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Call for nominations/ applications Advanced Poetry Seminar
The Advanced Poetry Seminar
Bruisyard Hall, Saxmundham, Suffolk
Monday 15 March - Friday 19 March 2010
The Poetry Trust is seeking applications and nominations for the Aldeburgh Seminar. This is the fourth annual residential course designed to offer accelerated professional and creative development to carefully selected poets early in their publishing careers. Deadline Friday 12 February 2010.
Click here for further details
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New poem shows on The Poetry Channel
Take a tour behind the scenes of the 21st Aldeburgh Poetry Festival with three erudite and generous poets who offer reflections, advice and inspiration. Keep an eye on The Poetry Channel in 2010 as The Poetry Trust continues to develop this as the place to go for lively poetry interviews and discussions. And tell us what you think: Do you enjoy the shows? Any suggestions for improvements? Please drop us an email at: (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Aldeburgh Backchat: Ciaran Berry
Last year's winner of the Aldeburgh First Collection Prize discusses the experience of devising a first collection and how he plans to spend his ‘protected' writing time - a unique feature of this national poetry prize. He also considers the cultural traditions and interplay of poetry between Ireland, the USA and the UK.
Aldeburgh Backchat: Roger Robinson
Revealing insights from Trinidadian writer Roger Robinson who reflects on his inspirational father, his outstanding teachers and the thorny issue of cultural diversity in contemporary poetry. He also talks about finding the right place to write and the importance of ‘just writing, not judging' in the first instance.
Interview with Maureen Duffy
One of the UK's most versatile writers with over half a century of work, Maureen Duffy is a respected poet, novelist, playwright and biographer. Here she talks to Robert Seatter about the ‘constant beacon of Sappho', her ‘immense identification with Keats', and finding ‘the female muse' through love poetry.
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Brilliant poetry at UEA Spring Literary Festival 2010
Poetry is a particular highlight of the UEA Spring Literary Festival this year, with three outstanding internationally acclaimed poets coming to the University of East Anglia. The Poetry Trust is partnering the festival and would like to draw your attention to the amazingly good value Poetry Passport - a ticket that enables you to attend all three poetry evenings for just £12. Each poet will read and discuss their work and there is dedicated time for questions from the audience. This is a fantastic opportunity to hear world-class poetry in the East of England.
Don Paterson
Tuesday 26 January, 7.00pm, Lecture Theatre 1, UEA
Just awarded The Queens Gold Medal for Poetry, Paterson's fourth collection Rain won the 2009 Forward Prize and was described by Prize Chair Josephine Hart as "knee-weakeningly good".
Robin Robertson
Wednesday 17 March, 7.00pm, Lecture Theatre 1, UEA
Robertson is the only poet to have won both the Aldeburgh and Forward First Collection Prizes (in 1997) and he has since won all three categories of Forward Prize.
Simon Armitage
Wednesday 19 May, 7.00pm, Lecture Theatre 1, UEA
A close-runner for the laureate and currently poet-in-residence at the Southbank Centre, he has published nine collections of poems which, to quote Carol Ann Duffy, "have an energy which comes directly from life now and the living language."
To buy a ‘Poetry Passport' or tickets for individual readings (£6), telephone 01603 508050. For full programme information visit: www.uea.ac.uk/litfest
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Issue six of The Poetry Paper - now available
Where else can you find exclusive interviews with Sharon Olds and Alan Brownjohn, new poems by Tom Paulin, Philip Levine and David Morley, the poetry CVs of Kate Fox and Richard Price and a ‘questioned by poems' feature with Ciaran Berry, Peter Blegvad, Imtiaz Dharker and John Hegley? Issue Six of the beautifully designed Poetry Paper is now making its way to poetry lovers across the globe. The Poetry Paper is entirely free (we will even drop it though your - UK only - letter box for no charge!) To order a copy for yourself or several for a reading group or writing course, simply complete an order form
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Festival in photos
If you couldn't make it to Aldeburgh this year or if you'd like to re-live the weekend enjoy the story of the 21st Aldeburgh Poetry Festival in photos.
