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Why does 'mean' have so many meanings? Why do poets take metaphor so seriously? Why do objects like pink ghetto blasters make poems live? And why are the filaments of our eyes in the edges of the snow?

To answer these surreal, and not so surreal questions - Ian McMillan is joined by Alistair McGowan, Caroline Bird, and Toria Garbutt, and presents an 'eartoon' - a cartoon for the ear, from Richard Poynton (otherwise known as Stagedoor Johnny).

Alistair McGowan is an impressionist, actor, writer, pianist, and now - poet. He joins Ian McMillan in a pun-off - the first time such an event has ever been staged on national radio (probably). Alistair's collection of poems is called 'Not what we were expecting' (Flapjack Press).

Toria Garbutt is a spoken word artist, poet and educator from Knottingley. She shares tender, funny poems from 'The Universe and Me' (Wrecking Ball Press) many of which take us into her relationship with her sister when they were young, and reveal how much poetry there is in the objects of childhood.

Caroline Bird's new poetry collection is called 'Ambush at Still Lake' (Carcanet). She reads poems of motherhood which are like 'upside down jokes' and take 'toddler logic' (like the idea that imaginary carrots have completely run out) to surreal and sinister conclusions.
Caroline also presents us with our neon line, a stand-out line from a classic poem, and explores why it works so well. It's this mystery poem which proposes that there are 'filaments of our eyes' in the 'edges of the snow'.

Richard Poynton is a writer and performer (also known as Stagedoor Johnny). He stars in his own invention, a backstory for the origin of the English language, which explains why it has so many words with multiple meanings. In this week's Eartoon Richard introduces us to a 'mean' lasagne. (you won't want to meet it down a dark alley).