The winners of this year’s Morecambe Poetry Festival competition have been announced following more than 550 entries from across the UK and around the world.
The winning poems were selected by Jackie Kay, the award-winning poet, short-story writer and novelist who first came to public attention with her poetry collection The Adoption Papers (1991). Jackie will be performing at the festival on Sunday, September 19.
With ticket sales significantly up for the fifth edition of the festival - September 18-20 - only a handful of weekend passes remain with the festival close to selling out.
The annual poetry competition was open to poems on any theme, with the winning entries being published in the festival chapbook.
No Magi these by John Lancaster was awarded first prize.
Jackie said: “No Magi these is a clever, thought provoking and highly original poem - one that makes you see racism from an entirely different perspective. It is also unexpectedly witty. I want to read more by this poet!”
Morecambe Poetry Festival continues to develop and recognise the creative talent within the local community, with a dedicated category for residents living within the LA3/LA4 postcodes.
The local prize went to Rosemary Drescher for her poem The Amazon Gene.
Jackie said: “I massively admired the unusual perspective that The Amazon Gene takes on a difficult subject - breast cancer - and was impressed by the strength in the poem. The courage!”
All the winners have the opportunity to recite their winning poems at the Morecambe Poetry Festival, along with receiving a cash prize.
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