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LEDBURY POETRY

Ledbury Poetry Festival

The next Ledbury Poetry Festival will take place 28th June – 7th July 2024

Ledbury Poetry Festival is an inclusive, international and inspirational celebration of poetry and spoken word over ten fabulously busy days, live in Ledbury and online to the world.

Surrounded by woods, orchards and hills, poets from all over the world gather to perform, write, read and listen to poetry. Contemporary literary titans stand alongside upcoming talents to illuminate a thrillingly electric mix of events, from readings, performance poetry, masterclasses, walks, talks and films through to breakfasts, music, exhibitions and bike rides. It’s all yours at Ledbury – dig deep into interesting ideas, take in poetry over a pint, craft your own writing style, or showcase your skills in the slam. We hope you enjoy the short film below. Sign up to Ledbury Poetry monthly newsletter to be sure to hear all the latest information.

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Ledbury Poetry Critic Stephanie Sy-Quia was our Guest Curator at the Festival this summer. Stephanie is a writer and printmaker based in London. Her debut Amnion (Granta Poetry) has received an Eric Gregory Award, a Somerset Maugham Award, and the Forward Prize for Best First Collection. She is a Ledbury Poetry Critic.

Chloe Garner, Artistic Director, says “I am thrilled to welcome the Forward Prize-winning poet and Ledbury Critic Stephanie Sy-Quia as Ledbury Poetry Festival’s first ever Guest Curator. I can’t wait to see what fresh discoveries and possibilities she will present to audiences.”

Stephanie Sy-Quia, Guest Curator says: “Ledbury is such a fantastic home for poetry, and I want people to leave at festival’s end and feel that poetry is a form that can be carried out with them, an invigorating force that belongs everywhere. I also want to foster good relationships with many of the artists who live locally, and invite them into the process as a way of celebrating poetry as a form that leaps across many different disciplines.” Read Stephanie’s Blog below.

Ledbury Poetry Critics

In 2017 Ledbury Poetry Critics launched its first year-long intensive mentorship programme, recruiting 12 critics of colour, and has been responsible for increasing the visibility of poets and critics of colour. There are now over 35 critics within the programme founded by Sandeep Parmar and Sarah Howe with support from Ledbury Poetry. Ledbury Poetry Critics introduce and chair events at Ledbury Poetry Festival.