Winchester Poetry Day drew crowds of poetry lovers to The ARC. Almost 300 tickets were sold for the day which aimed to celebrate poetry in its many forms. This year the well-versed and the poetry-curious travelled to Winchester from all over the UK, and from all over the world for the special Winchester Poetry Prize ceremony which concluded the day.
Winchester Poetry Day took place at The ARC last month, and acted as an interim event before the larger-scale biennial festival which is due to take place in 2025. The day featured established as well as emerging poets, All of whom were generous in sharing their words and experience, whilst encouraging those in attendance to do the same.
Audiences revelled in Adriana Lord and Akila Richards’ ‘Lullabies For the Exhausted’ which utilised the unique sound of crystal bowls (pictured); heard from Write A Note’s spoken word artists on the theme of ‘Home’; and participated in poetry drop-in sessions and workshops exploring ‘Things We Call Home’, using the idea of synaesthesia and the incorporating mindfulness into writing and music.
The day opened with the invitation-only event for Hampshire Young Poets competition winners. Competition judge, Damian Kelly-Basher (Hampshire Poet 2024-26) celebrated the 560 entries from children and young people aged from 4 to 16 who entered poems on this year’s theme of ‘Our world, our planet’.
Jane Bryant (Chair Of Trustees of Winchester Poetry Festival) said: “we had a most wonderful creative, diverse, and inspiring day of poetry on Saturday… it was a beautiful poetic day much enjoyed and appreciated by wide ranging audiences of all ages.”
The winner of Winchester Poetry Prize 2024 was announced in front of a packed room at The ARC as part of Winchester Poetry Day. The competition attracted almost 2000 entries this year, with 29 of those entries paid for by other poets/donors using our Pay it Forward Scheme allowing those on low-incomes to participate. There were entries from 38 countries, as well as the UK, including Zambia, Iran, Romania, Pakistan, Finland and New Zealand.
The winner was Oliver Carmichael (UK) with the poem You Ask About My First Kiss. Second prize went to Adele Evershed (USA) with the poem Hard Labour. Third prize went to Jordan Hamel (USA) with How To Drive Drunk In A Flaming Paddock.
The inaugural Kathryn Bevis Prize for the best poem by a Hampshire-based poet, sponsored by The Writing School Online (founded by Kathryn Bevis), was won by Jenny McRobert with the poem Oslo June 2022.
This special prize commemorates much loved poet, Hampshire Poet Laureate 2020-21 and Winchester resident, Kathryn Bevis who died this year. It aims to continue supporting local writers, as she did passionately during her life.
All of the entries were read and judged blind by the poet Clare Shaw, who presented the special prize-giving event to conclude Winchester Poetry Day. The longlisted poets travelled from around the UK to read their poems on the stage at The ARC, with global poets reading their poems online. The event was live-streamed so that audiences around the world could watch. It was also BSL interpreted, live.
All of the winning, commended and highly commended poems are collected in an anthology entitled To Make Us Real which can be purchased from Winchester Poetry Festival’s website, or from P&G Wells Bookshop.
Winchester Poetry Prize 2025 will open in April next year. Winchester Poetry Festival is planned to take place in October 2025, subject to funding.
To find out more, visit winchesterpoetryfestival.org
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