Now it’s time for another facet of this remarkable man is now revealed, in a previously hidden talent as a master of light verse.

On Saturday 6th April, Martin, instantly recognisable in his trademark white suit, will be appearing at the Wenlock Poetry Festival and reading from his new book, For Whom the Bell Tolls. Tony Blair and Iraq, Serbian war criminal Radovan Karadzic, two-faced politicians and the cult of celebrity worship are all serious subjects delivered in satirical verse with a gentle humour.

Bell draws on colourful episodes from his own life and work covering several decades as the raw material for his verse. His earliest poem was written when Martin was just 19; the most recent cover the riots of August 2011, the phone-hacking scandal and the ‘Arab spring’. One of his most surreal experiences, now captured in verse, was being an invited guest at Idi Amin’s wedding: ‘…that by God / Was well worth doing, if distinctly odd.’

Martin says the writing of what he calls his ‘dodgy verses’ has redirected his life and the organisers of Wenlock Poetry Festival are delighted that he is going to be sharing them with their audience this year.

Tickets for Martin’s reading and all the other performers are available online at www.wenlockpoetryfestival.org or from the Festival Box Office at the Corn Exchange, High Street, Much Wenlock. Call 07561 208841 for opening times.