National Poetry Day is a British campaign to promote poetry, including public performances. Annually, on the first Thursday of October, events, readings and performances take place across the UK.[1]
National Poetry Day was founded in 1994 by William Sieghart.[2] 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.[3] The day is run in collaboration with partners including Arts Council England, Literature Wales, Poet in the City, the Southbank Centre, The Poetry Book Society, The Poetry Society, The Scottish Poetry Library, Poetry By Heart and The Poetry School.[4]
Prince Charles performed in the 2016 National Poetry Day, reading Seamus Heaney's "The Shipping Forecast".[5] In 2015, National Poetry Day poems were included in the Blackpool Illuminations.[6] In 2020, BT commissioned Poet Laureate Simon Armitage to write "Something Clicked", a reflection on lockdown during the COVID-19 pandemic.[7]
- ^ "About National Poetry Day". nationalpoetryday.co.uk. Retrieved 19 February 2024.
- ^ "William Sieghart's profile on Intelligence Squared". Retrieved 7 August 2014.
- ^ "About Us". Forward Arts Foundation. 1 November 2013. Retrieved 7 August 2014.
- ^ "National Poetry Day 5th Oct 2023". nationalpoetryday.org. Retrieved 14 July 2016.
- ^ "Prince Charles launches National Poetry Day with Heaney poem". BBC News. 6 October 2016. Retrieved 21 March 2024.
- ^ "National Poetry Day". nationalpoetryday.forwardartsfoundation.org. Retrieved 6 October 2016.[dead link]
- ^ "Something Clicked". www.bt.com. BT. Retrieved 1 October 2020.