Vicky Meets… Mike Jenkins, Words Out Loud Trustee and host of ‘Seven Up’

What is Seven Up?

Seven Up is a unique evening of cabaret style entertainment, with a twist. Seven performers give seven performances, lasting seven minutes each. It’s a relaxed and informal evening, with plenty of breaks between acts to mingle, eat, drink and be merry. Tickets are £10 and we’ll be Upstairs at Wildwood in Chichester on Thursday, November 16, 7pm-10pm. I am the host/MC for the night.

Will you give us a glimpse of the sort of performers we might expect?

I will! On the line-up for November, we have music from acoustic folk/rock band Fate of the Magpie, performing on guitars, whistles, bass guitar and a range of percussion instruments, all crowned by beautifully powerful, soaring vocals.

Nigel Bamber will be performing some of his wry, comic and deeply human poems and musings. Nigel is a former F1 Engineer and a wilful dis-respecter of track limits. He writes poetry whenever something jerks his chain.

Ken and Deni Jones perform a couple of classic American comedy sketches.

Bethyn Casey performs movement/dance inspired by T.S. Elliot.

Local writer, singer, banjo player and tin whistler Lisa O’Brien will be performing a tune with a tale; Eric Bogle’s 1972 ‘The Band Played Waltzing Matilda’; Chichester playwright and actor Rob Hall will be doing a turn, and author, songwriter and musician Chris Middleton performs words with music as he reads from his new book ‘An Insignificant Boy’, a true story that his publishers have described as ‘poignant, inspired and ultimately hopeful.’ Aged just eight, Clix (Chris’ childhood nickname) built a radio station out of junk to ask the outside world for help.

What has the feedback from audiences been like so far?

It’s been fantastic! There was a great buzz afterwards and everyone commented on how great it was to be together in a relaxed and informal social setting to enjoy original entertainment.

Tell me a bit about your professional background.

I trained as an actor and have worked at The Royal Court Theatre in London, Salisbury Playhouse, the National Theatre Studio, The New Vic Theatre, Northampton Royal and at Chichester.

I run theatre and acting workshops for CFT and in Jan 2023, I was the lead writer on ‘The Well of Lost Voices’, a community arts project that brought together local writers, poets and performers to present an original piece of theatre at Graylingwell Chapel.

C an people contact you with a view to performing?

Yes, absolutely. Please get in touch with us.

We have created Seven Up to give new and emerging artists a platform to develop their work, connect with other artists and grow an audience. Email us on: [email protected]

Where can we find more info?

Go to www.wordsoutloud.org.uk, check out our event page, set your clock, save the date, book a ticket, get your coat, grab a drink and take a seat.

This is Seven Up.