Rochford Street Review was saddened to learn of the recent death of poet and playwright John Upton. John was a professional playwright and had written for more that 20 Australian television series as well as having five stage plays produced. His political comedy MACHIAVELLI, MACHIAVELLI won the Australian Writers Guild award for Best New Play.

His poetry collection, Embracing the Razor, was published by Puncher & Wattmann in 2014 (https://puncherandwattmann.com/ books/book/embracing-the-razor) and his poetry has bee widely published in magazines and journals including The Sydney Morning Herald, The Canberra Times, Cordite, Quadrant and many other magazines and anthologies.

Poet Les Wicks wrote of Embracing the Razor: “This vibrant first book of poetry from John Upton starts with a palpable grief, ranges across a spectrum of characters and moments towards a delightfully deft travelogue followed by playful rhymes. Every poem illuminates, creates a moment in time flawlessly preserved.

 ————————————————————————————————————