Poetry blog

We keep you updated on the world of poetry with our news roundups.

Recent posts

Orrick Johns Poems

 

Orrick Johns was and American writer born in the late 19th century. He moved in elite literary circles and was able to count amongst his contemporaries the likes of Ernest Hemingway, T S Eliot and F Scott Fitzgerald. His work was admired by many, including fellow poet Sara Teasdale who conducted a long-running series of correspondence with him. A ...

Orlando Gibbons Poems

 

Orlando Gibbons was an English writer and musician who lived during the late Tudor and early Jacobean periods. He was an accomplished keyboard player, specialising in the virginal and organ, and he established himself as England’s leading polyphonic composer during the early part of the 17th century. He was born in December 1583 in Oxford and his father, William, was one of the town’s ...

Nicholas Breton Poems

 

Nicholas Breton was an English poet and novelist whose work mainly centred on pastoral, religious and satirical themes. He originated from the small parish of Layer Breton in Essex, hence his name, but his surname has sometimes been written down as Britton or Brittaine. He was born sometime during the year 1545 into a very wealthy family, probably living in the “Capitall Mansion House” in ...

Octave Crémazie Poems

 

Octave Crémazie was a 19th century French Canadian poet who so caught the imagination of the Canadian reading public that he became known as the “father of French Canadian poetry." He specialised in patriotic verse and was at the forefront of the cultural development of Quebec. He was born on the 16th April 1827 in Quebec City. His parents perhaps had a religious future planned ...

Nicholas Grimald Poems

 

Nicholas Grimald was a 16th century English poet, playwright and man of the church whose allegiances swung from Protestant to Catholic to suit his circumstances. His name is sometimes written as Grimoald, or Grimaldi, and many of his pieces of work were in the form of songs or sonnets. Nicholas Grimald was born sometime during the year 1519, or possibly in 1520, in Leighton ...

Nicholas Udall Poems

 

Nicholas Udall was a 16th century writer, cleric and schoolmaster. He served as headmaster at the exclusive Eton public school for seven years, although he left that position under a cloud following scandals that were enough to earn him a spell in Marshalsea prison. As a writer he was sometimes known by variations of his name, Uvedale or Udal being two of them. ...

Nina Murdoch Poems

 

Nina Murdoch was an Australian poet, broadcaster and journalist. She was born Madoline Murdoch in Melbourne in October 1890. The family soon relocated to Woodburn, which is situated in New South Wales where she enjoyed her early years. Her poetry writing really began during her teenage years at Sydney Girls' between the years 1904-1907 and much of her work was of the lyrical ...

Nikolay Zabolotsky Poems

 

Nikolay Zabolotsky was a Russian poet who was a member of a Futurist group of writers known as “Oberiu”. These were men who dabbled in the avant-garde and the absurd in their writings, often seeking to banish the old style of literature to history in favour of themes that embraced the ever-increasing industrialisation in their country. They often strayed into dangerous waters though, ...

Nguyen Trai Poems

 

Nguyễn Trãi was a Vietnamese poet, Confucian scholar and great military strategist who made a good reputation for himself in 15th century Vietnam. He served his king and government in many capacities and was so well regarded that many of the common people believed that he was capable of performing miracles. He had a close relationship with the king who was struggling to ...

Pontus de Tyard Poems

 

Pontus de Tyard, the French Renaissance poet and catholic priest, was heavily involved with a group known as La Pléiade. These were writers of the 16th century who favoured Greek and Roman poetic forms. It is believed that Tyard was one of the earliest writers of French language sonnets, and also that he was responsible for the introduction of the Provençal form of fixed verse ...