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Simon Armitage

Your chance to hear performance poetry, insights and stories from Poet Laureate Simon Armitage in his home town.

Simon will read from several of his poetry books which include Magnetic Field: the Marsden Poems, two recent illustrated Sunday Times bestsellers, Blossomise and Dwell, and New Cemetery, a highly imaginative and wide-ranging major new collection in which the Poet Laureate makes peace with the dead. He will also read new unpublished poems.

The hour-long performance will include an audience Q&A and will be followed by a book signing.

Simon Armitage was born and grew up in Marsden, West Yorkshire. His numerous prizes and awards include the Queen’s Gold Medal for Poetry and an Ivor Novello Award for his song writing. He has published over a dozen poetry collections, including Magnetic Field: the Marsden Poems and two illustrated Sunday Times bestsellers, Blossomise and Dwell. His latest major poetry book New Cemetery is out now.  A regular broadcaster, who also writes for television and radio, Armitage presented the popular BBC Radio 4 series The Poet Laureate has Gone to his Shed. His brand new podcast series The Shed is available now on Apple, Amazon, Podbean and Spotify. 

Armitage also writes, records and tours with the band LYR. Last summer LYR performed their commission with Ulster Orchestra for the Proms: 100 years of the Shipping Forecast.  His book Never Good with Horses features his song lyrics and celebrates his ear for the music of language. An award-winning dramatist, his plays The Last Days of Troy and a contemporary spin on Hansel and Gretel were performed at Shakespeare’s Globe. He is also the author of two novels and three memoir bestsellers: All Points North, Walking Home and Walking Away.

Armitage is Professor of Poetry at the University of Leeds. A Vertical Art brings together the vibrant and engaging lectures from his tenure as Oxford Professor of Poetry (2015-2019). He was appointed Poet Laureate in 2019.

www.simonarmitage.com

Photo © Paul Stuart Photography Ltd

Sunday 17 May

7pm-8pm

Lawrence Batley Theatre, Queen Street, Huddersfield HD1 2SP

£22 (£20 conc)

Age guidance: 14+ (U16s should be accompanied by an adult)

Access Guide: https://www.accessable.co.uk/huddersfield-literature-festival/access-guides/lawrence-batley-theatre

Please note: booking for this event is via the Lawrence Batley Theatre box office: 01484 430528; [email protected]; https://www.thelbt.org/

NOTE: all ticket prices include a £2 theatre levy.

Early booking recommended to secure your preferred seats.

Access: if you have specific access needs or seating preferences, please contact our Admin team at [email protected] with your request.

Concession & Carers: For further information on concession and essential carer tickets, please visit our FAQ’s page.

Polari: Celebrating LGBTQ+ Writing Talent

Enjoy entertaining, heartwarming and thought-provoking performances from a diverse and talented line-up of LGBTQ+ writers.

Hosted by bestselling author and journalist Paul Burston, the evening will showcase the work of the QPOC poet, artist and teacher Jay Gadhia, the poet and theatre maker Roma Havers, and the writer, researcher and historian Jane Traies.

The event will start at 7pm with a 15-minute break, approx finish time 8.45pm.

Other events with these writers: Jane Traies will also take part in a Q&A on her film 3,000 Lesbians Go to York which we are showing on Saturday 9 May, and Paul Burston will be teaching a creative writing workshop, also on Saturday 9 May. See our Events page for more details.

About Polari Founded by author and journalist Paul Burston in a bar in Soho in 2007, award-winning literary salon Polari showcases and celebrates the best in LGBTQ+ poetry and writing. The Polari Prize is the UK’s only book prize for LGBTQ+ writing. It comprises three awards: Book of the Year, Debut book and children’s/YA prize.

Paul Burston is curator and host of award-winning LGBTQ+ literary salon Polari and founder of the Polari Prize book awards for LGBTQ+ writers. In 2016, he featured in the British Council’s Global List of ‘33 visionary people promoting freedom, equality and LGBT rights around the world’. Paul is the author of six novels and five non-fiction books, and the editor of two short-story collections. His bestselling memoir We Can Be Heroes: A Survivor’s Story was published in 2023.

Jay Gadhia is a QPOC poet, artist and teacher. He has always written but has only recently developed his spoken word / performance poetry. His artwork and poetry tend to focus on the Asian queer experience and explore cultural and racial history. A great deal of his work focusses on faith, as well as unpicking the complications of relationships.

Roma Havers is a queer poet, theatre-maker and unsolicited go-go dancer – from your hometown but living in Manchester with their partner, allotment and every stone they’ve ever pocketed. Commissioned by Orchestra’s Live, Manchester City of Literature and Manchester Museum, among many others, they are known for their ‘joyful, communal and tender’ work. They have been published in Ink Sweat and Tears, Verve Poetry Prize (Shortlisted), The North and Under the Radar. Alongside their poetry work, they have produced writer development programmes, mentored many poets and produced work for performance including their show LOB, which toured the North West and Belfast in 2022, with their play Helmet with Laughter Lines being longlisted for the Bruntwood Playwriting prize the same year. They were winner of the 2024 Northern Writers’ Award for Poetry with The Natural Way, their first collection with Carcanet Press.

Jane Traies is a queer historian, writer and storyteller whose work focuses on preserving the stories of marginalised women’s lives. Her best-known book, Now You See Me, is a collection of older lesbian life stories. Her second life-history collection, Free to Be Me, captures the stories of a group of lesbian and bisexual women seeking asylum in the UK. Writing jointly with Jacky Bratton, Jane is also half of the sapphic historical novelist Jay Taverner. Their latest title, Liberty, is the fourth adventure in the ‘Brynsquilver’ series. Jane’s latest book, Three Thousand Lesbians Go to York, tells the story of the York Lesbian Arts Festival, the UK’s largest and longest lasting gathering of lesbian, bi and queer women, and of Libertas!, the bookshop that founded it. A treasure trove of inclusive queer history, 3000 Lesbians includes the memories of Jackie Kay, Stella Duffy, Sarah Waters, Val McDermid, Horse McDonald, festival founder Jenny Roberts and many others who attended or organised the festival.

