Hard Pressed
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Hard Pressed: Panshine Press
Panshine Press was set-up in the late 1990s by Jan Whalen and Suzanne Batty who wanted to address the poor representation of women in poetry publications – both on the editorial and writing side. In…
Hard Pressed: Just Lately, I Realised
The 1948 British Nationality Act gave the status of Citizen to people residing in the Commonwealth countries, encouraging many to move to the UK, seeking a better life. Just Lately, I Realised,…
Hard Pressed: The Representation Ripple Effect
A first-hand account of the profound impact that indie presses have. Writer Neil Campbell went from browsing magazine’s in Manchester’s Central Library to a decades long writing career – all…
Hard Pressed: Citizen 32
‘Annoy the people who should be annoyed, inspire the people who should be inspired’ John G Hall, one of the founders of Citizen 32 magazine, is passionate about politically conscious literature. In…
Hard Pressed: Cheers Ta
Hear from the quintessential Manc Mike Garry about his poetic origins and how he started his press Cheers Ta in the early 2000s, publishing poetry with a distinctly live feel. Mike was in…
Hard Pressed: Nailah
Being seen, being heard, being visible. Nailah writing group and magazine was formed in the 1980s by a group of women in Moss Side searching for a place to express themselves and heal from the…
Hard Pressed: Contemporary writers respond part 2
We got contemporary writers to respond to the work in Manchester's radical presses. Here Sujata Pillai finds unlikely inspiration in the doyenne of Manchester's queer and spoken word scenes - Chloe…
Hard Pressed: Contemporary Writers Respond Part 1
We got contemporary writers to respond to the work in Manchester's radical presses. Poet Abhijeet Singh talks to Peter Kalu about the inspiration for his new pieces 'Remnant', 'Aubade' and 'Précis'.…
Hard Pressed: Shagged by the Modern Cultural Multiplicity
Mongrel Press put out the merest handful of chapbooks and spoken word CDs. But it had bite and did what it set to do. Co-founder Peter Kalu tells poet and editor Martin De Mello what it achieved in…
Hard Pressed: Lifetimes
It's the 1970s. You're the tenant of an overlooked overspill estate on the outskirts of Manchester and you've just lost a housing dispute with the local authorities. What do you do? Write of course.…
Hard Pressed: Suitcase Stories
Suitcase Books gave Black and Asian writers from northern England the space to express their complex intersectional identities and the things that mattered to them in poetry and fiction. Founders…
Hard Pressed: For the Love of the Live Scene
The radical presses of nineties and noughties Manchester were entwined with its live poetry scene. In this episode we talk to people who knew its undisputed king, the late great Diké Omeje. Thanks to…
Frequently Asked Questions
Hard Pressed has published 12 episodes since August 2025, covering topics in Arts, Books.
Hard Pressed is currently dormant with new episodes every few days. Average episode length is 29m.
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