National Poetry Day

File:Poetry at Waterloo Station for National Poetry Day 1994.jpg

Poetry at Waterloo Station for National Poetry Day 1994

National Poetry Day is a British campaign to promote poetry, including public performances. National Poetry Day was founded in 1994 by William Sieghart. It takes place annually in the UK and Ireland on the first or second Thursday of October. Since its inception, it has engaged millions of people across the country with live events, classroom activities and broadcasts. National Poetry Day is coordinated by the charity Forward Arts Foundation, whose mission is to celebrate excellence in poetry and increase its audience. Its other projects include the Forward Prizes for Poetry. The day is run in collaboration with partners including Arts Council Northern Ireland, Literature Wales, Poet in the City, Southbank Centre, The Poetry Book Society, The Poetry Society, The Scottish Poetry Library and Birmingham Literature Festival.

Prince Charles performed in the 2013 National Poetry Day, reading Dylan Thomas' Fern Hill.

The next National Poetry Day is 8 October 2015. The theme is Light and activities include 'Make Like A Poet', a digital project co-commissioned by The Space and Thirteen Ways, in partnership with the BBC and Forward Arts Foundation. The project encourages creative responses, some of which will be included on Blackpool Illuminations after the project is complete.

History

National Poetry Day was founded in 1994 by William Sieghart who said, "There are millions of talented poets out there and it’s about time they got some recognition for their work. They shouldn’t be embarrassed about reading their work out aloud. I want people to read poetry on the bus on their way to work, in the street, in school and in the pub." National Poetry Day is celebrated around the United Kingdom. In 1994 the Radio Times wrote “National Poetry Day has been created to prove that poetry has a place in everyone’s life. From children chanting to advertising jingles and pop songs, it is used to entertain and communicate across the nation.” The Belfast Newsletter reported, "National Poetry Day swept Ulster yesterday, transforming ordinary citizens into part-time bards or budding Heaneys or Wordsworths." The Daily Telegraph reported that in London at Waterloo station, "The announcement boards were given over to poems about trains by T S Eliot and Auden." “The Times reported Chris Meade, director of the Poetry Society saying, "Readers are finding a place for poetry in their lives again. You can read one between stations on the Northern Line. It fits well into the modern experience.” The East Anglian Daily Times reported, "National Poetry Day was the cue for a stanza bonanza, with railway stations, classrooms, theatres and supermarkets bursting with verse and echoing to epics".

Themes

From 1999 onwards, National Poetry Day has been loosely “themed”. In 2014, the theme was Remember. National Poetry Day will next take place on 8 October 2015 and the theme will be 'Light'. A list of previous themes is below:

• 2015: Light
• 2014: Remember
• 2013: Water, water everywhere
• 2012: Stars
• 2011: Games
• 2010: Home
• 2009: Heroes and Heroines
• 2008: Work
• 2007: Dreams
• 2006: Identity
• 2005: The Future
• 2004: Food
• 2003: Britain
• 2002: Celebration
• 2001: Journeys
• 2000: Fresh Voices
• 1999: Song Lyrics

See also

• National Poetry Month - a similar event in the United States