This week in our poetry news round up we look at the death of the poet and translator Mary de Rachewiltz, keeper of Ezra Pound's legacy, and the announcement of the 2026 Booker Prize longlist. Poet and Translator Mary de Rachewiltz Dies Aged 101 Mary de Rachewiltz, the Italian-American poet and translator who spent much of her long life as the custodian of her ...
This week in our poetry news round up we look at the death of the pioneering spoken word artist Black Ice and the newly announced poetry longlist for the 2026 Nigeria Prize for Literature. Spoken Word Pioneer Black Ice Dies Aged 54 [caption id="attachment_20768" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] Photo by Frank Micelotta/Getty Images[/caption] Black Ice, the Philadelphia poet who did as much as anyone to carry spoken word ...
This week in our poetry news round up we look at the newly announced shortlists for the 2026 Forward Prizes for Poetry and the death of the poet and art critic Edward Lucie-Smith. 2026 Forward Prize Shortlists Announced The shortlists for the 2026 Forward Prizes for Poetry were announced on Thursday July 16th, narrowing the field to twenty poets across the four categories. Founded in 1992 by William Sieghart, the Forward Prizes ...
This week in our poetry news round up we look at the announcement of the new Waterstones Children's Laureate and the record-making sale of a rare medieval Arthurian manuscript. Patrice Lawrence Named Waterstones Children's Laureate [caption id="attachment_20711" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] Patrice Lawrence © David Bebber[/caption] Author Patrice Lawrence has been announced as the new Waterstones Children's Laureate for 2026–2028. The bestselling writer, known for her 2016 debut ...
This week in our poetry news round up we take a look at the Ledbury Poetry Festival, which is currently in full swing, and the posthumous collection of last poems from the Pulitzer Prize winner Franz Wright. Ledbury Poetry Festival Underway The Ledbury Poetry Festival, one of the largest and longest-running celebrations of poetry in the UK, is currently taking place in the Herefordshire ...
