Early Career
Charles began his career as a contemporary and urban performance poet on the British cabaret circuit. His performances were considered original, being described as having a natural ironic wit which appealed to talent scouts. In 1981, Charles climbed on stage at a Teardrop Explodes concert and recited a humorous, but derogatory poem about the band's singer. He was invited to open subsequent gigs for the band, and then began performing as a support act in pubs and clubs, for the next three years, and at events such as the Larks in the Park music festival at Sefton Park (1982). He performed poetry at Liverpool's Everyman Theatre (1983), alongside such poets as Roger McGough and Adrian Henri.
Charles was involved in the Liverpool music scene, writing and singing lyrics for a number of local rock bands. In 1980, he played keyboards and provided voice in the rock band Watt 4. He performed his rap lyrics to music as a 'Wordsmith', with his writing containing a powerful political message. In 1983, he was invited to record a session on the John Peel BBC Radio show with his band, performing six poems, which was his first professional engagement. Also in 1983, he recorded tracks including "In England and In Africa" and "Sing Like Billy Bragg" which were used as a ‘demo’ to secure a further Peel Session in 1984, where he performed three songs including "Hands Together Eyes Closed".
Charles realised he was using poetry as a vehicle for his sense of humour, and progressed into stand-up comedy. He was part of the Red Wedge comedy tour in 1986, which aimed to raise awareness of the social problems of the time, in support of the Labour Party. He performed his first one-man show in 1986, premiering in Edinburgh, then touring it internationally. Charles was a guest on programmes including Janice Long's Radio 1 show, and was a regular panellist on Ned Sherrin's chat show Loose Ends (1987-8) on BBC Radio 4.
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