Simon Armitage savours spring ‘ecstasy and melancholy’ on World Poetry Day

Posted on March 21, 2023 by Admin

Poet laureate celebrates a plum tree in poem commissioned by the National Trust for its blossom campaign

The poet laureate, Simon Armitage, has written a new poem which pays homage to spring, in celebration of World Poetry Day.

Plum Tree Among the Skyscrapers is the first in a collection of poems inspired by blossom and commissioned by the National Trust. Its publication marks the beginning of the Trust’s annual blossom campaign, in which the charity will vow to bring blossom back to landscapes across the UK by planting 20m trees by 2030 to help tackle both the climate and nature crises.

Leeds 2023: city to kick off year-long festival with ‘epic’ opening ceremony

Posted on January 7, 2023 by Admin

Organisers plough on with plans after Brexit meant Leeds missed chance to be European capital of culture

When Leeds was denied its chance to become European capital of culture in 2023 due to Brexit, it should have been the killing blow to what it had been hoped would be a massive year-long cultural celebration.

But, refusing to be beaten, cultural leaders ploughed ahead regardless, and now almost a decade of planning and ideating will culminate on Saturday in the launch of Leeds 2023, the city-wide cultural festival.

Royal family shares poem in tribute to the late Prince Philip by poet laureate

Posted on April 9, 2022 by Admin

The Patriarchs – An Elegy shared via royal social media accounts on first anniversary of Duke of Edinburgh’s death

The royal family have shared a poem in tribute to the late Prince Philip on the first anniversary of his death.

The elegy was written by the poet laureate Simon Armitage and shared via official royal social media accounts on Saturday.

Prince Philip: royal family releases photo montage set to elegy by Simon Armitage – video

Posted on April 17, 2021 by Admin

The royal family have released a reading of The Patriarchs – An Elegy by Simon Armitage to mark the Duke of Edinburgh’s funeral. The poet laureate said that he wanted the poem to address the duke’s values and personality. ‘A lot of the commentary has been around duty and service – I saw it as a prompt for writing something dutiful, and in service of all people like him.’