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Wilfred Wilson Gibson Prose & Poetry - Wilfred Wilson Gibson
Updated - Saturday, 11 August, 2001

Wilfred Wilson Gibson (1878-1962), a close friend of Rupert Brooke and a protégé of Edward Marsh, was born in Hexham in 1878.

Gibson worked for a time as a social worker in London's East End. He published his first verse in 1902, Mountain Lovers. He had several poems included in various Georgian poetry collections prior to the war. He also wrote a play, Daily Bread, which was produced in 1910.

After the outbreak of war, Gibson served as a private in the infantry on the Western Front. It was therefore from the perspective of the ordinary soldier that Gibson wrote his war poetry.

Following the armistice, Gibson continued writing poetry and plays. His work was particularly concerned with the poverty of industrial workers and village labourers. Collected Poems: 1905-1925 was published in 1926, The Island Stag in 1927, and Within Four Walls in 1950.

Wilfred Wilson Gibson died in 1962.

Mad (1914)

Neck-deep in mud,
He mowed and raved -
He who had braved The field of blood -
And as a lad
Just out of school
Yelled - April Fool!
And laughed like mad.

A "Blighty One" was a wound considered serious enough for its recipient to be sent back home to Britain. It was often wistfully wished for by soldiers in particularly busy sectors.