Guernsey International Poetry Competition 2019

Judge: Maura Dooley

Enter your poems

Winners’ Reading with Maura Dooley
Wednesday 1st May 2019

Sponsored by

Guernsey Post

The Guernsey Literary Festival, together with the generous support of Guernsey Post, presents a competition that could deliver your work to thousands of readers.

Winning entries will be displayed

  • on Guernsey buses
  • a smaller selection will take part in a second, larger display at Guernsey Airport, then all over the islands.

Download 2019 information leaflet

Poems on the Move

Your poem could be on show in 2019. The Guernsey Literary Festival, together with the Guernsey Arts Commission and the generous support of Guernsey Post, presents a competition that could deliver your work to thousands of readers.

Winning entries are selected in two phases: 21 poems will be chosen, and 9 of these will take part in a second, larger display, first at Guernsey Airport, then all over the island.

Entries must be no longer than 14 lines and must fit on a single A4 page.

Guernsey Literary Festival 2019

Guernsey’s natural beauty, and its picturesque harbour town of St Peter Port, make the island an exceptional location for a literary festival. The seventh Guernsey Literary Festival takes place from 1st-6th May 2019. We offer a varied and energetic celebration of literature with something for everyone – from aspiring writers to families looking for a fun day out.

For details of the usual heady mix of writers, talks, workshops and performance visit www.guernseyliteraryfestival.com.

We invite you to join us for the International Poetry Competition Winners’ Reading on 1st May 2019.

Categories

  • Open Poetry

    ages 18 and over*

    Entries £4 per poem or enter 3 poems for £10

  • Channel Islands’ Poetry

    ages 18 and over, born or resident* in the Channel Islands†

    Entries £4 per poem or enter 3 poems for £10

  • Young People’s Poetry

    aged 12-17*

    Entry free

Enter your poems

*age and resident on 15th January 2019

†Poems submitted in the Channel Island category are also entered into the Open category

Our Judge for 2019
Maura Dooley

Photo of Daljit Nagra smiling

Maura Dooley was born in Cornwall, lived in Bristol, Yorkshire and now, London. Her latest collection of poetry is The Silvering (Bloodaxe 2016). She was Poet-in-Residence at the Jane Austen House Museum, Chawton. Poems from the residency are published as A Quire of Paper (The Poetry Business 2016).

Last year (with Elhum Shakerifa) she published versions of poetry by exiled Iranian writer Azita Ghahreman, Negative of a Group Photograph (Bloodaxe 2018). Her work has been shortlisted for the T.S. Eliot Prize and the Forward Prize. She received a Gregory Award, a Cholmondeley Award, is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and teaches at Goldsmiths, University of London.

Filter judge Candy Neubert is the principal poetry reader for the Bridport Prize. Her last two poetry collections, Channel and Island, were partly inspired by Guernsey.

2018 Winners

  • Open Category

    1st Prize: ‘PTSD’, Josh Ekroy, London, £1000

    2nd Prize: ‘On hearing you have lost your new love’, Jonathan Edwards, Wales, £500

    3rd Prize: ‘Rain’, Peter Wallis, Norfolk, £250


  • Channel Islands’ Poetry

    1st Place: ‘From a car parked at the bay’, Alexander Soulsby, Guernsey

    2nd Place: ‘Contrary’, Carol Hughes, Guernsey

    3rd Place: ‘Where the heart is’, Sandra Noel, Jersey

  • Young People’s Poetry

    1st Place: ‘12:04am, a figure on the pier’, Lyra Davies, Wales

    2nd Place: ‘There are days’, Phuong Hoang, Vietnam

    3rd Place: ‘Two drops’, E Wen Wong, New Zealand

Poems on the Buses Winners

  • 'On Beacon Hill', Claire Booker, Brighton

    'In the studio', Zillah Bowes, Cardiff

    'Letters', Lyra Davies, Wales

    'Song', Jonathan Edwards, Wales

  • 'Past midnight', Scott Elder, France

    'Reflections', Carol Hughes, Guernsey

    'Au revoir', Elizabeth Lavers, London

    'One Summer’s Day', Jo Olszewski, Jersey

  • 'Hello again', Dorothy O'Grady, Essex

    'The sun warns Pluto', Sue Proffitt, Devon

    'A man walked into a bar', Simon Rees-Roberts, London

    'Think again', Anthony Watts, London

12 poems listed alphabetically by poet's surname.

All poems from the Poems on the Buses Exhibition.

Previous Competitions

Read the 2018 winners
Judge: Daljit Nagra Read the 2017 winners
Judge: Gwyneth Lewis Read the 2016 winners
Judge: Ian McMillan Read the 2015 winners
Judge: Andrew Motion
Judge's Report 2018