Underclass Hero with Matt Taylor

Are writing development programmes worth it?

A reflection essay after finishing New Writing North's A Writing Chance programme for working-class writers. Learning how to belong in a world that…

May 27 • 

Matt Taylor

68

13

7

Are working-class people in the music industry destined to be Remy from Ratatouille?

On barriers, rats, and the unlikely heroes hidden in plain sight

May 19 • 

Matt Taylor

8

1

I met Giles Martin - Not the normal I ever dared to expect.

Most days, this life now feels ordinary. I’m not gonna lie, I take it for granted. Yet every so often these moments remind me of how unusual it is that…

May 11 • 

Matt Taylor

16

3

3

April 2025

Burnt Out: I'm sorry

I’m really sorry for the silence here recently.

Apr 29 • 

Matt Taylor

32

19

3

February 2025

I met my younger self for coffee today | Lyric Essay

Inspired by Jennae Cecelia's poem in her book 'deep in my feels'. A reflective lyric essay on some time with my younger self who most people don't…

Feb 25 • 

Matt Taylor

37

5

4

January 2025

Are Traditions Important?

Traditions form a collective identity. They touch us, connect us, expand us. As much as I hated being paraded down the street in a silly hat, gown, and…

Jan 16 • 

Matt Taylor

23

7

3

Photos Define a Person – Pt. 2

Care leavers are left with gaps in their history, denied the ability to be a definitive person, their childhood denied existence because it’s impossible…

Jan 9 • 

Matt Taylor

52

7

3

New Year’s Resolutions: Is there any point?

New Year’s Resolutions are about forming new habits. Why not form the habit that will allow you to create further habits?

Jan 1 • 

Matt Taylor

11

8

2

December 2024

My Writing Journey 2024 Wrapped | Lyric Essay

Riding the Undertow: A Year-Long Journey Through Chaos, Creativity, and the Stormy Soundtrack of Life.

Dec 29, 2024 • 

Matt Taylor

13

2

The time I went to the BRIT Awards 2018

In one night, I went from absolute extravagance watching a Lamborghini get smashed up on stage, to absolute destitution in Kings Cross McDonalds.

Dec 22, 2024 • 

Matt Taylor

15

R-A-T: The three letter word I'll never be able to say

Have you really left your hometown if its myths still control the way you speak? How the folklore of the Isle of Man has kept me there despite leaving…

Dec 16, 2024 • 

Matt Taylor

11

1

Photos Define A Person - pt. 1

For a long time, I believed there were no photos from me living in children's homes. Here is my complicated journey on attempting to track some down.

Dec 8, 2024 • 

Matt Taylor

27

3