Throughout March we are celebrating Women in the Arts with a connection to the Isle of Man.  The aim of this series is to highlight the challenges that women face in the creative industry, share some advice to other creatives and also to celebrate these featured women in their achievements. We are approaching a number of women across the spectrum of age, art discipline and experience.

Hazel Teare

What is your professional background in the arts/Artists bio?

I have dabbled in poetry and creative writing for as long as I can remember. I studied English, especially poetry, as my main subject at Edge Hill University as part of my teaching qualification. Since returning to the Isle of Man in 1983 I have become heavily involved in the local poetry scene. I was one of twelve poets selected to have a poem displayed on Isle of Man transport for the Poetry in Motion project and I have been selected on five occasions as one of the poets to have their work displayed and published during the annual Manx Litfest Poetry Trail organised by the Isle of Man Poetry Society. I have been shortlisted several times and won third prize in 2014 in the Flash 500 Humour Verse competitions. I have been published in various anthologies and magazines, including This Island Now, Under the Hill, Manx Reflections and the Arts Council production, Literary Lockdown. I have been shortlisted in competitions including The Poetry Box Halloween Silver Cup and was a featured poet in Dark and Horror Poetry Magazine Monthly in 2014. I won the Isle of Man Olive Lamming poetry prize in 2014 and, more recently, in 2020 I entered an international competition run by The Poetry Kit and was awarded a ‘highly commended’. In the same year I also received a highly commended, for a different poem, in a national competition run by Southport Writers’ Circle.

I am probably best known in the local poetry community for introducing poetry open mic nights to the island in April 2012. They were a bit of a rebellion against the idea that poetry belongs exclusively to academics and they encouraged people of all ages and backgrounds to make their voice heard. The open mics became remarkably successful and attracted known poets and completely new poets who were encouraged to have a go in front of a very supportive audience. Then in 2019 the venue I used, the Bath and Bottle Basement in Douglas, closed down and Covid arrived. In recent years other poets have run successful open mics in various areas of the Island.

In 2014 I collaborated with local poets Janet Lees and Bridge Carter to try to promote poetry events on the island intending to make poetry more accessible to all. We became Poetry Unlimited with the motto bringing poetry to people and people to poetry. I continued with my open mics which consistently brought new poets and those with some previous experience, on to our radar so we could support and encourage them. Our joint projects included bringing to fruition Bridge’s idea of creating a Manx Bard and her plan to introduce a poetry slam into the annual Manx Litfest.

I have also produced and directed poetry shows in various venues, including the sold-out Gaiety Theatre show, for ‘Pullyman and Friends’ alongside fellow poet and entertainer, the late Mike [Pullyman] Cowin to raise money for local Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s charities. These shows were the brainchild of Pullyman and they featured tall tales and poetry from Mike and local poets. I also edited some of his books and I did a great deal of the work behind the scenes for his projects. We supported each other and were great friends. I miss him.

I have recently published my first book of poems called Life and Other Inconveniences which has been in the pipeline for years, but I got distracted by other projects. I have sold out of the first batch and have just received the second batch from the printer. I will be making a donation to Alzheimer’s from the proceeds.

I joined the Isle of Man Poetry Society in 2005 and in 2019 l became editor of the biannual poetry anthology Manx Reflections and in 2020 I also became Treasurer.

What inspired you to pursue your career?

I originally trained as a primary school teacher, encouraged by my mother who was also a teacher. I guess my intention was to try to bring a love of language to the young although I was expected to teach all subjects at primary level. After university I taught at a school in Essex and then I worked for London Transport in HR. On my return to the Island, I taught at several local schools. I eventually rose to the post of Literacy Coordinator which allowed me to explore the available resources to expand children’s interest and enjoyment of language. I also became involved in dramatic productions put on by the schools, writing play scripts and assisting children with the art of performance. During this time, I took evening classes in Communication Link sign language and spent a couple of years supporting deaf children in the classroom. I also ended up teaching evening classes myself. This experience really brought to my attention how little we consider deaf people in the everyday world of language and music.

Unfortunately, the government guidelines for teaching English became too prescriptive to encourage creativity so I eventually left teaching in 2000.

In my spare time I did some singing with local bands and the odd choir so that became a good grounding to move on to performance poetry and set up the open mic poetry nights to encourage others to perform their work.

What progress have you seen for women in your field?

The world of poetry used to be very much a male domain but now women are well represented, especially in the performance world, by the likes of Holly McNish and Amanda Gorman and Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy. The Isle of Man also has some fantastic performance poets such as Jackie Morrey-Grace, who are becoming known on the international and world stage. There are also many local female poets, me included, who have published their work and received incredibly positive feedback. Several, particularly Janet Lees, are catching the attention of international festival organisers and publishers

Share a women’s empowerment moment that inspired you creatively.

