Nottingham Poetry Festival at Central Library

About

Friday 7th June to Sunday 16th June | 2024 | Various times
Nottingham Central Library
Ticket prices vary per event

Nottingham Poetry Festival is back, bigger and better than ever for 2024!

This year, the festival is bringing you 10 days of spectacular performances, open mics, workshops, panels, community events and more for you to dive right into the wonderful world of poetry.

Whether you're a poetry connoisseur, a curious could-be wordsmith, or just fancy getting in on all the fun, Nottingham Poetry Festival truly has something for everyone this year. Join in between Monday 7 June – Sunday 16 June to be at the heart of the poetry action.

A Journey Inside: A VR Poetry Experience
Friday 7 June 11.30am to 5.30pm
Join Lytisha Tunbridge on this unique poetry experience as she takes you through a whole host of ideas sparked by the sounds of the MRI scanner. Examine the important questions in life – what did the Concorde sound like? Can mental dancing affect a scan? What flavour ice-cream should she have next? All the big questions.
When you arrive for your 'appointment' you will be greeted by a member of the team who will guide you through to the 'treatment area' where you will put on the VR headset, lay back and relax. Surrounded by the sounds of the scanner, you will then be led on an unexpected journey. After your feedback is encouraged and there is a small exhibition.

T.S Eliot's Dog Ate My Homework
Friday 7 June 7pm to 9pm
HOMEWORK is a poetry collective which began online during the pandemic, and has since grown to EPIC proportions. This poetry show features performances from some of Nottingham's best, including Sue Allen, Alexandra Coates, John Humphreys, Leanne Moden, Clare Stewart, Cathy Symes, Gail Webb. In an act of hope & defiance, these poets have done their homework. But they hadn't reckoned on T.S.Eliot's dog…

GOBS Poetry Slam
Saturday 8 June 7pm to 10pm
Join GOBS Collective – as seen at We Out Here, Nottingham Poetry Festival and Hockley Hustle – for their first ever POETRY SLAM at the brand-new Nottingham Central Library.
Hot off their recent sold-out EARTH showcase at Nottingham Playhouse's Neville Studio, GOBS Collective members are going head to head in a tournament of poetry performances that will see some of the best spoken-word artists in Nottingham take to the stage.
Judged on their writing, performance and stage presence, 20 poets will battle it out for the GOBS POETRY SLAM champion crown, which comes with a £100 cash prize, a Bad Betty Press book bundle, plus more surprises on the night.

First Story
11th June 7pm to 9pm
Nottingham Central Library and NTU host a showcase of exciting new voices from two local secondary schools, The Kimberley School and The Bulwell Academy. Talented students have been working with First Story writers and performance poets Leanne Moden and Andrew Graves to write and perfect their own pieces of performance poetry.
Join us for this celebration of their achievements, hosted by Sophie Sparham, and enjoy the best of the up-and-coming generation of Nottingham's poets.
Doors open 6.30pm, performance starts 7pm.
Free, but booking is advised to reserve your seat. Refreshments will be available to purchase.

Five Leaves New Poetry launch
Thursday 13 June – 7pm to 8.45pm
Five Leaves are pleased to launch the seventh and eighth pamphlets in their Five Leaves New Poetry series as part of Nottingham Poetry Festival 2024 at Nottingham Central Library – join us to hear from Fiona Theokritoff and Nathan Fidler, along with guest appearances from other poets in the series.