vera Lynn or Laurence Fox and Julia Hartley-Brewer.

The virus alert will not give you ever-increasing data.

The virus alert will not get rid of the virus.

The virus alert will not make you look five pounds

thinner, because the virus alert will not be televised, Brother.

There will be no pictures of you and Katie Hopkins

pushing that shopping trolley round the block in the Tesco queue,

or watching them slide your mate into a disinfected ambulance.

BBC will not be able predict the death toll at 8:32

or report from 4 separate nations.

The virus alert will not be televised.

There will be no highlights on the ten o'clock

news and no stateside pictures of tattooed

survivalists or Keir Starmer blowing his nose.

The theme song will not be written by Lloyd-Webber,

or Gary Barlow, nor sung by Phil Collins,

Tom Jones, Cliff Richard, Liam Gallagher, or Little Mix.

The virus alert will not be televised.

The virus alert will not be right back

after a message about tomorrow’s weather or following the science.

You will not have to worry about a second spike in your

retirement plan, masking your face, or the paper in your toilet bowl.

The virus alert will not go better in a care home.

The virus alert will not fight the germs that may cause bad death.

The virus alert will put you in the danger zone.

The virus alert will not be televised, will not be televised,

will not be televised, will not be televised.

The virus alert will be no re-run brothers and sisters;

The virus alert will be live.

v.2020

 

Poetry and Covid project