JOHN Masefield High School has been threatened with legal action by a poet after it pulled out of a sexually explicit poetry reading.

Birmingham-based Jim MacCool has threatened to sue head of English Martyn Moxley and the school governors for theft and breach of copyright after they backed out of their pledge to join in a charity reading of MacCool's work last week.

Headteacher Chris Tweedale said they kept out of the event, in aid of the Royal National Institute for the Blind Talking Books, because the script they were given was unsuitable.

Mr Moxley said he felt parts of it were difficult for youngsters to take part in, he said.

As an example, one piece of the script involves people having sex on an organ in a church.

We felt that for the good name of the school it was not appropriate to be involved. If I had involved youngsters in reading the material that I've alluded to I think I would have had difficulty in justifying myself to their parents, said Mr Tweedale.

The school took advice from Ledbury Poetry Festival before bowing out of the fundraiser, which was performed by members of Ledbury Amateur Dramatics and pupils from St Mary's RC High School in Lugwardine, as well as the poet himself.

Founder member of the Poetry Festival, John Burns, was asked to read part of the script but said he did not want to be associated with it.

The bit I was asked to read would have been, in many people's view, blasphemous and gross, he said.

St Mary's head Clive Lambert said the school merely wished to support a literary event and worthy charity.

We were completely unaware that the material had caused controversy and that it had been withdrawn from the festival and one school had refused to take part, he said.

Mr MacCool, a 46-year-old who has been a poet for 11 years, said his Ionan Tales were moral parables.

They do involve very base human behaviour but there's a moral underlay, he said.

Having seen a copy of the script they John Masefield decided it was too hot to handle and withdrew. I'm surprised because we had 15-year-old students from St Mary's taking part, he said.

Mr MacCool said he was beginning legal proceedings against Mr Moxley and the school governors because they had not returned his script.

They didn't turn up and, to add insult to injury, they have not returned my property which we gave them seven days to return, he said.

The school says it return the script to the poet this week.

Ledbury was the second stop for a fundraising tour of the event, which was due to go on to Cheltenham Literary Festival and London Convent Garden, although it is no longer going ahead in Cheltenham.