Art and poetry: Whitman, Cavafy, Stevens … and Hockney
The celebrated artist David Hockney, who has died at the age of 88, produced a number of works in response to poetry. In 1961, his We Two Boys Together Clinging, completed towards the end of his second year at the Royal College of Art at a time when homosexuality was still illegal in England, takes its imagery from a poem by the 19th-century American writer, Walt Whitman. The Arts Council Collecti...
13th June 2026
Lee Campbell’s moment of pride with Sir Ian McKellen at celebration of queer poetry
A poet who posts regularly on Write Out Loud is looking forward to “probably one of the proudest moments of my life”. Lee Campbell said on social media that he will be performing at Sir Ian McKellen’s celebration of contemporary queer poetry in November at the ICA (Institute of Contemporary Arts) i...
11th June 2026
Sasha Debevec-McKenney wins £20,000 Dylan Thomas prize for young writers
American poet Sasha Debevec-McKenney has won the world’s largest and most prestigious literary prize for young writers – the £20,000 Swansea University Dylan Thomas prize – for her debut collection Jo...
11th June 2026
Hasti’s debut poetry pamphlet wins Michael Marks award
Hasti, a poet and writer living in south-east London, has won the Michael Marks poetry pamphlet award with their debut pamphlet, young, dumb, and full of poems, published by Bad Betty Press. They are ...
11th June 2026
World Cup dreaming! Scotland’s makar Peter Mackay puts together a people’s poem
As World Cup fever mounts in Scotland, makar Peter Mackay put a call out for folk to send him one or two lines of poetry to create a collective World Cup 2026 poem by the people of Scotland. He then a...
7th June 2026
Joanna Lowry wins Mslexia Women's pamphlet competition
Joanna Lowry has won the Mslexia Women's Poetry Pamphlet Competition for her debut pamphlet The Man Whose Brain Turned to Glass. The winning pamphlet will be co-published by Bloodaxe Books and Mslexia...
2nd June 2026
