Phyllis King


Phyllis April King is an English poet. She appears and reads her material on Ivor Cutler's albums Dandruff, Velvet Donkey and Jammy Smears. King designed some of the Ivor Cutler album covers, and has published poetry and children's books. She worked with Cutler on the radio series King Cutler which was broadcast on BBC Radio 3 in 1990.

Personal life

King was first married to Canadian film director Allan King. Later she was in a long-term relationship with Ivor Cutler for over forty years up to his death in 2006 though they did not live together, preferring to retain their independence. Like Cutler, she was a teacher. Cutler wrote the song "Beautiful Cosmos" about her. She has a daughter and lives in Wiltshire.

Stage portrayal

In 2014 she was portrayed by Elicia Daly in the stage play The Beautiful Cosmos of Ivor Cutler, a co-production by Vanishing Point and National Theatre of Scotland.

Poetry