Explore '˜everyday epic' for Brighton Festival's poetry contest

Brighton Festival has confirmed this year's Peacock Poetry Prize will have the theme of '˜everyday epic', a subject chosen by Brighton Festival 2017 guest director Kate Tempest.
Kate Tempest. Picture by Hayley Louisa BrownKate Tempest. Picture by Hayley Louisa Brown
Kate Tempest. Picture by Hayley Louisa Brown

Kate said: “From a pebbled beach to a stranger’s smile, from a sporting milestone to a quiet read, budding writers are invited to reflect on the small observations and achievements of our daily lives which we piece together to celebrate and share our common humanity.

“Music, literature, theatre, film – these things are so important, they bring us together into the same space, they give us ourselves, they bring us to life, they beam our humanity back to us in all its hideous beauty. And in these times, with the fear spreading everywhere and the divisions between us deepening daily, we desperately need to remember that we are all part of the same thing.

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“The annual creative writing competition, produced by Brighton Festival and Brighton, Hove & Sussex Sixth Form College (BHASVIC), encourages young writers to explore the written word from a creative point of view and aims to get young people writing right across Sussex. The competition asks local poets aged between eight and 19 years to explore and respond to a specific subject in an imaginative and inventive way. Submissions are divided into four age groups: eight-11 years, 11-13 years 13-16 years and 16-19 years. In addition, this year the Brighton and Hove environmental education project (BHee) will also be giving a special prize to a school pupil whose poem celebrates our interaction with the natural world.”

Pippa Smith, head of creative learning at Brighton Dome & Brighton Festival, said: “The Peacock Poetry Prize is a fantastic opportunity for young people to get involved with Brighton Festival. I’m always taken aback at the number and range of submissions we receive, and this year I hope Kate Tempest’s theme of ‘everyday epic’ will inspire our young writers’ imaginations to produce some wonderful poetry once again.”

The competition is open to residents of Brighton & Hove, East and West Sussex. Each budding writer may submit up to three poems with a maximum length of 20 lines per poem. Entries must be emailed, together with full name, age and date of birth to [email protected] or posted to Peacock Poetry Prize, Brighton Festival, 12a Pavilion Buildings, Castle Square, Brighton BN1 1EE.

The deadline for entries is 5pm on Monday, April 3. Finalists and their friends and relatives will be invited to a reception in Brighton Dome Thursday, May 25, at 5pm when the winners of each age category and the BHee prize will be announced.

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