E. J. Thribb is the fictitious poet-in-residence at the
satirical magazine ''
Private Eye''. The character was created in 1972 by
Barry Fantoni
Barry Ernest Fantoni (born 28 February 1940) is a British author, cartoonist and jazz musician of Italian and Jewish descent, most famous for his work with the magazine ''Private Eye'', for whom he also created Neasden F.C. He has also published ...
, who wrote the poems until 2010, when he was succeeded by other staff members.
Thribb's poems are usually about recently deceased famous people, and titled "
In Memoriam", with the first line almost invariably reading: "So. Farewell then...". He is an obituarist and
threnodist.
Thribb usually mentions the deceased's
catchphrase
A catchphrase (alternatively spelled catch phrase) is a phrase or expression recognized by its repeated utterance. Such phrases often originate in popular culture and in the arts, and typically spread through word of mouth and a variety of mass ...
or theme song, and his poems often feature his friend Keith, or Keith's mum, who is usually "like" the deceased in some way.
Thribb's
poetry
Poetry (derived from the Greek ''poiesis'', "making"), also called verse, is a form of literature that uses aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language − such as phonaesthetics, sound symbolism, and metre − to evoke meanings i ...
is characterised by deadpan delivery and a
stream of consciousness
In literary criticism, stream of consciousness is a narrative mode or method that attempts "to depict the multitudinous thoughts and feelings which pass through the mind" of a narrator. The term was coined by Daniel Oliver in 1840 in ''First L ...
which is broken up into short lines seemingly at random, and has very little
rhyme,
rhythm
Rhythm (from Greek , ''rhythmos'', "any regular recurring motion, symmetry") generally means a " movement marked by the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions". This general meaning of regular re ...
or
reason
Reason is the capacity of consciously applying logic by drawing conclusions from new or existing information, with the aim of seeking the truth. It is closely associated with such characteristically human activities as philosophy, science, ...
.
Thribb usually signs his poems with his name and age – 17½ – although sometimes this will be modified to allude to something else for which the deceased is famous. He sometimes signs himself E. Jarvis Thribb.
In the first issue after the death of
Peter Cook
Peter Edward Cook (17 November 1937 – 9 January 1995) was an English actor, comedian, satirist, playwright and screenwriter. He was the leading figure of the British satire boom of the 1960s, and he was associated with the anti-establishme ...
,
comedian and longtime
proprietor
Ownership is the state or fact of legal possession and control over property, which may be any asset, tangible or intangible. Ownership can involve multiple rights, collectively referred to as title, which may be separated and held by different ...
and financial supporter of ''
Private Eye'', the magazine's cover consisted simply of a photograph of Cook beneath, in large print, the phrase "So. Farewell then...".
Original writer Barry Fantoni stopped writing Thribb in December 2010, upon his retirement from the ''Eye''.
Later contributors included
Christopher Booker
Christopher John Penrice Booker (7 October 1937 – 3 July 2019) was an English journalist and author. He was a founder and first editor of the satire, satirical magazine ''Private Eye'' in 1961. From 1990 onward he was a columnist for ''The Su ...
.
The identity of the current poet(s) has not been revealed.
References
External links
Private EyeE.J. Thribb Poems at PoemHunter.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thribb, E. J.
Fictional poets
Private Eye