Final beckons for Chichester’s first-ever poetry slam

Tongue Tied: The Chichester Poetry Slam FINAL will be on Wednesday, June 18, promising a “night of raw talent, fierce words and electric vibes” at the Chichester Inn, 38 West Street, Chichester, PO19 1RP, doors 7pm, start at 8pm.

Co-organiser Charlie Rosse said: “The 6 finalists saw off 20 other competitors over the past 3 months of heats. Ayana Playle is a spoken word poet from near Brighton with a background in theatre and performance-making; Shan Duff is a performer based in Chichester who uses both music and poetry to explore her experiences of womanhood, neurodivergence and queerness; Effie Rogers is a poet based in Chichester and this is her first poetry slam she has ever entered; Beth Punnett lives in London but grew up in Chichester and is a poet, performer and arts coordinator; David Warren is from Portsmouth and active in the poetry and music scenes there; and UÌna Proops is studying a masters in creative writing at Chichester Uni.”

Charlie is delighted with the response to the whole event so far: “We have been so pleased at the way it has attracted the imagination of people and at the range of poets that we've had. It has had such an age range as well. It has brought a lot of people from Chichester but has also drawn people from the surrounding area. One of the finalists is from Portsmouth and one is from just outside Brighton. We're really pleased we've reached so many different people.

“This year was a bit of an experiment just to see how it would take hold and it has worked so well. I think people are really pleased to have something different happening. There are lot of open mics around for poetry but having the competitive element has really given it something different. I think it has given it an edge and has meant that people are really at the top of their game and really push themselves with their poetry but it has also been a nice balance between that competitive side and people being really, really supportive.”

With just three rounds this year, the slam was oversubscribed. Next year's final will remain in the June slot but the heats will start much earlier. There will be more rounds, kicking off in the autumn, to allow many more people to take part.

Tickets will be on the door or Tongue Tied: The Chichester Poetry Slam FINAL! Tickets, Wed, Jun 18, 2025 at 7:00 PM | Eventbrite

Poetry slams are extremely popular in London but on the south coast are relatively few and far between. The closest one is in Brighton. Poets Charlie Rosse and Ryan Burle decided to fill the gap, with the promise of bringing something completely fresh to Chichester’s poetry scene.

Charlie said: “A poetry slam isn't as aggressive as it sounds. It's a spoken word competition but it's judged in a way that is so open-hearted and so wonderful that you forget the competitive element. It feels like a poetry open mic but there is a scoring element which adds to the excitement but really doesn't take away the open-heartedness.”