Members' AreaI need you to believe, Hope says. It’s you makes me exist. I feel bright feathers lifting. I hear a tiger’s roar. I’ve taken many forms, Hope says – changing is what I’m for. Since 2009, The Poetry Society has run a poetry project called Look North More Often, commissioning a new poem every year […]
News
Success for Audrey Molloy in Listowel Poem of the Year & Fool for Poetry competitions
Two successes for Poetry Society Member Audrey Molloy! Audrey’s poem ‘Salt Rain’ was awarded the Listowel Writers’ Week Poem of the Year 2019. Fellow Member Paul McMahon was Commended. Audrey also won second prize in the Fool for Poetry International Chapbook Competition for for her manuscript Satyress. Audrey’s chapbook will be will be published by […]
Pippa Little wins Poem for Europe competition
The Poem for Europe competition is a national competition to find the most thoughtful and inspiring poem about Europe. It has two age groups, Young Person’s category: 16-25 years old (judged by Vanessa Kisuule), and Open Category: 26+ years old (judged by Gillian Clarke). There are two 1st prizes of £500 in both the Young […]
Sarah Hemings wins Gloucestershire Writers’ Network poetry competition
Congratulations to Poetry Society Member Sarah Hemings, winner of Gloucestershire Writers’ Network poetry competition for ‘Vestry’, as chosen by judges Amanda Reynolds and Stephen Daniels. The theme for 2019 was ‘Numbers’ to chime with The Times and The Sunday Times Cheltenham Literature Festival’s theme of ‘7 at 70’. The judges had a hard time selecting […]
Rosie Jackson and Dawn Gorman win Hedgehog Poetry Press’s ‘Conversationally Speaking’ prize
Poetry Society Member Rosie Jackson has won Hedgehog Poetry Press’s ‘Conversationally Speaking’ prize in a joint venture with Dawn Gorman. The idea of the prize was to look for a conversation in verse where two poets choose a topic and collaborate to produce a body of work where each poem is a response to the […]
Rosie Jackson wins Poetry Space competition
Congratulations to Poetry Society Member Rosie Jackson, winner of the Poetry Space Competition 2019 for her poem ‘Where bluebells are thickest’, as chosen by Caroline Price – violinist, teacher and prize-winning poet. Rosie wins £500. In second place, for ‘Keeping Busy’ is Poetry Society Member Jenna Plewes, with fellow member Lizzie Ballagher Highly Commended. Among […]
Peter Iveson wins Winchester Poetry Prize
CONGRATULATIONS to Poetry Society Member Peter Iveson, winner of Winchester Poetry Prize 2019 for his poem ‘Mother’s Milk’, judged by Helen Mort. Second prize and Third prizes went to fellow Member Maria Isakova-Bennett for ‘Subcutaneous’ and Lewis Buxton for ‘Boy Sees A Ghost’. Among the Highly Commended poets were Society Members Penny Boxall, Simon French, […]
Emma Must wins Environmental Defenders Prize at Gingko awards
Congratulations to Poetry Society Members Emma Must, winner of the Environmental Defenders Prize, and Joanna Guthrie, one of the runners-up. Among the Highly Commended were fellow Members Tim Kiely, Joanna Guthrie (for a second poem), and Hannah Lowe. The Ginkgo Prize is a major international award for ecopoetry, funded by the Edward Goldsmith Foundation and […]
Members’ competition successes: a round-up
Here’s some recent competition successes for Poetry Society Members! Fathima Zahra won the Bridport Poetry Prize; Mark Fiddes, Sharon Phillips, Penny Boxall, and Alison Binney were Highly Commended. Read more N J Hynes won the Battered Moons Poetry Competition, judged by Zoë Brigley Thompson. Sue Spiers was third. Former Foyle Young Poet Laura Potts was […]
Mark Fiddes wins Oxford Brookes
The Oxford Brookes University Poetry Competition was judged this year by the internationally-acclaimed and award-winning author Jackie Kay. Two top prizes of £1,000 were on offer in a competition that seeks to celebrate the great diversity of poetry being written in English all over the world. Poems were submitted in two categories: EAL category (open […]
Radka Thea Otípková wins Waltham Forest Poetry Competition with ‘Bats’
The Waltham Forest Poetry Competition, in its second year, received 600 poems from 300 poets (or thereabouts) on the theme of ‘Where I’m From’ and judge Graham Clifford read every single one. Poetry Society Member Radka Thea Otípková (Czech Republic) has won with her poem ‘Bats’. Graham Clifford: “As I suspect is often the way, […]
Poetry to bring the gift of hope to Trafalgar Square tree
