John has also holds a monthly vigil at the Crossbones graveyard, the ancient burial place of prostitutes and other outlaws. There are plans afoot to turn the currently derelict site into a garden of remembrance.

I visited Crossbones during one of these vigils and spoke to John about the remarkable tale behind the creation of the Southwark Mysteries.

It seems that the dubious reputation of London 'south of the river' is nothing new. Historical accounts of Southwark often imply that the area had an aura of evil.

"Southwark's reputation as a place of evil was always over emphasised by those who had no knowledge of it -- particularly those on the North Bank who regarded it as a den of sin."

"In fact from medieval times this area was a liberty. Southwark Cathedral then was the Church of St Mary Overie and nearby was the Bishop of Winchester's palace. The Bishop had sole authority in this area for 500 years."

"Indeed the world's oldest profession was regulated and licensed here under ordnances signed by Sir Thomas a Becket -- the man who would later be killed in his own cathedral and become a saint."

"So the working girls of Southwark -- the Winchester Geese -- could genuinely claim to have a license from a saint."

What was the initial inspiration behind the poems and other writings that eventually came to make up the Southwark Mysteries?

"I've lived my life as some form of writer and performer. But I've always had a deep interest in the liminal or twilight worlds since I was a child."

"I've always been led towards those experiences -- attracted towards them. So all my life that's been in the background."

"In the 1990s it came more into the foreground, particularly on the night of the 23rd November 1996 when I -- or my shamanic alter ego John Crow -- appeared to invoke and raise the spirit of a Winchester Goose."

"Although perhaps he didn't raise it, perhaps it was really London Underground here at Crossbones graveyard."

"As soon as they broke the ground they uncovered a host of skulls and bones which really reawakened I suppose in some people's minds -- although not mine -- the reality that this was a very ancient burial ground. This was during the Jubilee Line extension in the early '90s."

Was the history of Southwark already on your mind when all this happened?

"The situation was that I was looking to write a magickal work or a millennium work about the place I lived. At that point I'd lived in Southwark for just over ten years."

"The Goose appeared to me that night -- not as many people think in the classic ghostly form. It wasn't a visual visitation, it was very powerful visitation inwardly."

"She had her own character, personality, and a hinterland -- her secret history. The effect of the verses she gave to John Crow -- which I channelled and wrote down therefore -- was to take us on a journey."

"It was initially a journey in mind through time and a history of this area. Then at about 3 o'clock in the morning, it became a walk in the body. She decided we were going to go for a walk in the middle of the night."

"Confident that I was the scariest thing on the streets that night, out I came. We ended up on the river at the mud-flats."

"On the way we passed the site of Crossbones graveyard which at the time looked like a desolate goods yard with rubbish flapping around."

"But there was always a great noise to be had here -- psychically. Out of the noise came songs and poems."

"In the course of that night, the Book of the Goose came through me or John Crow in the form of a poem -- a series of teachings and secret histories in verse form. This verse contained this journey or conversation between the Goose and John Crow."

"I sometimes say it's like a dance between the Goose and John Crow because they're like very ancient allies and adversaries -- compadres."

How did you feel on the morning after this unusual experience?

"The next morning I wondered: 'Where I have I been? What have I done?' Initially I was willing to think of it as a very exciting poem even if it suggested I might be in danger of losing the plot."

"Very quickly it conspired to show me that the opposite was true. Somehow the poem was prophetic and was full of information that I didn't know -- particularly the Crossbones reference in the Southwark Mysteries book that I quote on the front page: 'Well we know how the carrion crow doth feast in our Crossbones graveyard.'"

"That was the key to it to me. Once I realised that it was a real place and it had only just been dug up. I discovered that through doing bibliomancy at the local studies library."

"I opened a book and there it was -- Crossbones, previously called the Single Woman's Burial Ground."

The site of Crossbones graveyard is currently derelict although various kind souls have made attempts to beautify it. What is the future for the area?

"The future for Crossbones is a garden of remembrance. We've already sown the seeds. This whole area that is fenced off has a garden in there but we can't go in."

"The security don't really understand what's happening and we don't want to alarm them. So we're playing a long game here."

"But we've got support from Val Shawcross of the London Assembly and Nick Stanton, the head of Southwark Council."

"They both spoke here on St George's Day 2009 expressing strong support for the idea of a park here -- a garden of remembrance for outlaws."

As well as the plans for Crossbones, you're hoping to revive the Southwark Mysteries?

