Colin Thomson tells us about writing poetry and shares his latest BSL poem for Deaf Awareness Week (BSL)

Hi everyone, I’m Colin Thomson, I’m a sign singer, BSL teacher, Deaf Awareness Trainer, poet, songwriter and a mental health survivor.

Here is Colin’s latest BSL poem, scroll down for an English transcript:

I first started writing my own poetry when I was around 7 years old. The teacher at school recognised I had a good imagination – probably because I couldn’t understand the class – and then in my teenage years I started writing love songs.

I was a frustrated teenager as I was not allowed to do drama or music, so songwriting was my outlet. I loved reading lyrics from Disco 45 (yes, that gives away how old I am!) and also in Smash Hits magazine too.

Songwriting has helped me through difficult times in my life. Recently I was in a psychiatric hospiral for 11 months and I found that after chats with nurses and undergoing counselling, writing poetry and songs became an outlet for my inner thoughts and feelings of frustration.

This was really therapeutic for me and I also find my poems help others too realise they are not alone. I even shared poems with my GP so that he could gain a clearer insight into what was going on in my mind at that time.

Paddy Ladd was a great influence on me and I shared my lyrics with him when I was in my twenties. We both had a love for music and for the work of Dorothy Miles too. I remember showing Dorothy some of my work and she encouraged me to keep going.

I also enjoy the work of Paul Scott and Richard Carter, they’re all very different but they are all creative poets or writers that I enjoy.

As I was one of the first sign singers in the UK – 45 years ago! – I can reflect now on how difficult some of my journey was. People questioned my deafness and how much I coulf hear, instead of just enjoying the beauty of the songs that I was trying to give people access to.

I went on See Hear back in 1983 and signed a song dressed as a clown and that’s where my sign name Clown comes from. I was also heavily english based back then but this was before I started using my BSL research and teaching deaf awareness.

I now use deaf elements in my songs from popular artists. In Deaffest 2019 I got a standing ovation for my translation of the Greatest Love of All. I was so touched by this support and took it as a sign of acceptance towards what I did.

But then I realised only those who knew the original english lyrics appreciated how I changed them to fit deaf elements.

Hopefully next year I will embark on my one man show ‘Masked Unmasked’ about my journey through life and I would like to get my poems published too.

My signed poems are based on the English structure as they folllow the English rules and rhyming of the words, so perhaps a BSL version for these English poems would be something to explore.

With my poems I am inspired by Alan Hull, a songwriter from my favourite group Lindisfarne. He wrote songs of life with meaningful words. John Miles, another geordie, inspires my writing. I bought his records and find his lyrics are a great therapy for me to use an outlet of my stresses and worries.

I’m not embarassed to say that using poems and songs as therapy is something that needs to be addressed, mental health can be talked about and challenged and I hope that my poetry can begin to do that for others too.

I would love to find a musician or a singer to develop my songs with me and I am still performing, if anyone would like to get in touch. I volunteer for a mental health support group and I am also the patron of Affinity signing choir.

Every year at Christmas time I organise, host and perform at a Sign and Sing event in Derby. This year I am proud to announce that it will be moving to a bigger venue at Derby Playhouse as my 30 year celebration doing this.

If you would like to contact Colin about his work please email colinbsltutor@gmail.com

An English transcript of Colin’s latest poem for Deaf Awareness Week is copied below. You can see him signing his poem above   

You put your hand in your pocket into the charity tin thinking you’ve done your bit for today