Since 2009, The Poetry Society has run a poetry project called Look North More Often, commissioning a new poem every year to celebrate the friendship between Oslo and London, symbolised by the Trafalgar Square Christmas tree. This year Clare Pollard has written a poem called ‘The Gift’ inspired by the theme of hope which will […]
Edexcel English Literature GCSE syllabus celebrates diversity
At a conference today, Pearson Edexcel launched their updated GCSE (9-1) English Literature syllabus, which now includes a greater diversity of contemporary writers. Two new novels, two new plays and a new poetry collection, all by BAME writers, have been added to the GCSE (9-1) text list. In addition, Edexcel has released a new poetry […]
Q & A with National Poetry Competition artist Cat O’Neil
Each year, The Poetry Society commissions new artwork for the National Poetry Competition, which features on our entry forms and posters, before finally becoming the cover of our annual National Poetry Competition Winners’ Anthology. Recent artists to take up the challenge of translating poetry into picture include Isabel Rock, Jonathan Edwards and Eugenia Loli. For […]
A tribute to Ciaran Carson
Ciaran Carson, who sadly died on 6 October 2019, had a long association with The Poetry Society, as a contributor to The Poetry Review, as a National Poetry Competition judge, and as a noted translator shortlisted for the Society’s Popescu Translation Prize. Born in Belfast on 9 October 1948, Carson studied English at Queen’s University. […]
Andrew McMillan wins Polari Prize
Angela Chadwick and Poetry Society Member Andrew McMillan have been announced as the winners of the 2019 Polari Prizes, celebrating work that explores the LGBT experience. Chadwick’s highly acclaimed, dystopian thriller XX picked up the Polari First Book Prize for best debut whilst McMillan’s intimate poetry collection, Playtime, scooped the inaugural Polari Prize, beating other […]
Where Light Falls: new poems in light
The dome of St Paul’s Cathedral, silhouetted against Blitz fire and smoke. Coventry Cathedral, bombed and in flames. These iconic images from the Second World War – and the histories behind them – are the inspiration for two new poetry commissions encouraged into the world through Historic England’s project Where Light Falls. From 24th – […]
Congratulations to Forward Prize winners Fiona Benson, Stephen Sexton and Parwana Fayyaz
Congratulations to Fiona Benson, winner of the £10,000 Forward Prize for Best Collection for her collection Vertigo & Ghost (Cape), described as a retelling of Greek mythology for the #MeToo era. Several of the poems from the collection were first published in The Poetry Review and two, ‘[Zeus] Anatomical Dolls’ and ‘Haruspex’, can be read […]
A butt of sherry for new Poet Laureate Simon Armitage
Simon Armitage signing his Butt of Sherry in the headquarters of the CRDO in Jerez. To celebrate Simon Armitage’s appointment as the 21st Poet Laureate, he was invited by the Sherry producers of Jerez to receive the gift of a butt of Sherry. He has today visited the the area to choose his Sherry and […]
A tribute to Elaine Feinstein
Elaine Feinstein, who died on 23 September 2019, was an award-winning poet, novelist, biographer, a witty conversationalist and a spellbinding performer. Born Elaine Cooklin in Liverpool on 24 October 1930, she grew up in Leicester and read English at Newnham College, Cambridge. She subsequently read for the bar in London, but subsequently returned to Cambridge […]
Timothy Corsellis Prize 2019 winners announced
We are pleased to announce the winners of the Timothy Corsellis Prize 2019, marking the anniversary of Timothy Corsellis’s death. The Timothy Corsellis Prize was set up in memory of the young poet Timothy Corsellis, both as a memorial and an encouragement to others to explore the often overlooked field of Second World War poetry. […]
Penny Boxall wins The Poetry Society’s Stanza Competition
The winner of the 2019 Stanza Poetry Competition on the theme of ‘Lies’, judged by Geraldine Clarkson, is Penny Boxall (York Stanza) for her poem ‘The Dub Artist’. As part of Penny’s prize, she will be one of our guest readers at The Poetry Society’s AGM on 27 November at the Poetry Cafe, London, and […]
National Poetry 2019 – if truth be told…
Happy National Poetry Day 2019! National Poetry Day is a big annual celebration of poetry across the UK, this year on the theme of ‘Truth’. To mark the occasion, The Poetry Society is today delivering a swathe of activities including: poems being broadcast at selected stations on the London Underground (including Covent Garden, Moorgate and […]
