Winchester to see first Wilfred Owen poetry winner

The winner of the first Wilfred Owen international poetry competition will be announced at the inaugural Winchester Poetry Festival, which will run from 12th – 14th September.

The competition is for poems written “in the spirit of Wilfred Owen”, with compassion and insight on any subject or theme. The winner will be announced at a special prize-giving event to mark the centenary of the outbreak of the First World War, where the winning poems will be read by their authors. There will also be a special prize for the best work by a poet under 19 years.

The festival will also host two launch events for a new initiative, a National Conversation on poetry, in collaboration with Magma, as well as Hampshire’s first school poetry slam. The National Conversation will explore what poetry is and what it means to people today. The two Magma Conversation starters are "Things Being Various", where poet Christopher Reid will discusses five things that have inspired him with poet and Magma chair Jon Sayers, and "Nationhood", a pop-up poetry competition for poems written during the festival.

The Winchester Poetry Festival will bring together 30 poets and writers, including Patience Agbabi, Rose Barber, Liz Berry and David Constantine, to discuss their work and inspire poetry-lovers of all ages through readings, talks, workshops, exhibitions. It will also commemorate the poetry of the First World War, and celebrate the work of local poets past and present.

The festival will be held at the Winchester Discovery Centre. More information and tickets can be found at www.winchesterpoetryfestival.org.