1963 and all that

To mark World Poetry Day, a short poem. One of my favourites...

Annus Mirabilis, by Philip Larkin

Lady Chatterley's Lover, by D H Lawrence

Sexual intercourse began
In nineteen sixty-three
(which was rather late for me) -
Between the end of the “Chatterley” ban
And the Beatles’ first LP.

Up to then there’d only been
A sort of bargaining,
A wrangle for the ring,
A shame that started at sixteen
And spread to everything.

Then all at once the quarrel sank:
Everyone felt the same,
And every life became
A brilliant breaking of the bank,
A quite unlosable game.

So life was never better than
In nineteen sixty-three
(Though just too late for me) -
Between the end of the “Chatterley” ban
And the Beatles’ first LP.

Here's a recording of Larkin himself reading Annus Mirabilis - priceless.

Do you know any good poems worth reading today? Let us know.