TEIGNMOUTH POETRY FESTIVAL
POETRY COMPETITION NEWS
POETRY COMPETITION NEWS
Good News and Sad news - A bigger Graham Burchell Award covering the South West, but no Open Competition in 2025.
Good News: for all poets in SW England! Poetry Teignmouth will be launching a revised competition format in spring 2025.
The Graham Burchell Award – formerly restricted to Devon residents – will be open to all poets based in the South West which, for our purposes, means Cornwall, Devon, Somerset, Dorset, Wiltshire and Bristol. The competition will be announced and officially open on 29th March 2025 (see our Events page) and close in mid- June. There will be a live prize-giving in Teignmouth in September 2025 when winners and shortlisted poets will be invited to come and read their poems. More details at the beginning of the year.
Less-Good News: about now we would normally be launching the Teignmouth Poetry Festival Open Competition which every year receives over 1000 entries from all over the world. But sadly not this year. Despite it having been the financial mainstay of our annual Poetry Festival, the Poetry Teignmouth team has reluctantly had to reduce the 2025 celebration of poetry to a one day event, which does not justify a full-blown international competition. There will therefore not be an Open competition in 2025.
Finally, we must thank all the poets who have entered our Open competition over the years. It has been a privilege and delight to receive all your poems and see a total of over £10K in prizes awarded by judges of the highest national acclaim. Your competition entries have allowed us to celebrate the Art of poetry and stage ten years of fabulous festivals in our lovely seaside town.
Very best wishes
Poetry Teignmouth Team
The Graham Burchell Award – formerly restricted to Devon residents – will be open to all poets based in the South West which, for our purposes, means Cornwall, Devon, Somerset, Dorset, Wiltshire and Bristol. The competition will be announced and officially open on 29th March 2025 (see our Events page) and close in mid- June. There will be a live prize-giving in Teignmouth in September 2025 when winners and shortlisted poets will be invited to come and read their poems. More details at the beginning of the year.
Less-Good News: about now we would normally be launching the Teignmouth Poetry Festival Open Competition which every year receives over 1000 entries from all over the world. But sadly not this year. Despite it having been the financial mainstay of our annual Poetry Festival, the Poetry Teignmouth team has reluctantly had to reduce the 2025 celebration of poetry to a one day event, which does not justify a full-blown international competition. There will therefore not be an Open competition in 2025.
Finally, we must thank all the poets who have entered our Open competition over the years. It has been a privilege and delight to receive all your poems and see a total of over £10K in prizes awarded by judges of the highest national acclaim. Your competition entries have allowed us to celebrate the Art of poetry and stage ten years of fabulous festivals in our lovely seaside town.
Very best wishes
Poetry Teignmouth Team