Star and Crescent: News for and by the people of Portsmouth
  • HOME
  • NEWS
  • POLITICS
    • WANTED: PORTSMOUTH SATIRISTS
  • SOCIAL ISSUES
  • CULTURE
    • REVIEWS
    • POETRY
      • POETRY SUBMISSIONS
    • FICTION
  • HISTORY
  • EVENTS
  • ABOUT US
    • Contributors
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Corrections and Complaints
    • Comments Policy
  • YOUNG PEOPLE’S VOICES
Latest
  • [ 5th February 2026 ] Planetary Blues: A Rubbish New Year – Literally Memoir
  • [ 5th February 2026 ] Two More Poems by Tina MacNaughton Poetry
  • [ 2nd February 2026 ] Portsmouth Climate Choir Rock QA Hospital Culture
  • [ 2nd February 2026 ] Portsmouth-based Palestinian Student and Family in Need of Financial Help News
  • [ 2nd February 2026 ] ‘We Were Having None of It!’ Activists Voice Concerns at Southern Water Meeting News
HomeMargaret Jennings

Margaret Jennings

Poetry

Poem: Mr and Mrs Portsmouth (after Mr and Mrs Scotland are Dead by Kathleen Jamie)

3rd April 2022

By Margaret Jennings   Mr and Mrs Portsmouth are kirtled by the sea proud of their ironclad links to Nelson and Victory, Looking down on their sister, Gosport. Dismissive of the Scummers.   Mr and [… read more ]

Fiction

The Empty Road

27th November 2020

By Margaret Jennings Madie dressed in slouchy trousers and an old tee shirt. No work today. No work for an unknown amount of her future and she was determined to stay healthy. A walk with [… read more ]

Fiction

Bun Penny

13th November 2020

By Margaret Jennings When I was a child, my mother gave me a bun penny and told me that whenever I found myself in trouble I should ask Queen Victoria what to do and she [… read more ]

Culture

Tongues & Grooves Portsmouth #WritingChallenge4

6th May 2020

Maggie Sawkins, who leads local poetry and creative group Tongues & Grooves has unleashed a local #writingchallenge and they kindly let us publish the responses. This week’s challenge was – in Paul Klee’s words – to [… read more ]

Culture

Portsmouth BookFest 2020: ‘An Evening of Poetry’

25th February 2020

To celebrate this year’s Portsmouth BookFest 2020, S&C Contributor Amanda Garrie writes about her experience of going to one of the events, ‘An Evening of Poetry’. T’Articulation took themselves to 113 Art House Coffee on Monday 17th [… read more ]

Social Issues

A Pompey Fat Chav Bites Back

5th April 2017

Portsmouth writer Margaret Jennings offers some home truths on class, obesity and body image. Let’s look at my qualifications. 16 and a half stone, five foot seven inches and a BMI of 33.5. Obese – [… read more ]

Poetry

STAR POems: Bramble

22nd July 2016

(Blackberry brambles can be stripped of their thorns and used to fashion baskets and other useful artefacts).   The first man clips off her thorns one by one, turns her placid and tractable, cuts her [… read more ]

Latest News

News

Portsmouth-based Palestinian Student and Family in Need of Financial Help

2nd February 2026

Abedelraheem Hamad is a talented Chevening scholar who was evacuated from Gaza by the British government to study for a Masters in Crisis and Disaster Management at the University of Portsmouth in September 2025. Over [… read more ]

News

‘We Were Having None of It!’ Activists Voice Concerns at Southern Water Meeting

2nd February 2026

David Langley was one of a quintet activists who attended a meeting with Southern Water in Waterlooville on 30th January. Here he tells us what happened. I am pleased to report that we were well [… read more ]

News

Together is Stronger: Portsmouth Climate Choir at the Green Forum

2nd February 2026

Portsmouth Climate Choir is part of a national movement called the Climate Choir Movement, which was founded with the intention of using the power of music to draw attention to critical environmental issues and mobilise [… read more ]

News

Man Arrested At Protest Outside Stephen Morgan’s Office and Released Without Charge

2nd January 2026

A Portsmouth man was arrested yesterday outside the office of local MP and Labour Friends of Israel member, Stephen Morgan, under the Terrorism Act 2000. The man was holding a sign reading ‘Palestine Action are [… read more ]

News

Portsmouth Palestine Hunger Strike Protestors Step Up Pressure on Local MP

30th December 2025

For the second day this week, Portsmouth South constituents have demonstrated outside their MP Stephen Morgan’s office. George Hibberd reports. The protestors are demanding that Morgan, a member of Labour Friends of Israel and a recipient [… read more ]

Show Your Love!

Follow on Facebook

Stay connected

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Instagram

About Star & Crescent

We are an independent news website written for and by the people of Portsmouth. We believe in journalism to create social change. Read more about us here.
Image show logo for Indie News Week, reading "Help Indie News Thrive: No news is bad news.
Pages
  • About Us
  • Contributors
  • Join the S&C Contributors
  • Be a Co-Editor
  • Wanted: Portsmouth Satirists
  • Poetry Submissions
  • Comments Policy
  • Donate
Categories
  • News
  • Politics
  • Social Issues
  • Editorials
  • Events
  • Culture
  • Reviews
  • Fiction
  • Poetry
  • Memoir
  • History
Popular on Star & Crescent
  • Is Austerity Bad For Portsmouth’s Mental Health?
    13th February 2017
  • Dear Anti-Abortion Protesters: An Open Letter to 40 Days For Life
    5th October 2017
  • The Rubbish State of Recycling in Portsmouth
    22nd February 2018
  • David Bowie: From South London to Heaven, Stopping at Southsea
    11th January 2016
  • Preventing Crime, Not Picking Up The Pieces: An Interview with Simon Hayes
    3rd May 2016
Find out how to report corrections and make a complaint here.
Star & Crescent is regulated by IMPRESS: The Independent Monitor for the Press CIC.

Copyright © 2017 - 2020 | Star & Crescent | All Rights Reserved