22-word love poem may look simple – but it’s deemed perfect

Friday (March 21) marks World Poetry Day – an occasion celebrated since 1999 after UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) highlighted it’s aim to “preserve linguistic diversity through poetic expression and encourage the appreciation of both traditional and emerging poetic style”.

Whilst the likes of Lord Byron, Sylvia Plath and Emily Dickinson are widely regarded as some of the greatest poets in history, a somewhat unlikely name has been labelled on social media as the author one one of the greatest love poems ever.

Despite appearing “rubbish and simple” at first glance, a verse by Roger McGough was shared to TikTok by user Dead Poets, who explained why it’s so great. “It looks simple – and it is, but that’s why it’s brilliant,” they said. Of course, McGough, who rose to poetry prominence in the late 1960s, is still going strong at 87.

Dead Poets continued: “The poem is called ’40 Love’ from his book, After The Merrymaking, which contains multiple relationship and break-up kind of poems.” In the book, 40 Love is spread across a double page, strikingly with one word per line on each page, and is read alternating from one side to another.

It simply reads: middle/aged couple/playing ten/nis when/the game/ends and/they go/home the/net will/still be/be tween/them. Dead Poets went on to explain: “In tennis a score of zero is scored ‘love’, and love also means, well, ‘love’, whilst 40 is also a score in tennis, for some reason it goes, love, 15, 30, 40 and ends with ‘game’.”

Dead Poets also pointed out that 40 in the title refers to ‘middle/aged’ in the first line and McGough was explaining how love in your 40s is “very different” to love in your younger years. They added: “We’re told there is a net between them while they play tennis, but we’re also told that net is still between them when they go home – suggesting distance between them and a barrier in their relationship.”

Analysing McGough’s words further, Dead Poets noted that perhaps the couple in the poem are trying to “keep their relationship alive” by going out and doing activities together and having fun and maybe doing so helps them “forget about their problems and their differences”. He continued: “But when they get home, nothing has really changed.

“You can imagine them going separate ways, spending time in silence and in different rooms. It can be hard to rekindle a flame, especially one that has gone out after years and years together.”

Dead Poets closed by referring to the poem’s layout – akin to a barrier, or indeed a tennis net, whilst the rhythym from one page to the next represents the back and forth of the tennis ball. “I think it’s just a great example of a simple poem with one meaning on the surface and a load of deeper context beneath. Roger McGough is brilliant like that, and I highly recommend this book.”

Other poetry lovers hailed the works too, one of whom responded: “I love how when you’re reading it your eyes have to go back and forth almost like you’re watching the match.” A second commented: “This is really good, the metaphorical ‘net’ is genius and heartbreaking. Thanks for sharing!”

A third TikTok user penned: “It’s so short yet so deep. Thanks for introducing the poet and the poem.” Whilst a fourth person gushed: “Beautiful dichotomy. As with love, the self and the union require a net. Beautiful, thanks.”