Exciting new talent

Rachael Allen and Rebecca Tamás will both read from their debut collections Kingdomland and WITCH. The Poetry Book Society, which is co-hosting the event, says Rachael is a writer of “rare vision and flair” and Rebecca is “a major new voice in British poetry”.
 
“Pairing up with the Poetry Book Society for their Spring Showcase is the perfect way to launch the programme for this year’s Poetry Festival,” says Professor Sinéad Morrissey, Director of the festival, which is organised by the Newcastle University’s Centre for the Literary Arts (NCLA).

“I’m especially looking forward to hearing two such exciting new poetry talents as Rachael and Rebecca.”

Transformations

This year the festival is celebrating Transformations, in particular, the special kind of magic that happens when poetry is combined with other art forms such as film, music and digital technologies.

The full 2019 line-up will be revealed at the programme launch but already announced for this year’s festival are:

• Launch event with Terrance Hayes, whose American Sonnets for my Past and Future Assassin was shortlisted for the T S Eliot Prize and the National Book Critics’ Circle Award for Poetry.

• Hannah Sullivan who won the 2018 TS Eliot Prize for her stunning debut collection Three Poems.

• Phoebe Power who won this year’s Forward Prize for best First Collection for Shrines of Upper Austria

• Renowned Shetland fiddler and composer Catriona Macdonald fuses music and poetry in Gone Westering at Sage Gateshead (2 May)

• Brecht Then and Now with poet David Constantine and soprano Sarah Gabriel at Sage Gateshead (2 May)

• Northern Poetry Symposium at Sage Gateshead (2 May).

“It’s going to be the best Newcastle Poetry Festival yet,” says Professor Morrissey. “We can’t wait to welcome you.”

The Newcastle Poetry Festival 2019 Programme Launch will take place at 7.15pm on Thursday 21 March Culture Lab, Newcastle University. Book a place here, or email Melanie Birch or call 0191 208 7619.