Cuplet Poetry Night will begin on Wednesday at The Beaumont in Hamilton, a venue that Claire described as a “class-oozing cafe bar which plays host to regular pianists and drag bingo”. 

As well as the prospect of sweet dreams, those who attend can expect to be entranced by artistic expressions of the beauty and absurdity of life.

“I guess being a poet has always been about recognising the madness in the world around you, and trying to put it into words,” Claire said.

She said Newcastle had a “blooming poetry scene”.

“Poetry seems to be having a global resurgence,” she said, adding that Newcastle was “a great case study of this”.

“We have, I think, seven or eight regular poetry nights each month,” she said.

“Many of these are open mic ... but none are quite like Cuplet.

“What I wanted to do with this particular night is to provide an audience – not just other poets – with an opportunity to see some of Australia's best traditional and experimental poets.”

It was her presence at a poetry night in Glebe that sparked the idea for a similar event in Newcastle.

“As soon as I got back home the next day, I designed the logo and started talking to poets,” she said.

“I’m so happy with the response it has received. All these published, successful poets I’ve been talking to are excited to come to Newcastle and share their work.”

Anyone who is feeling generous can sponsor a poet at the event for $50.

In order to pledge this valuable contribution, interested individuals can email cupletpoetry@gmail.com.

“They’ll also get the bonus of the best seat in the house,” Claire said.

The event starts at 7pm. Those who attend will be asked for a $10 donation at the door to help pay the poets.

We couldn’t help but notice this Hunter United advertisement in the Newcastle Herald in recent weeks.

Here at Topics, we’ve previously noted the competition between the Hunter’s two most prominent financial institutions, the Newcastle Permanent and the Greater Bank.

A while back, we started our own competition involving the Big Two. We called it: “Who has the best ad?”

It seems a new contender has emerged. We must say, this Hunter United ad has grabbed our attention.

Any image with the word relax and a cute dog is sure to draw us in. But there’s something about the blue colour.

The psychology of colour tells us that blue can give feelings of trust, security, stability and reliability, as well as calmness and serenity.

Into the blue we go.