Description


Books of the Year 2024 - Number 17

Discover the full list on our blog.

'Nothing short of dazzling' – Alex Turner

Dr John Cooper Clarke's dazzling, scabrous voice has reverberated through pop culture for decades, his influence on generations of performance poets and musicians plain for all to see. In WHAT, the original 'People's Poet' comes storming out of the gate with an uproarious new collection, reminding us why he is one of Britain's most beloved writers and performers. James Brown, John F. Kennedy, Jesus Christ: nobody is safe from the punk rocker's acerbic pen – and that's just the first poem.

Hot on the heels of The Luckiest Guy Alive and his sprawling, encyclopaediac memoir I Wanna Be Yours, the good Doctor returns with his most trenchant collection of poems yet. Vivid and alive, with a sensitivity only a writer with a life as varied and extraordinary as Cooper Clarke's could summon, WHAT is an exceptional collection from one of our foremost satirists.

Delivery, packaging & returns


Our service is rated 'Excellent' on TrustPilot. See the reviews here.

Star Icon

Click & Collect from our stores and pay £0 on shipping.

Click & Collect Icon

Free domestic shipping on all orders for Rough Trade Club members (or for orders over £75)

Free Delivery Icon

Tracked Global shipping available on all orders.

Global Icon

In-stock items dispatched within 24-48 hours

Dispatched Icon

Carefully packaged in recycled packaging

Packaging Icon

For more information on Shipping and Orders click here.

Icon image for https://images.prismic.io/roughtrade/ZpaaOB5LeNNTxNVL_RT_site_Icons_Info.png?auto=format,compress

Terms of Sale & GSPR


For more information on our Terms of Sale and for more information of the suppliers of this (or any) product, click here.

signed bookplate by John Cooper Clarke
Released08/08/2024Catalogue Number9781035033164signedCustomer Limit1Learn more
Released13/02/2025Catalogue Number9781035033195Customer Limit1Learn more
Released08/08/2024Catalogue Number9781035033164Customer Limit1Learn more
Signed Copy
Released27/02/2025Catalogue Number9781035033195signedCustomer Limit1Learn more