Southwark Mysteries is planned for a revival in April, ten years after the original production. You and all our lost souls are invited to come and be in it!

Vigils at Crossbones graveyard are held on the 23rd of each month at 7pm. For more information on this and the revival of the Southwark Mysteries, visit the Crossbones website.

However, it is certain that the event was pivotal in the development of modern performance poetry. Forty years later, some of the original faces returned to the scene of the crime with some new talent in tow.

A comparison between the original and the revival illustrates how things have changed. Back the '60s, the punters arrived with wine and cannabis to be shared. Tables were set out in the arena, piled with fruit and incense. The modern manifestation was a much more sober and sedate affair, with a well-to-do crowd sitting politely in their seats and applauding.

But instead of being a requiem for a lost dream, the evening had its sights fixed on the present as well as the past. The evening began with Christopher Logue, a stalwart of the '60s. Technical problems meant that his set was interrupted by two penetrating blasts of feedback. Once these gremlins were banished, the night flowed on smoothly -- with the exception perhaps of Spike Hawkins, whose delivery was compromised by his self-confessed consumption of some "grass".

But there were some truly amazing performances that more than made up for any slight hiccups. Stacy Makishi, a performace artist born in Hawaii, came on stage inside a suitcase wheeled on by a stagehand. When she popped out, it brought a round of applause. Her piece was a funny yet incisive discourse on how the Americans had tested nuclear weapons on Pacific islands such as Bikini Atoll. She wasn't on stage for nearly as long as I would have liked.

As an ex-Brixtonian, Linton Kwesi Johnson is a familar sight to me in his trilby, suit and tie. Having seen him walking down the streets so many times, it was quite strange to see him in his usual habitat on stage. He took this opportunity to deliver three elegies to people who had been close to him. As this event was a commemoration of times past, it was poignant to hear him remember those now departed.

Adrian Mitchell was one of the original '60s poets out of the Liverpool scene. It was quite a nice surprise to realise that I'd actually studied his poetry at Junior school -- so it was quite surreal to hear him perform his poem about school bullying entitled 'The Killing Ground'. Suddenly I recalled a long-forgotten lesson where we were put into groups and all performed the poem to crude accompaniment from whatever broken percussion instruments were avalable to us. He also performed a poem about the importance of working for peace, alas as relevant now as it was back then.

There were also some outstanding musical performances on the night. Kathryn Williams has a beautiful pure voice which was accompanied by her acoustic guitar. Eliza Carthy on the other hand has an amazing voice, which boomed out and filled the Albert Hall marvellously. For a folk singer, she had a lot of sex appeal -- imagine Mae West with an accordion and you'll get the idea.

Fran Landesman, another of the original '60s mob, performed some highly amusing ditties accompanied by some flaky guitar work from her son. The superlative John Hegley was hilarious, playing the mandolin and reciting poetry accompanied by double bass -- he got one of the loudest rounds of applause and deservedly so.

A real personal treat for me was seeing the William Blake Klezmatrix perform. I've been a long-time admirer of William Blake as well as the Penguin Cafe Orchestra, who had a certain Annie Whitehead amongst their number. I was initially dubious about the idea of setting Blake to Klezmer, the Jewish folk music that resembles melancholic jazz. But as soon as they started playing, all doubts dispelled.

After all, Blake used Hebrew terms like 'Beulah' in his personal mythology, so the two forms weren't as incompatible as I'd initially supposed. Annie Whitehead played a trombone that seemed to be as tall as her whilst Michael Horovitz emoted Blake, with accompaniment from a flautist and pianist. A brave experiement that I would like to see more of.

The evening was rounded off with a performance uniting the talents of singer-songwriter Rachel Fuller on the piano, Pete Townshend of The Who on acoustic guitar and Jerry Hall performing a spoken word piece about 'no-one in particular' but obviously about her ex-husband Mick Jagger.

Rachel Fuller has an incredible voice, reminiscent of Joni Mitchell and is a talented pianist to boot. Thrashing the guitar like it was 1965, Townshend made a loud sound that I didn't think was possible from a mere acoustic. Jerry Hall was something of a revelation - her diction was clear, confident and well-metered. A career on the London poetry circuit beckons I feel...

The Mullah

The William Blake Klezmatrix will be appearing at the 100 Club as part of the National Poetry Day Superjam. Full details are at http://www.poetryolympics.com

special thanks to Debbie Gold for making vital arrangements and general support www.outerglobe.com