Let Me Die A Youngman's Death by Roger Mcgough

 Let me die a youngman's death

not a clean and inbetween
the sheets holywater death
not a famous-last-words
peaceful out of breath death

When I'm 73
and in constant good tumour
may I be mown down at dawn
by a bright red sports car
on my way home
from an allnight party

Or when I'm 91
with silver hair
and sitting in a barber's chair
may rival gangsters
with hamfisted tommyguns burst in
and give me a short back and insides

Meaning of the poem

The poet is conveying that he wants to have a young man’s death. The line “not a clean and in between the sheets holy water death” means that he don’t want  to be in between the sheets and holy water to be poured over his body. The next line “not a famous-last-words peaceful out of breath death” means that he don’t want to say famous words when he is going to be out of breath. The next stanza “When I'm 73 and in constant good tumour may I be mown down at dawn by a bright red sports car on my way home from an all night party “ means that when he is 73 and having tumour he will be down at dawn that he can’t go in a bright red sports car after an all night party.The next stanza” Or when I'm 91 with silver hair and sitting in a barber's chair may rival gangsters with hamfisted tommyguns burst in and give me a short back and insides” means that when he is 91 with silver hair and sitting in a saloon then if rival gangsters with tommyguns come he can’t do anything other than getting a short in the back and inside by them. The second and third stanza of the poem shows the pathetic situation of the poet when he is old.