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Bridlington Poetry Festival Line-up Announced
| Published: 16th May 2012 12:07 |
Bridlington Poetry Festival Line-up Announced
The line-up for the third annual Bridlington Poetry Festival has been announced by its new director, Yorkshire-based poet Antony Dunn.
The festival, running from Friday, 8 to Sunday, 10 June features a remarkable line-up of poets from the East Riding and the wider Yorkshire region, from across the UK and around the world.
The twenty five events include performances, workshops, films and discussions with eminent poets including Paul Farley, Kathleen Jamie, Michael Symmons Roberts, and Jamie McKendrick who, between them, have won many of the most prestigious awards in UK poetry.
Renowned poet Penelope Shuttle will be announcing the winners of the Larkin & East Riding Poetry Competition, organised by the festival in association with the Philip Larkin Society, co-funders of the £2000 total prize money. The competition has received over 1000 entries from around the world, and the first prize-winner will take home a cheque for £1000. Many of the winners and runners-up will also be reading their winning poems.
Other poets appearing at the festival include Allison McVety, recently announced as winner of the National Poetry Competition; Julia Copus, shortlisted for the Ted Hughes Award for New Work in Poetry funded by Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy (who herself appeared at the festival in 2011) and John Wedgwood Clarke, the festival's founder and erstwhile director, who has stepped down from the festival this year in order to concentrate on his own writing.
The festival has collaborated with Scarborough-based Valley Press, fast developing an international reputation for its poetry, and with Leeds-based Peepal Tree Press, home of the best in new Caribbean, Black British and South Asian poetry for 25 years, to present two events featuring seven remarkably varied poetic voices.
The festival is also hosting some of the very youngest new stars of the East Riding poetry scene - students from Bempton Primary School, Burlington Junior School, Martongate Primary School and Quay Primary School. The students have been working this term with poet Andrew McMillan, son of Ian, and a rising star of the poetry world in his own right, taking part in writing workshops and creating new poems of their own. Some of them will be taking to the stage to perform their new work on Saturday morning.
Andrew McMillan has also been working in Headlands Secondary School, some of whose students will be performing on Sunday morning.
There's even a poetry party for children aged five-eight and their families, with performance company Live Canon, whose riotous word party features poetry pass-the-parcel, nursery rhyme hats, haiku balloons and going-home poems.
Antony Dunn, newly-appointed director of the festival, said: "It's a real honour to take the helm of this wonderful festival after two years as assistant director. I think we've put together a remarkable programme of events for poetry-lovers, both readers and writers. I'm delighted we can showcase some of the East Riding's most exciting poets and bring poets with such impressive international reputations to perform in the region."
Councillor Richard Burton, cabinet portfolio holder for civic wellbeing and culture at East Riding of Yorkshire Council, said: "The Bridlington Poetry Festival has again put together and exciting line up and events programme and Sewerby Hall and Gardens will provide a spectacular venue for this event, which I am sure will attract poetry lovers from across the East Riding and further afield."
The festival takes place at the stunning Sewerby Hall, two miles north of the seaside resort of Bridlington, on the East Yorkshire coast. The grade I listed country house is set in 50 acres of landscaped gardens in a cliff top location on the outskirts of Sewerby village.
Tickets are available online at www.bridlington-poetry-festival.com and by telephone on (01482) 392699.
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