In this week’s poetry news round up we take a look at the possible withdrawal of funding for the National Poetry Centre, the shortlist for the PEN Heaney Prize and the poet who wasn’t home.
Warning from National Poetry Centre if £5m Funding is pulled
The National Poetry Centre has issued a warning that if the government carries out its proposal that will see the withdrawal of £5m of Levelling Up funding, it will be a tragedy.
The announcement was made as part of the proposals set forward by Rachel Reeves, Chancellor, for the spring 2024 budget. The National Poetry Centre (NPC) is just one of a number of cultural projects that has been told is at risk of losing promised funds.
The NPC has issued a statement in which they say that they would like to work with the government in order to find a solution to the issue.
It was hoped that the centre, which will cost around £20m, will bring new life to Trinity St David’s in Leeds. It would be the first centre in the country dedicated to poetry and it is expected that once it opens it will attract around 100,000 visitors every year. It is also hoped that it will create job opportunities for hundreds of freelance workers and also a number of permanent positions. The potential withdrawal of the £5m from the government could put the rest of the funding at jeopardy.
The founder of NPC, Poet Laureate Simon Armitage is also disappointed with the decisions and together with Leeds University, the Mayor of West Yorkshire and Leeds City Council has written to the Chancellor to ask for the funding to remain in place.
Shortlist Announced for Inaugural PEN Heaney Prize
The short list for the 2024 PEN Heaney Prize has been announced. The prize which is being facilitated by English PEN alongside Irish PEN (PEN na Éireann) and the estate of the late poet Seamus Heaney, recognises a single volume of poetry, written by one author and published in either Ireland or the UK. The work should be of outstanding literary merit and should engage with the impact of political or cultural events on human relationships or conditions.
The winner of the prize will be announced on 2nd December in a ceremony that will be held at Queens University, Belfast.
The judging panel is made up of poets Paula Meehan, Nick Laird and Shazea Quraishi, with Catherine Heaney joining them as a representative of the Estate of Seamus Heaney.
Wordsworth Wasn’t Home!
Much to the confusion of the descendants of the poet William Wordsworth, a tourist has left a review online following a trip to the Wordsworth family home. The tourist, who gave his name only as Peter, was disappointed that the poet wasn’t home when he visited.
Replying to the online review, the poet’s great great great great grandson informed him that Wordsworth had, in fact, died in 1850. He went on to caution Peter that he may be disappointed if he chose to visit John Ruskin’s place in Coniston or Beatrix Potter’s cottage as they are both also dead.
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