FHP4

GPH4

Lin Hart (GPH4)

The Smile Factory 
(GPH04 MO4) 
 
They painted fun on all the windows 
And hung toys around the door  
Then they advertised a service 
“Children watched whilst you ignore!” 
Yes their prices were extortion 
And the coffee cold and weak 
But there was no better option 
For a tired mum to seek 
A rest from all the shouting 
And the chaos of the home 
So they’d send their offspring packing 
Through the doors into the foam- 
Filled paradise  
Of the Smile Factory. 

And they’d sit around a table 
Drink a dozen pots of tea 
Not a thought to what might happen  
Through those doors marked No Entry! 
Yes, they all could hear the screaming 
And the shouting, and the cries 
‘Cause the children were all playing, 
So of course there would be noise 
Then an hour or two later 
When the little ones would race 
back from out behind the curtains 
Grins spread wide across their face 
No one questioned what the tears 
Meant that trickled down their cheeks 
And instead they bought them all  
Right back there every other week 
to the joys 
Of the Smile  Factory. 

And on it went, for many years, 
‘Till one day, suddenly 
The newest Mum decided that 
She simply had to see 
What went on behind the curtain 
Why her children weren’t so wild 
When they came home every forghtnight 
And became so meek and mild, 
So she peeked passed the no entry 
And was  greeted by a scene 
That her children saw bi-weekly 
And she screamed! 
All the others soon came running 
The police turned up to raid 
But a thousand lawyers failed to claim 
The money that they’d paid 
And they’d paid 
And they’d paid 
To the Smile Factory. 

Luke Meyers

FHP4

The blue sky, red clouds,

merge into purple

as the ash falls down,

the mountains flowing,

and the seas scattering,

as I look eastward;

 

Fine violet hues are

hugging the coastline,

and the southern sky

emerges yellow

in soft golden hues,

bubbling sunset greens;

 

My eyes wide open,

I am remembering,

floating and waving,

mirages freezing

fallen molten ash

burning the shoreline.

Elizabeth Cusack

3 April, 2026

 

Jane Sharp (FHP4)

Dave Garbutt

GPH04 

The heart has downed its shutters
No eyes on this street
Not sure darling, 
I’ll find
a smile worthwhile 
to bring you home

C.Oulens



FHP 4
Muse 

She floats about the ephemeral clouds
free of all restraints,
where worldly worries cannot reach
or hold dominion.
She is the light who radiates hope
showering scintillating love,
smiling with all her heart beating true
and live for all.
She rails the breeze to blow away
cobwebs of indecision,
bringing inspiration as clear as day
a Muse in every single way. 

Dave Ashley

CROCUS

You rise purple from the green
against dilapidated creosoted fence panels.

She started my love for you;
back when I thought it was an effort 
to bury you in the ground,
when waiting a year seemed so long.

You rise in spring. And I rejoice.

Sue Finch (MO4)

Book Keepers
 
to wake up your friend to see this rough sky
where the smile factory wears a steel frown 
of shutters and its bin clear mouthed and dry
and not overflowing. Not in this town.
 
We're still investigating our own crime
The atrocity. We have destroyed them.
Now transitioning densities in time.
Middle East is drawn by two maproom men.
 
I'd rather be dragged behind a car. An 
animal never reverts back to its 
former state exactly. Adaptation
eye training is close observation, fit
 
demands approval before you can take,
access the money of your view's full take.

Paul Brookes

Artworker Bios And Artistic Statements

Molly Ovenden (MO)

Artist Statement:

In this April 2026 collection, “New Light, Returning Daily,” I wanted to explore using familiar materials with unfamiliar methods. I combined off-cuts from my “scrapings” paintings, pages from a rescued Bible that had been damaged, and a variety of mixed media materials to make something new with collage in a cohesive collection. When I consider how day-to-day life can feel mundane, the same day-after-day, or simply a repeat of dull life that offers next to no progress, I easily miss the beauty in small, secret, quiet moments. As this series of 30 pieces unfolds, I created it to capture the variety, emotions, beauty, and depth of everyday life on the daily; viewing each piece (or, each day this month) separately may reveal one thing for a viewer, but to experience each piece together may offer a new perspective, a new light, on our everyday mundane upon returning daily.

Bio:

Molly Ovenden is a contemplative poet and painter based in Leeds, England. She writes poems for people on the spot with her vintage typewriter and moments of emotion through expressive abstract paintings. For Molly, inspiration comes from running and wandering through nature, seeking God in everyday small moments, and holding spaces for people to be present with emotions. Molly believes that everyone is made to create: whether they paint or write poetry, or build literal bridges as a civil engineer or relational bridges as a great neighbour, it all takes creativity. The concept “Beauty is an arrow of Hope that points to Peace” drives Molly to capture, create, and share beauty with others–especially through poems and paintings.

