Remembering Ted Hughes and Sir John Betjeman: Prince Charles talks to the current poet laureate
The poet laureate Simon Armitage managed to tease out some royal reminiscences of other laureates when he invited the Prince of Wales to join him in his The Poet Laureate Has Gone to his Shed BBC Radio 4 podcast series. In fact Armitage and HRH were not in the poet laureate’s shed at all, but in a restored barn in Wales, on one of Prince Charles’s properties. In a wide-ranging conversation that fo...
31st August 2021
'No matter how wide the final margin, a lone ballot never counted so much'
It’s been some months since our last election, but it is always good to be reminded, in this poem by Kamilah Aisha Moon, of how precious and hard-won the right to vote and the act of voting are.
1ST VOTE
by Kamilah Aisha Moon
It was hers.
She had this choice
behind curtained blis...
30th August 2021
From Coventry and Dresden: bilingual book of peace poet’s poems
A collaborative book in English and German of poems by Coventry peace poet Antony Owen that reinforces the links between his city and the German city of Dresden has been launched during Coventry’s Cit...
29th August 2021
Lyonesse: Penelope Shuttle, Bloodaxe
I was drawn to this poetry collection by its title, and by its location. In her preface, Cornwall-based poet Penelope Shuttle mentions that Thomas Hardy always referred to Cornwall as ‘Lyonesse’. The ...
28th August 2021
In The Sticks: eds. Simon Fletcher, Cherry Doyle, Offa's Press
This anthology of hard-hitting rural poetry from Shropshire-based Offa’s Press began as a series of online regional workshops - and made me wonder where the term “in the sticks” originally comes from....
27th August 2021
BBC's Contains Strong Language spoken word festival coming to Coventry City of Culture
The annual poetry and spoken word festival BBC Contains Strong Language comes to Coventry City of Culture this year with over 50 Covid-compliant and in-person poetry events taking place in the city be...
23rd August 2021
Auscultation: Ilse Peder, Seren
Born in Derby and raised in Birmingham, Ilse Pedler now lives in Kendal where she runs her own veterinary practice offering holistic treatment for animals in Cumbria and the north-west of England.
...
21st August 2021
Kathleen Jamie becomes Scotland's new makar
Kathleen Jamie has been appointed as Scotland’s next makar, its national poet. Scotland’s first minister Nicola Sturgeon formally welcomed Jamie, 59, to the role at the Scottish Poetry Library in Edin...
18th August 2021
US poet and journalist appeals for help for Afghan women targeted by the Taliban
An American poet and journalist who appeared at London's Southbank Centre six years ago alongside a women Afghan MP to talk about "secret poetry" of Afghan women - landays - has appealed for donations...
18th August 2021
Panopticon: Brian Comber, Black Pear Press
The title of Worcestershire poet Brian Comber’s debut collection made me reach for the dictionary. Historically, a panopticon was a circular prison with cells arranged around a central tower from whic...
18th August 2021
Puzzle Poets return with two nights each month
Sowerby Bridge’s Puzzle Poets are returning to live, in-person nights next month after a pandemic gap of 16 months – with a monthly double bill. Their first night back will be on Monday 6 September at...
18th August 2021
Poems about the Taliban, the US, and husbands: the Afghan women who risked their lives for self-expression
“You won’t let me go to school. I won’t become a doctor. Remember this. One day, you will be sick.” The message to the Taliban, and to other male oppressers, delivered by an anonymous Afghan woman in ...
18th August 2021
Casey Bailey and Victoria McNulty lead Write Out Loud's Spoken Sessions no 4
As the summer heat holds many of us hostage, live poetry in air-conditioned venues is a welcome and long overdue escape from the daily grind. But virtual poetry events continue to delight us, and here...
12th August 2021
Award-winning poet and teacher says accusations of racial stereotyping have been 'humbling'
The poet and teacher Kate Clanchy has responded to accusations of racial stereotyping in her book, Some Kids I Taught and What They Taught Me, saying the criticism had been “humbling”.
Her memoir, ...
10th August 2021
Save the dormouse and other endangered creatures
A poetry workshop on the wildlife crisis on Saturday 14 August will focus on the decline of creatures such as dormice, hedgehogs, cuckoos and curlews over the last 50 years, and attempts to restore ha...
10th August 2021
Our man in Berkhamsted: poet becomes mayor in Graham Greene's home town
A poet who has published two pamphlets, twice been nominated for the Forward Best Single Poem prize, and is a member of Ver Poets and a regular at Write Out Loud Woking, has now become mayor of Berkha...
9th August 2021
Veteran poet Janine Booth's open-mic night in new home town
A veteran poet who moved out of London to Lewes is launching a new open-mic poetry night in the Sussex town, with Attila the Stockbroker as the first guest poet. Janine Booth – also known as The Big J...
8th August 2021
Speaking in Tongues: Laura Taylor, Flapjack Press
Perhaps the most important poem in Laura Taylor’s third collection is not the title poem but ‘Origin’, which precedes it in the book. This poem employs remarkable, un-everyday words such as “prephonat...
7th August 2021
'The intimacy of the poetry world': TS Eliot judge Fiona Sampson on the selection process
One of the TS Eliot Prize judges, Fiona Sampson, has written about “the intimacy of the poetry world” and the process of selecting a winner, in an article for the Guardian.
In a piece that could be...
6th August 2021
Let's hear it for the mechanics - with a poetry competition
A conference is being held to celebrate 200 years of Mechanics’ Institutes worldwide – and a poetry competition is being organised as part of the celebrations.
On 16 October 1821, the world’s first...
6th August 2021
Jamaica's Jean 'Binta' Breeze dies aged 65
The Jamaican poet Jean ‘Binta’ Breeze, who was awarded an MBE in 2012, has died at the age of 65 after a period of ill-health. She was represented by Renaissance One Writers and Event who said that sh...
6th August 2021
Poetry Wales appoints new joint editors
Poetry Wales magazine has announced two new joint editors – Marvin Thompson and Zoë Brigley. Marvin Thompson, who was born in London to Jamaican parents, now lives in south Wales, and was this year’s ...
5th August 2021
Writing kitchen cooks up anthology to celebrate 20 years
Around 20 year ago, poets Malika Booker and Roger Robinson saw the need for a space where writers outside the establishment could grow, discuss and learn. One Friday night, Malika offered her Brixton ...
4th August 2021
