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ARTS & CULTURE


the mainstream world of Penguin or Random House. Some of the books are works of art in themselves, with beautiful covers and artistic interiors. Another way to hear lots of poetry and buy books that you can’t


find in high-street bookshops is to attend poetry festivals. These take place all over Britain, with two of the biggest being the Aldeburgh Poetry Festival held in November in the lovely Suffolk town of the same name, and the Ledbury Poetry Festival just northwest of Cheltenham, which takes place during ten days in July. Here you’ll get to attend writing workshops, lectures and readings. It’s like a mini Hay Festival, but all about poetry. There’s been a Poet Laureate in the UK since 1668. It’s an official


position within the royal household and as such, the Laureate is expected to write occasional poems for state events, but their duties consist mainly of raising the profile of poetry and encouraging people to read, write and listen to it. The current Poet Laureate is Carol Ann Duffy, the first woman and first Scot in the role. National Poetry Day was 28 September this year. Schools will


usually mark the day for your children with reading and writing poetry and the Southbank has a day of readings and events. National Poetry Writing Month, or NaPoWriMo as it’s known online, is in April every year with many poets giving prompts and exercises online to help those interested write a poem a day. The Poetry School in Lambeth offers courses all year round and the Arvon Foundation, founded by Laureate Ted Hughes, hosts residential poetry courses as well as writing in other forms throughout the year in beautiful settings around the UK. I’ve attended a poetry week in Hughes’s old house at Hebden Bridge in Yorkshire. It was magical; a room of one’s own, no household duties and one-to-one sessions with tutors and writing exercises, plus lovely walks in the countryside. Or, if you’ve got a few poems hidden away in a drawer and want


to give them an airing, why not join one of the many workshops held in fellow poets’ houses or local pubs, which will give your work a sympathetic ear and constructive criticism? There are local STANZA groups, as they are known, in most areas of London and across the UK; you just have to be a member of the Poetry Society to join one. The Poetry Society was founded in 1909 to increase public awareness of and appreciation for poetry and has a café and performance space in Betterton Street, Covent Garden. They publish The Poetry Review to showcase contemporary poems and reviews of poetry books. If you’re looking for more magazines that showcase poetry, try your local independent bookshop or search online. So, get out there and experience the best of the country’s continuing contribution to world literature.


14 FOCUS The Magazine November/December 2017


T.S.Eliot


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Jennifer Grigg is from Boston and has lived in the UK for more than 20 years. After working in the arts and as a freelance writer she now runs Green Bottle Press, a small poetry press publishing collections and pamphlets. Books are available to buy and submission guidelines can be found at www.greenbottlepress.com


www.focus-info.org


John Betjeman statue


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