Contact for Availability and Purchasing:

To view full collection, visit: https://mollyovenden.com/art/

To contact for availability and Purchasing – UK only shipping – visit: https://mollyovenden.com/contact/Facebook | Instagram – @mollyovendencreativity For Blog About Artwork, visit: 

https://mollyovenden.substack.com/

Phil Hyde

GP Hyde was born on the Wirral and now lives in Grimsby, North East Lincolnshire, UK. He studied fine art and photography at Goldsmith’s College and at the Royal Academy Schools. He worked in theatre, art centres and community arts as a photographer, writer and production manager for 14 years and as a lecturer and senior manager in creative arts for 25 years.

His photography has been featured in Underbelly Press in issues 5 and 6. His influences include Tony Ray Jones, Martin Parr and Tom Wood.

socials: @gphydeauthor

Francis H Powell

Francis H. Powell studied both painting and printmaking at art schools in Britain, obtaining a Master of Arts degree. Since leaving art school, he has participated in exhibitions in both the UK and France, including group exhibitions and solo shows. His work ranges across paintings, drawings, mixed media, sculptures, and installations, sometimes incorporating political themes, such as plastic waste in the sea. His installations also include soundscapes and video. In addition to his visual art, his illustrations have been included in books.  

Below is a list of exhibitions…

Exhibitions 20252024//2023 Salon d’art de Moret-Loing-et-Orvanne

2022 show Studio 58, Brittany 2015 One man show Style Pixie Gallery 2008 one man show gallerie L’Usine Paris 2007 one man show Theatre du Poche. Chartres. 2006 l’église de L’hôpital de la Salpêtrière 2006 Carrousel du Louvre 2005 Group Exhibition IVY Gallery Bastille 2005 Vente Art Contemporain, Paris and Marseille. (for Aides charity) 2001 Live Art Show le Divan du Monde Paris. 1987 Final Post graduate show, Wimbledon School of Art. 1987 Royal Society of Painter, Etchers and Engravers, Bankside Gallery 1986 “In and out of print”, Swiss College Library Exhibition Hall 1985 Studies in composition (the Professor studio) the Royal College of Art 1983 Leicestershire Collection for schools and Colleges Baumanor Hall 1983 Stowells Trophy Royal Academy 1983 Windsor and Newton Finalist Royal Institute of Painters Mall Gallery Studied at 1985-87 Wimbledon School of Art MA printmaking. 1979-80 Eastbourne College of Art 1980-83 Glos College of Art and Technology BA (Hons) painting  

Author Bios:

Jen Thorne

C. Oulens 

is an emerging poet and former academic from India. Winner of the 3rd Annual Poe-It Like Poe 2025 poetry contest, her work has been published or is forthcoming in The Broken Spine, Lothlorien Poetry Journal, The Candyman’s Trumpet, Eunoia Review, Spillwords Press, The Starbeck Orion, Temple in a City, Sixty Odd Poets, SHINE International, The Book Bag, FromOneLine, SciFanSat, Verseve and in haiku journals including Pan Haiku Review, 575 Haiku Journal, Poetry Pea, The Wee Sparrows, Haiku Pause, The Solitary Daisy, Folk Ku, Failed Haiku, and Heterodox Haiku. Explore her works on Bluesky @owlnsquirrels1111.bsky.social.

Jane Sharp

Donna Faulkner

lives in Christchurch, New Zealand. Free spirited and unconventional, she came to the business of writing later in life. She’s published in The Madrid Review , Alchemy Spoon,  The Bayou Review, 300 Days of Sun, Windward Review, Havik, New Myths, and many others. Her poetry book In Silver Majesty was published by the UK based erbacce press in 2024.https://www.erbacce-press.co.uk/donna-faulkner

Instagram: @lady_lilith_poet  X@nee_miller  

Website: https://linktr.ee/donnafaulkner

Lin Hart

Lin describes herself as a poet, satirist, and zinester from West Virginia. A married, mother of two who eats numbers for work and is definitely a neurospicy cryptid in disguise. Find out more on Bluesky.

Luke Meyers

Luke is a Welsh performer and poet who discovered a love of writing during the lockdown. Luke mainly writes on Bluesky @sonnetsmith.bsky.social but has also been published in a couple of publications, including the British Fantasy Journal, Icebrakers Lit. Muse Pie Press, From One Line, and Oatleaf Poetry Journal.

Sue Finch

Sue Finch is the author of Magnifying Glass, Welcome to the Museum of a Life, and Vortex Over Wave. She loves the coast, peculiar things, and the scent of ice-cream freezers. 

Mick Jenkinson

Jenni Thorne

is a writer from the Black Country in the UK, and winner of the New2theScene poetry prize for 2025, and has had her work published in various poetry collections and on-line jornals including Starbeck Orion, Ink, Sweat and Tears, April Showers, Dark Poets, Broken Spine and the Sixty Odd Poets Heresy collection. 

Her work explores the weight of the ordinary, the need for belonging, and the way the lessons of the past and the pressures of modern life shape us.

She shares her writing on Bluesky @jenthorne.bsky.social.