I looked at his hair,

I looked at his skin,

I looked at his boots,

And the clothes he was in,

And it didn’t take long to make up my mind:

He’s on the attack - they’re that way inclined.

He’d been standing nearby for quite a long time,

Eyeing my watch and this briefcase of mine,

He called out to a friend, to cause a distraction,

Then out of the blue he sprang into action.

He hurtled towards me, as if to give chase,

I hung on for dear life to my leather briefcase,

He shoved me so hard, right there in the street,

That I toppled right over, knocked clean off my feet.

Not sure what he did next, nobody said,

But I know I woke up in a hospital bed,

Nothing was stolen so at least there he failed,

But the violence alone should ensure that he’s jailed.

Of course my tongue wagged and his crime was discussed,

And as soon as I’m able, I’ll be making a fuss.

You looked at my hair,

You looked at my skin,

You looked at my boots,

And the clothes I was in,

And you made up your mind, right there and then;

A shameless attacker – Skins! Yet again.

And yes, I did look at you as you stood on the street,

And I did rush and push you, clean off your feet,

The brickwork was falling - I spotted the danger,

I risked my own life, even though you’re a stranger.

No one else noticed the bricks coming down,

I called out to you first but you didn’t look round,

You ignore those like me, with your ingrained belief:

Here’s a skinhead - a hoodlum, a yob and a thief.

Your fall was a hard one but at least you survived,

And I stayed at the scene until first aid arrived,

You’re now in safe hands, looked after by others,

You won’t see me again but I trust you’ll recover.

Just as they took you, you voiced your disgust,

I brushed myself down and walked off - with no fuss.

‘Skinhead’ was inspired by the iconic video made for The Guardian newspaper by BMP DDB.

I have also written a variation on this poem ‘The Boy From The Bus’ - check it out!