Poet Laureate to judge Guernsey competition

Wednesday 18 September 2019

UK Poet Laureate Simon Armitage will judge the entries in the 2020 Guernsey International Poetry Competition.

The Poems on the Move competition, organised by the Guernsey Literary Festival, was launched on 15 September and carries a £1,000 first prize for the winning poem in the open section, which can be entered by anyone across the world.

A poem by Sharon Black, who lives in France, took last year’s prizeout of entrants from the Channel Islands, the UK, Europe, and as far afield as Australia, India, the USA, Hong Kong, Singapore and Tunisia. 

This year Simon Armitage, who was appointed Poet Laureate in succession to Carol Ann Duffy this year, will be performing his own work at next year’s festival in addition to judging the Guernsey Post-sponsored competition.

Mr Armitage (pictured) was Oxford Professor of Poetry (2015-2019) and his numerous accolades include an Ivor Novello Award for song-writing in the BAFTA-winning film Feltham Singsand the 2018 Queen’s Gold Medal for Poetry.

As in past years, the competition is split into three categories, Open (18 and over), Channel Islands residents (18 and over) and Young People (aged 12-17). It is hoped this year to increase the entry numbers from young writers, especially those from Guernsey.

Poems from each class will be chosen for display on local buses and winners will be part of a display first at the airport and then all over the island. 

There is a maximum length of 14 lines for individual poems and entries will close on 15 January 2020.

Full details and entry forms are available on the Guernsey Literary Festival website, or the website poemsonthemove.com or on leaflets which can be found at a number of sites in the Channel Islands, including libraries, Beau Sejour, The Airport, and Guernsey Museum at Candie Gardens.