Foyle Young Poets of the Year Award 2019 winners announced
The Poetry Society is delighted to announce the top 15 poets and 85 commended poets who are winners in the Foyle Young Poets of the Year Award 2019. The winning entries were selected from over 6,000 poets and over 11,000 poems by this year’s poet judges Raymond Antrobus and Jackie Kay. Writers aged 11-17 entered […]
Helen Mort picks her Winchester longlist
Helen Mort Judge Helen Mort has picked her longlist for the 2019 Winchester Poetry Competition, including Poetry Society Members: Ama Bolton, Penny Boxall, Lewis Buxton, Martin Figura, Simon French, Rae Howells, Maria Isakova, Peter Iveson (for TWO poems), Stephen Keeler, Fiona Larkin, Robert Powell, Robert Stein, Ellora Sutton, Karen Tobias-Green, Mark Totterdell, Pat Winslow… as […]
BBC Proms Poetry Competition 2019 winners announced
The winners of the BBC Proms Poetry Competition 2019, for poems written in response to a piece of music in the 2019 Proms season, have been announced. This year’s competition was judged by poet and presenter of The Verb on BBC Radio 3 Ian McMillan, acclaimed poet Malika Booker and the Director of The Poetry […]
New guest editors announced for The Poetry Review
The Poetry Society is delighted to announce new guest editorships for the Winter 2019 and Spring 2020 issues of The Poetry Review as regular Editor Emily Berry is taking a short writing sabbatical until Summer 2020. The Poetry Society welcomes Colette Bryce as Editor of the Winter 2019 issue, which is published in December. Colette […]
Winning translations published on Young Poets Network
This summer, The Poetry Society’s Young Poets Network teamed up with Modern Poetry in Translation, challenging young poets worldwide to co-translate ‘Today’ by Western Armenian poet Lola Koundakjian. We provided a bridge translation and translator’s notes from Adham Smart, and an introduction to translating poetry by MPT editor Clare Pollard. Equipped with these translating tools, […]
Yvonne Reddick wins Ambit Poetry Competition
Congratulations to Poetry Society Member Yvonne Reddick, this year’s winner of the Ambit Poetry Competition on the theme of ‘Wild’ and judged by Liz Berry. Yvonne wins £500 for her poem ‘In the Burning Season’ which will be published in Ambit 238 with the rest of the top three poems. Yvonne was Joint runner-up […]
Laura Mucha wins the first YorkMix Poems for Children Competition
Laura Mucha has won the inaugural YorkMix Poems for Children Competition for her poem ‘Rapunzel’ [And sweet Rapunzel’s golden curls / would slowly tumble and unfurl / allowing Witch to clamber up / (occasionally getting stuck).] The judge was Carole Bromley: “a superb, funny, original retelling of the fairy-tale. I was delighted to find it […]
A tribute to Carole Satyamurti
We are sorry to announce the death of Carole Satyamurti, poet, sociologist, teacher and former winner of the National Poetry Competition, who died on 13 August. Carole was the author of six collections of poetry – her first three with Oxford University Press and the three thereafter with Bloodaxe. Stitching the Dark: New & Selected […]
Young Poets Networkers translate at The Poetry Café
This summer, The Poetry Society’s Young Poets Network teamed up with Modern Poetry in Translation to challenge young writers worldwide to try their hand at translating poetry. As part of this partnership YPN and MPT set up a free poetry translation workshop with MPT editor and poet Clare Pollard in The Poetry Café. On 14 […]
Jared A Carnie wins Paper Swans Press pamphlet prize
CONGRATULATIONS to Poetry Society Members Lizzie Holden (second for From the Bottom of the Wishing Well) and Pam Thompson (third for Hireling) in the Paper Swans Press Poetry Pamphlet Prize – won by Jared A Carnie for his pamphlet Lyme. Also Commended was Poetry Society Member Maria Isakova Bennett with fellow Members Lucy Maxwell Scott, […]
Segora Poetry Competition: winners are all Poetry Society Members
CONGRATULATIONS to Poetry Society Members Mary Gilonne, Sheila Aldous and Jenny Mitchell, top three in this year’s Segora Poetry Competition. First prize £300, second £50, Third £30, judged by Maggie Butt. Also on the shortlist was fellow Member Tim Waller. Maggie Butt: “Judging the Segora competition has been hard. Not just because of the number […]
