Nigel Hallworth

SIR JOHN BETJEMAN,

Sir John Betjeman, poet, was loved and revered

Quite small, and bald, he never wore beard.

Sir John Betjeman, poet, prone to high dudgeon

Overall though, a nice cuddly curmudgeon.

Sir John Betjeman, poet, was occasionally gay

And a fine family man, in every way.

He decried those modern buildings he regarded as absurd

And he fought with tooth and nail, although usually with words

For the preservation

Of the arch of Euston Station.

Of Arcane Victoriana and Superior Suburbia

And all the other sorts of things,

That he, Sir John, preferred.