I was expecting Steve Larkin to turn up in his usual punk T-shirt and quiffed hair for our interview, so was surprised to be shaking hands with a man in a suit. But Steve was about to perform for Prince Edward on his visit to Oxford, so had to tone it down a bit. “They asked me to do something on the Jubilee, but I told them I didn’t really do stuff like that,” Steve laughs. “But I do have a standard ditty I pull out for such occasions.”

That’s hardly a surprise, because after all this is the man behind Hammer-and-Tongue — the live stand-up poetry craze sweeping through the country — and former poet-in-residence at HMP Grendon in Aylesbury.

As a result of his “life-changing” year there teaching poetry to lifers, he wrote N.O.N.C.E, his new one-man show, which he describes as “dramatic story-telling”. “It’s a dark subject lightened with jokes and laughter,” he says “and when I tried it out in Canada some people said it was the best thing on that summer. So I’m proud of it because every single word is considered and it took me two years to write. It’s my Under Milk Wood or The Waste Land if you like. But doing it in your home town is different, and I’m terrified,” he laughs.

A far cry, then, from the spontaneous and liberating immediacy of Hammer-And-Tongue. At these monthy poetry slams anyone can turn up and try out their own work on stage. It’s fast, energetic and the crowds love it. “I set up Hammer-and-Tongue in 2002 when I moved to Oxford from Leeds,” the 36-year-old tells me. “I had witnessed my first poetry slam in America and it was so vibrant I thought we could do with something like that.”

Starting off at the Brickworks in Cowley Road, Hammer-And-Tongue grew out of its premises almost instantly as word spread and Steve now has slams in Brighton, London, Oxford, Bristol and Cambridge.

“It snowballed really quickly,” Steve says. “People seem genuinely elated by its vibrant style. Because poetry needs to be accessible, relevant and entertaining rather than lost in stuffy academia. So I’m immensely pleased with how it’s developed and its reputation. And it’s done a lot to show that poetry is a viable source of entertainment and a good night out.”

N.O.N.C.E. is on for one night only tomorrow night at the North Wall. Box office on 01865 319450. www.thenorthwall.com The next Hammer-And-Tongue is the Valentine Slam on February 14 at the Old Fire Station. Go to www.hammerandtongue.co.uk.