Join in poetry conversations on Facebook and Twitter. Keep an eye of The Poetry Channel where you will soon be able to listen to some Festival favourites. Take a look at some press coverage; Guardian online 'Female poem discussion'
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Watch Philip Levine in conversation with Naomi Jaffa
Enjoy Philip Levine - one the most significant US poets of the last 50 years - in conversation with The Poetry Trust director Naomi Jaffa. Levine received a long ovation following his sell-out reading at the Aldeburgh Poetry Festival - his first UK appearance for over 30 years. In this short film Levine touches on growing up in Detroit, ‘needing a larger world' and the impact of ‘the greatest teacher he ever had' John Berryman. A big thank you to Neil Astley, Founder and Editor of Bloodaxe Books for producing this short film, recorded live during this year's Aldeburgh Poetry Festival: http://bit.ly/aldeburghlevine
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Join us for Suffolk’s cult status variety show
Join us for Suffolk's cult status variety show and find out what all the fuss is about. In January, Short Cuts welcomes special guest ‘Madame Galina New Forces Sweetheart' - a burly Welsh bloke in a tutu - fresh from his 4th tour entertaining troops in Afghanistan for Combined Services Entertainment. His show has been described by Time Out as ‘the bargain of the week ticket...non-stop belly-ache laughter'. Fans include Joanna Lumley, Madonna and 42 Commando. Clearly not a night to miss!
The evening will also feature the dazzling array of strange or stupendous Open Mic talent with its heady mix of comedy, music, spoken word, live poetry and audience participation. Hosted by Dean Parkin (think Eric Morecambe crossed with Philip Larkin), with jazz and boogie-woogie maestro Maurice Horhut at the piano. Food and drink will also be available at The Cut, contemporary arts venue, café & bar.
To apply for a slot, contact Dean on 01986 835950 or (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Tickets cost £5, Call The Cut Box office on 0845 6732123
Supported by The Co-op Community Fund
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Do Women write ‘Female’ poetry’?
The ‘Female Poem' discussion at the 21st Aldeburgh Poetry Festival was so popular it sold out within days of the box office opening and had to be moved to a larger venue. Chaired by Jo Shapcott, President of The Poetry Society, with a panel of distinguished writers - Maureen Duffy, Annie Freud and Pascale Petit - the discussion captivated the audience. Over 200 people turned up at 9am on Sunday morning (!) to hear the writers cross the gender minefield and discuss questions such as ‘Is poetry informed by the body?' ‘Are female poets outsiders'? And from the fabulous Maureen Duffy ‘Is being bizarre more important than being liked!?'
Jo Shapcott has blogged the event for Guardian Online, where it is causing a wide ranging, informed and engaging debate. Join the debate.
The Female Poem discussion was supported by the Poetry Society
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Tell us what you thought!
If you came to the 21st Aldeburgh Poetry Festival and have not yet completed our online feedback survey we would be enormously grateful if you could spare 5 - 10 minutes to do so.
We genuinely value and act on what our audiences think and feel - and your feedback will be critical for helping us plan and develop the Festival and The Poetry Trust's year-round programme of events and activities.
Click here to complete the online survey
Prize draw: We know surveys are generally pretty tedious, so as an incentive all respondents will be entered in to a free prize draw to win a year's subscription (11 issues, US$35) to Poetry, the outstanding magazine from the Poetry Foundation in Chicago.
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Aldeburgh First Collection Prize 2009
The winner of the Aldeburgh First Collection Prize 2009 - one of the most important and established poetry prizes in the UK - was announced at the 21st Aldeburgh Poetry Festival, 6-8 November. The recipient of this £3,000 major prize for the year's best first collection is Scottish poet J O Morgan for Natural Mechanical (CB Editions).
The book - which was also shortlisted for the Forward Best First Collection Prize - comprises a single narrative poem recounting a childhood on the Isle of Skye. In a year attracting a record 92 entries, Aldeburgh judges (and poets) David Constantine, Mimi Khalvati and Michael Laskey (Chair) were unanimous in their final decision.
Mimi Khalvati said:
"Such an engaging, affecting book. It effortlessly combines different verse-forms: remarkable, particularly for a first collection, in deftly tackling a book-length narrative, and also refreshing in its sense of tradition."
Michael Laskey said:
"We admired this book for its live language and sophisticated story-telling, but we loved it for its generosity, its unsentimental celebration of a disadvantaged boy making good."
Responding to news of his win, J O Morgan (31) said:
"I've never thought of it as a prize-winning book. I had hoped it might affect people in the way books have affected me in the past. That's all I've ever wanted from any of the works I've undertaken. I really hope the book continues to be enjoyed by many more people."
Click to read Alison Flood's blog for The Guardian on The Aldeburgh First Collection Prize.
Further information, contact: Alice Kent, 01986 835950 or email (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)