Pier 4 at Wigan Pier Presents: Henry Normal

In partnership with The Early Doors Club, Pier 4 at Wigan Pier Presents jokes, stories and poetry from Radio 4’s BAFTA award-winning, reticent poet, writer and TV & Film producer Henry Normal. The co-writer of shows including The Royle Family, The Mrs Merton Show and many more brings a new, fun-packed show featuring his latest collection ‘A Quiet Promise’.

The event opens with sets from Louise Exactly and The Chubby Northerner.

Doors open at 6pm

Bar will be open on arrival.

Over 16's only, anyone under the age of 18 must be accompanied by an adult.

All sales are final and no refunds will be given.

Henry Normal Bio

Henry is a writer, poet, TV & Film producer, founder of the Manchester Poetry Festival (now the Literature festival) and co-founder of the Nottingham Poetry Festival.

In June 2017 he was honoured with a special BAFTA for services to Television.

He co-wrote and script edited the multi-award winning Mrs Merton show and the spin off series Mrs Merton and Malcolm. He also co-created and co-wrote the first series of The Royle Family.

With Steve Coogan he co-wrote the BAFTA winning Paul and Pauline Calf Video Diaries, Coogan's Run, Tony Ferrino, Doctor Terrible and all three of Steve's live tours and the film The Parole Officer.

Setting up Baby Cow Productions Ltd in 1990, Henry Executive Produced all and script edited many of the shows of it's 17 and a half year output during his tenure as MD.

Highlights of the Baby Cow output during his time include the Oscar nominated film Philomena, I believe in Miracles, Gavin and Stacey, Moone Boy, Uncle, Marion and Geof, Nighty Night, The Mighty Boosh, Red Dwarf, Hunderby, Camping and Alan Partridge.

Since retiring in April 2016, Henry has written and performed 10 x BBC Radio 4 shows combining comedy, poetry and stories about family. His 11th BBC Radio 4 show was called 'A Normal Journey'.

Born in St Anne's, Nottingham in 1956, Henry now lives in Fairlight, Nr Hastings with his wife and screenwriter Angela Pell and their son Johnny.

In April 2018, Two Roads publishers released his book of memoirs 'A Normal Family' which was written with his wife Angela Pell, drawing on his family experience. It immediately became a best seller on Amazon and has already been reprinted. The paperback was released on 21st March 2019.

Henry performs poetry at Literature Festivals around the UK and has thirteen poetry books available from Flapjack. Most recent are 'Collected Poems Volume 3' which was released in 2023 and 'A Moonless Night ' in 2024.

He was recently given an honorary doctorate of letters by Nottingham Trent University, another by Nottingham University and has a beer and a bus named after him in Nottingham!

Henry's book “Meanwhile” was released in May 2025

Quotes:

Succinct, heartrending and peppered with gentle punchlines’ Hannah Verdier, The Guardian

Shove up National Treasures. We need to make room for Henry Normal"

Simon O'Hagan - Radio Times

'the Alan Bennett of poetry' The Scotsman

'Dovetails bittersweet poetry with a sublimely observant wit' The Guardian

'A mixture of the absurd and downright wacky...a gentle giant of stand-up poetry' The List

'The poetry itself is stuff of proper substance, marrying the suburban beauty of Beatles ballads with the blunt candour of the kitchen sink' The Guardian

"Witty and uncannily accurate with his observations" - The Stage "Distinctly funny" - Time Out

It’s a rare and lovely thing: half an hour of radio that stops you short, gently demands your attention and then wipes

Also check out other Arts events in Wigan, Literary Art events in Wigan, Festivals in Wigan.