Friday 8 May

7pm-8.45pm

Amped, 29 Zetland St, HD1 2RA

£9 (£7 conc), free for University of Huddersfield staff and students & essential carers accompanying a ticket holder.

Age Guidance: 16+

Access Guide: https://www.accessable.co.uk/huddersfield-literature-festival/access-guides/amped

Book tickets

Access: if you have specific access needs or seating preferences, please contact our Admin team at [email protected] with your request.

Concession & Carers: For further information on concession and essential carer tickets, please visit our FAQ’s page.

Eventbrite note: When purchasing tickets please download the Eventbrite ‘app’ or ‘create an Eventbrite account’. This will facilitate quicker access to your tickets.

Poetry Slam 2026

Prepare to be entertained by 10 fabulous poets as they compete to become our 2026 Slam Champ.

The evening will be hosted by the award-winning poet and multiple slam champion, Rose Condo, with a guest spot from our 2025 Slam winner Loll the Poet.

First Prize: £50, and a guest spot at our 2027 Poetry Slam. 

To apply:

Send a video (max length 3 minutes, phone videos accepted) of you performing your work to [email protected] by Monday 13 April.

Terms and Conditions

To apply please Send a video (max length three minutes) of you performing your work to [email protected] (it’s fine to use a phone to record your video).  See above for deadline.
We will only view one application per person. Further applications will be ignored.
We regret that we cannot view any applications received after the deadline.
Successful artists should hear back from us by five working days after the deadline.
Due to application numbers we are unable to get back to all applicants that have been unsuccessful.

SLAM RULES

Poetry must be your own original work
No singing or props.
There will be two rounds. The poets will draw numbers from a hat and perform in that order. In the second round the order will be reversed.
Poets have 3 minutes to perform their poetry. The clock starts from the very first thing you say – including hello.

Points will be deducted for over-running as follows:

1-9 seconds minus 1 point
10-19 seconds minus 2 points
20-29 seconds minus 3 points
30 seconds minus 4 points, host will stop you, you’ll be judged on your incomplete poem

The poets will be scored out of 10 in two categories. Written content and quality of performance. The highest total score over both rounds wins £50. In the event of a tie there will be a final sudden death round
Judges’ decisions are final. Please remember the slam motto: “The points are not the point, the poetry is the point.”

Saturday 16 May

7.30pm-10pm

Amped, 29 Queensgate, HD1 2RD

£12 (£9 conc), free for essential carers accompanying a ticket holder.

Age guidance: 16+

Access Guide: https://www.accessable.co.uk/huddersfield-literature-festival/access-guides/amped

Book tickets

NOTE: the 10 poets performing will have free entry but their supporters will need to buy a ticket.

Access: if you have specific access needs or seating preferences, please contact our Admin team at [email protected] with your request.

Concession & Carers: For further information on concession and essential carer tickets, please visit our FAQ’s page.

Eventbrite note: When purchasing tickets please download the Eventbrite ‘app’ or ‘create an Eventbrite account’. This will facilitate quicker access to your tickets.

An Evening with Lemn Sissay

Inspirational poet and Festival Patron Lemn Sissay OBE returns with a life-affirming and electrifying performance of his work.

In the first half of his set, he will revisit past work from his collections such as Gold from the Stone. After the interval, Lemn will perform a selection of the short poems he creates every morning at dawn, collected in the anthology Let the Light Pour In. Poignant, often humorous, these poems are fuelled by resilience and defiant joy.

The performance of 2 x 40-minute sets with a 20-minute interval will be followed by a book signing.

About Lemn Sissay

Lemn Sissay OBE is a poet, playwright, memoirist, performer and broadcaster. He is the author of several poetry collections, including Gold from the Stone, the No 1 Sunday Times bestselling memoir My Name Is Why and the children’s book Don’t Ask The Dragon, illustrated by Gregg Stobbs.

Lemn was awarded The Pen Pinter Prize in 2019 and has been nominated for and won numerous awards for his writing, TV documentaries, radio work and plays. He was the first poet commissioned to write for the London Olympics 2012 and has judged many prestigious literary competitions. He has also worked in music over the years, including with Leftfield, Baaba Maal and the BBC Proms.

In 2015 he brought a legal case against the government for critical mistakes in the first 18 years of his life; the government settled out of court in 2018. In 2020, the BBC series imagine… broadcast a two-part documentary about his life, ‘The Memory of Me’.

In 2021 he was named OBE for services to Literature and Charity. The University of Huddersfield has awarded him an honorary doctorate, and has also established the Lemn Sissay PhD scholarship for Care Leavers.

Thursday 30 April

7pm-8.40pm

The Civic, Huddersfield Road, Holmfirth HD9 3AS

£20 (£18 conc)

Age guidance: 14+ (U16s should be accompanied by an adult)

Access Information: https://www.accessable.co.uk/huddersfield-literature-festival/access-guides/the-civic-holmfirth

Book tickets

Access: if you have specific access needs or seating preferences, please contact our Admin team at [email protected] with your request.

Concession & Carers: For further information on concession and essential carer tickets, please visit our FAQ’s page.

Eventbrite note: When purchasing tickets please download the Eventbrite ‘app’ or ‘create an Eventbrite account’. This will facilitate quicker access to your tickets.