Editing Les Barker (section)

== Biography ==
[[File:Les Barker, UK folk poet on stage, Towersey, 1980.jpg|thumb|Barker on stage at the 1980 [[Towersey Folk Festival]]]]
Barker was born in [[Manchester]], England, on 30 January 1947.<ref name="LarkinGE">{{cite book|title=[[Encyclopedia of Popular Music|The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music]]|editor=[[Colin Larkin (writer)|Colin Larkin]]|publisher=[[Guinness Publishing]]|date=1992|edition=First|isbn=0-85112-939-0|page=174}}</ref> He studied [[accountancy]] before he realised that he had a talent for writing.<ref name="LarkinGE"/> At the beginning of his career he toured around [[folk music]] venues as a solo performer, and later with The Mrs Ackroyd Band (named after his [[Mixed-breed dog|mongrel]] dog Mrs Ackroyd.)<ref name="LarkinGE"/> Barker was not a singer and the Mrs Ackroyd Band, with classically trained vocalists Hilary Spencer and Alison Younger, and keyboard player Chris Harvey,<ref name="LarkinGE"/> enabled his parodies to be sung live. He toured around Britain and such countries as Hong Kong, Australia, New Zealand, the United States and Canada.

[[File:Mrs Ackroyd (dog) with Les Barker, UK folk poet on stage, Towersey, 1980.jpg|thumb|Barker's dog, "Mrs Ackroyd" on stage at her master's feet at the 1980 [[Towersey Folk Festival]]]]
[[File:L-Barker-spring 84.jpg|thumb|Barker reading at a central London Folk Club, Spring 1984]]
Barker authored 77 books and released 20 albums. His books contain a mixture of monologues, comic songs, and serious songs. The monologues tip the hat to [[Marriott Edgar]].{{citation needed|date=December 2017}} Like Edgar, Barker has created several recurring characters and themes such as 'Jason and the Arguments', 'Cosmo the Fairly Accurate Knife Thrower', 'Captain Indecisive', 'The Far off Land of Dyslexia' and 'Spot of the Antarctic', which have become [[trademark]]s of Barker's work.<ref name="LarkinGE"/> Both his comic and serious songs have become standards for other singers such as [[Waterson–Carthy]] and [[June Tabor]].{{citation needed|date=December 2017}}

Barker was also one of the few writers (alongside [[Stephen Sondheim]], with his parody "[[The Boy From...]]") to get the [[Wales|Welsh]] place named [[Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantisiliogogogoch]] into a song successfully (it forms the main chorus of a song of the same name, and is sung four times). In the mid 2000s, Barker moved to [[Bwlchgwyn]] in [[Wrexham]], [[Wales]],<ref name=BBC2008>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/radio2/r2music/folk/news/ |title=Les Barker Wins Welsh Award |date=21 May 2008 |publisher=BBC Radio 2 }}</ref> and learnt [[Welsh language|Welsh]], producing two books of poetry written in the Welsh tongue.

In 2008 he was awarded the NIACE Inspire Award as Welsh Learner of the Year,<ref name=BBC2008 /> and recited his poem "Have you Got Any News of the Iceberg?" in Welsh at the presentation in [[Swansea]].

In 2009, a campaign by his folk fanbase sought to have him chosen as the [[British Poet Laureate]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/walesnortheast/2009/03/vote_les_as_our_very_own_poet.html|title=BBC - North East Wales Weblog: Vote Les as our very own Poet Laureate?!|website=Bbc.co.uk|access-date=14 August 2021}}</ref>

After a [[heart attack]] in January 2008, Barker began solo gigging again.<ref name=BBC2008 /> Barker remained firmly rooted in the circuit of folk clubs and festivals. He has also performed as part of a double act with Keith Donnelly under the name "Idiot and Friend".

After being diagnosed with cancer and undergoing chemotherapy, he announced his retirement from touring in October 2022, but intended to maintain his online presence via YouTube.<ref >{{Cite web
  |title=Les Barker
  |date=1 October 2022
  |website= Jacey Beford Agency
  |url=https://www.jacey-bedford.com/LesBarker.html
}}</ref> 

On 14 January 2023, Barker attended a match of [[The New Saints F.C.]] at [[Park Hall (Oswestry)|Park Hall]] in [[Oswestry]], Shropshire. Afterward, he returned to his car and died from an apparent heart attack at the age of 75.<ref>{{cite web|url = https://www.tnsfc.co.uk/2023/01/17/rip-les-barker-1947-2023/|title = RIP, LES BARKER (1947 – 2023)|website = [[The New Saints F.C.]]|date = 17 January 2023|accessdate = 31 January 2023}}</ref> His body was found in his car by maintenance staff the following morning.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-shropshire-64308094|title=Les Barker: Football fan and poet dies after New Saints game|date=17 January 2023|access-date=30 January 2023|website=Bbc.co.uk}}</ref>

===''Guide Cats for the Blind''===
Barker also wrote a poem called ''Guide Cats for the Blind'' which later became the title track of a double fundraising CD for the British Computer Association of the Blind (BCAB). The Association runs a program called EyeT4all,<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.bcab.org.uk/eyet4all-project.html|title=EyeT4All Project - British Computer Association of the Blind|date=24 December 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081224044049/http://www.bcab.org.uk/eyet4all-project.html|access-date=14 August 2021|archive-date=24 December 2008}}</ref> which aims to make computers accessible to people who are blind or visually impaired. Barker also agreed to the recording of a series of albums. Over £40,000 has been raised.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.pattynanmedia.com/452/515.html|title=Pat Tynan Media|website=Pattynanmedia.com|access-date=14 August 2021}}</ref>

Five "Guide Cats" albums have been produced, ''Guide Cats for the Blind'', ''Missing Persians File'', ''Top Cat, White Tie and Tails'', ''Cat Nav'' and ''Herding Cats''. The CDs contain performances of Barker's poems by members of the folk world such as [[June Tabor]], [[Martin Carthy]], [[Steve Tilston]], [[Mike Harding]] and [[Tom Paxton]] and well known figures including [[Jimmy Young (disc jockey)|Jimmy Young]], [[Nicholas Parsons]], [[Brian Perkins]], [[Terry Wogan]], [[Nicky Campbell]], [[Robert Lindsay (actor)|Robert Lindsay]], [[Prunella Scales]] and [[Andrew Sachs]].