I would say my women’s empowerment moment was more of an era really. I was born and brought up in a fairly conventional family at a time when women were expected to be demure and very few expressed themselves openly. Sexism, racism and homophobia were very much in evidence and bigotry was often blatantly expressed with no consequences for the perpetrator. Society very gradually began to change, with music being a major influence. Music was male dominated but increasingly more women began to take leading roles. In the late 1970s I was living in East London when punk arrived. The streets were full of punk fashion and many of the pubs and clubs had live punk bands on. The energy and anger of the music was a kick against the system as it was a time of civil unrest, the atmosphere was electric, and the air of change was everywhere. The aim was to shock and many women took the opportunity to adopt fashions and hairstyles that were considered outrageous. Strong female role models appeared on the music scene. Women like Debbie Harry who fronted Blondie and Siouxsie Sioux from the Banshees made a significant impact. I immersed myself in this revolutionary atmosphere. I embraced it and it made me feel empowered to participate in the push for change in society. I am not wildly political but I like to keep up and get involved in issues I feel strongly about. I also realised that I could explore my own image although I lacked the confidence to be outwardly extreme and my employment required a more conservative appearance.

I returned to the island in 1983 and, after a divorce and bringing up two daughters, I finally unleashed my alter ego in my fifties. I got my first tattoo at 50, dyed my hair purple and joined a local Hawkwind covers/space rock band as lead singer. After that I sang with an acoustic band with my daughters, Di and Steph, playing rhythm and bass guitar and a friend from work on acoustic guitar. I think the influences of the punk and new wave era [and David Bowie] started the belief that I could set this part of myself free, it just took some time while I fulfilled my parental responsibilities. My involvement in the local music scene has also forged a connection with my daughters’ friends as I was roadie for my younger daughter Steph’s all girl band Twisted Angels. I met and mixed with their friends and fans at gigs, many of whom were struggling with their own identity in a time when society was still blinkered. Society has gradually become more inclusive and I love the flamboyance and freedom these young women can now enjoy in spite of bigotry along the way. Society has some way to go yet but I am proud to know and support the young women who have continued to progress and encourage changes in attitude.

This has been a continuation and reinforcement of the same empowerment I experienced in the 1970s and has also had an effect on my creative processes in poetry and music.

These days things are less frantic and I now play gigs with a U3A ukulele band called the Mannic Ukers. I still have multi coloured hair though.

What do you think is the biggest issue in the creative industries facing women of your age?

I think that older women used to be seen as impotent and assumptions were made about them based on their age. I am very reticent about giving my age for this reason. I do think society has become more open minded and that older women are now given more credence in arts and music. People of all ages now socialise, perform and share ideas together which was rare in my parents’ generation. I still think that older women have to work harder than men to be taken seriously and that the way they look is still more open to criticism than their male counterparts.

How important is it for women to lift each other up and can you share an example of that happening to you?

The local poetry scene is incredibly supportive and actively encourages new writers and performers. I have received great help and support from both male and female local poets although a few female poets in particular have shared advice on pieces of work and encouraged me to blow my own trumpet more as that is something I am rather reserved about. Janet Lees finds time from her very busy schedule to help and advise me with various pieces and Carol Ellis AKA Mrs. Yorkshire the Baking Bard has given me staunch support and encouragement to put my work out there a bit more. We all support each other as friends as well and I feel extremely grateful to have these strong women and others like them in my life.

In the lead up to International Women’s Day (8th March), what is the most important message you want to send out to young women thinking about a career in the arts?

My advice to young women thinking about a career in the arts is to get on and take every opportunity. You may think you have all the time in the world but it’s surprising how quickly life flashes past. I wasted so much time and I was held back by low self-esteem so I would say believe in yourself and try not to be brought down by any criticism. Not everyone will like what you do but that’s the way it is, try to rise above it however hard that might be especially when you are young. It’s not an easy path as it’s something you invest a lot of yourself in but talk to other artists and check out the work of those who are successful. Constructive criticism is usually uncomfortable but use it to help you grow, keep on keeping on and don’t be afraid to ask for help and support. Success doesn’t usually happen overnight. Phew that’s quite a lot of advice!

What have you been working on/what would you like to promote?

I have aspired for years to publish a book of my poetry and I thought of the title Life and Other Inconveniences about 20 years ago but over the years I became embroiled in family life, musical commitments, poetry open mics and helping bring other people’s projects to fruition. Then came Covid and everyone’s life ground to a halt. I took this opportunity to edit and prepare fifty poems to print and the book was finally ready for sale just before Christmas 2021. I have already sold out of the first batch and I have had an amazing amount of positive feedback. The next batch has just arrived and is now for sale with proceeds going to Alzheimer’s as my mother suffered from this dreadful disease. At the moment they are only available by contacting me either on music_freak@hotmail.com or by messaging me on Facebook. They are selling for £7 per copy plus an extra £1.70 for local or UK postage. I will try to deliver if feasible.

The first book took so long to sort out that I am now halfway through the second book titled Life and Further Inconveniences. I write all the time so should have enough suitable material by the end of this year.

I also hope to hold an anniversary open mic poetry night to mark 10 years since the first one on 22nd April 2012 but at the moment I am struggling to find a suitable venue in Douglas.

Where can we stay up to date?

I hope to have a greater online presence soon and will notify the Arts Council once the appropriate arrangements are made. I can be contacted via Facebook or e mail on music_freak@hotmail.com

Thanks to the Arts Council for giving me this opportunity to share my journey.