Winners of Live Canon Pamphlet Competition are all Poetry Society Members
CONGRATULATIONS to Poetry Society Members Robin Houghton, Miranda Peake, Tania Hershman and Katie Griffiths – winners of the Live Canon Pamphlet Competition. All four will have pamphlets published by Live Canon. The competition was for pamphlets of between 18 and 35 poems. The winning publications are Was it the Diet Coke, and other questions – […]
Roger Bloor wins Poetry London Clore Competition
CONGRATULATIONS to Poetry Society Member Roger Bloor, winner of this year’s Poetry London Clore Competition, judged by Sasha Dugdale. Roger’s pamphlet A Less Clear Dream was shortlisted for the Arnold Bennett Book Prize in 2018, and Aldgedeslegh was shortlisted for the Arnold Bennett Book Prize 2019. He is also a Poetry Society Stanza rep in […]
Timothy Corsellis Prize 2019 launches
The Poetry Society’s Timothy Corsellis Prize for poets aged 25 or younger is open for its sixth year. Timothy Corsellis was a young poet and pilot killed in 1941. The Prize was set up in his name, with the support of his family, to encourage more people to read the powerful but lesser-known poets of […]
Jill Munro wins Arvon 5-day poetry challenge
To celebrate National Writing Day in June, Arvon ran a 5-day poetry challenge. Over the course of five days poets were asked to shape up a poem from first to final draft with guidance and exercises from Jen Hadfield. Each poet received an email daily containing a handy writing prompt, dutifully crafted for them by […]
Listen to the Ledbury Festival podcast featuring 2018 National Poetry Competition winners
Ledbury Poetry Festival is one of the highlights of the UK poetry calendar, and each year The Poetry Society heads to Ledbury to showcase recent winners of the National Poetry Competition. The most recent festival included readings from 2018 National Poetry Competition winners Ella Frears (commended), Katie Griffiths (2nd prize) and Wayne Holloway-Smith (1st prize), […]
Claudia Daventry wins Hippocrates Open Award
It’s been a bumper year for Poetry Society Members in the 2019 Hippocrates Awards for Poetry and Medicine. Claudia Daventry has won the Open prize for her poem ‘for my Valentine in an fMRI scanner’. Claudia’s work has won several awards and commendations, including Arvon, Philip Larkin and McLellan prizes, and was placed first in […]
And after the controversy over what *is* the best winter poem in the @PoetrySociety #WinterPoemWorldCup here’s some bits of Christina Rossetti at the Pre-Raphaelite Sisters exhibition at NPG. Retweeted by The Poetry Society
More @trafalgartree with some of the poem, The Gift, around it written by @poetclare with London school children. A homeless fundraiser sleepout there tonight so part of poem behind barriers, which added interestingly to the words.@PoetrySociety Retweeted by The Poetry Society
Hannah Jane Parkinson: From Keats to Merseybeat: a retreat into my favourite verse is a soul saver theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2…
It’s truly beginning to feel a lot like Christmas. @UptonForm6 spent this morning reinventing the classic poem ‘Twas the night before Christmas’. Great job ladies. #ChristmasCountdown @PoetrySociety Retweeted by The Poetry Society
Is the candidate who wants your vote prepared to stand up against library closures? #arts4britain Britain has closed almost 800 libraries since 2010, figures show theguardian.com/books/2019/dec…
Summary of yesterday’s @PoemAtlas event at the @PoetrySociety Café: I lost at poetry jenga (thanks Russell), we channeled spirits, played with some SUPER cool poems! Thanks everyone for making it so special 💖 Retweeted by The Poetry Society
"the people on boats are laughing backwards my skin feels less real and more like rubber" For the #FoyleYoungPoets Advent Calendar, it's 6 December (or is it?) with Annie Davison's surreal and time-warpingpoem 'Clocks' @youngpoetsnet @chrisriddell50
Tickled to see that @WarwickADavis ‘s musician ancestor died in Betterton St - now home of The Poetry Society bbc.co.uk/programmes/b08…
Loved working with these kids for the Lighting Up Ceremony!Their highlights - choosing what to eat in Pizza Express, and being interviewed by a TV news team from New Zealand. #TrafalgarSquare #poetry @PoetrySociety Retweeted by The Poetry Society
tree on! @trafalgartree lit up with norwegian song and @PoetrySociety poems. i love this event. Retweeted by The Poetry Society
Officially Christmas in Trafalgar Square now! 🎄 Retweeted by The Poetry Society
