Nottinghamshire libraries present a week of wonderful words at the Inspire Poetry Festival 2025

Headlining this year’s festival are acclaimed poets Imtiaz Dharker and Romalyn Ante. Dharker is a poet, artist and video filmmaker. She was awarded the Queen’s Gold Medal for Poetry in 2014, and her seven collections of poetry include Over the Moon, which was shortlisted for the Ted Hughes Award for New Work in Poetry 2014. Her poems are on the British GCSE and A Level English syllabus. In the words of Carol Ann Duffy, “If there were to be a World Laureate, the role could only be filled by Imtiaz Dharker”. She’ll be making her appearance at West Bridgford Library on Thursday 25 September speaking to author and Bromley House Library Director, Clare Brown, about her desert island poems before reading from her own work.

Second headliner Romalyn Ante is a nurse and award-winning poet. Her debut collection Antiemetic for Homesickness was shortlisted for the Jhalak Prize and longlisted for the Dylan Thomas Prize. It focused on her own personal experiences in childhood, living in the Philippines while her mother relocated to the UK for work as a nurse. Her latest collection AGIMAT draws once again from her experiences, including her time as a nurse herself in the COVID-19 pandemic. AGIMAT moves between the Philippines and Wolverhampton, myth and the grind of the present-day NHS. These are poems of strength and solace; they question what it means to fight, and what it takes to heal. Ante will be closing the Inspire Poetry Festival with a headline performance at West Bridgford Library on Thursday 2 October, following her special workshop earlier that day. The workshop, Chasing Sunlight: Poems of Play, Memory, and Growing Up, will link to National Poetry Day’s theme of play, exploring memories of childhood through reflection and creative prompts.

The Inspire Poetry Festival first began at Southwell Library, and while the festival now reaches audiences up and down the county, events will once again return to Southwell Library with two film screenings and a Poetry Bingo event. On Thursday 25 September, families can celebrate the launch of the festival with poetic film Small World Cinema: The Red Balloon (PG), which follows the journey of a young Parisian boy who discovers a red balloon with a will of its own. Following the short film, families can craft together a poetry book inspired by their favourite film – a great way to engage the younger generation! Later that evening, poetry lovers can take part in Poetry Bingo, where poems will be drawn from a selection and performed live by members of Hexameter – a group of poets from Sheffield, Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire who meet at the library. On Thursday 2 October, Southwell audiences can sit back and relax with a screening of Bright Star (PG), a romance following 19th century romantic poet John Keats and his love Fanny Brawne. 

Workshops are always a key part of the Inspire Poetry Festival, inspiring those with an interest in poetry to get creative and write their own. This year’s selection is particularly exciting, with events associated with the touring exhibition, Into the Light: Pioneers in Black British Ballet. The Black British Ballet programme is a unique partnership between creative agency Oxygen Arts and Libraries Connected, funded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund. The poetry sessions at Worksop Library are led by Marsha Lowe and Dr. Panya Banjoko, and provide the opportunity to explore poetry inspired by art, with participants learning about the lives of Black dancers in British ballet before using activities and prompts to develop their poetic and balletic ideas. Similarly, Andrew Graves’ workshop at Mansfield Central Library Folklore and Poetry will use history and folklore to inspire creative writing, with consideration given to Nottinghamshire’s own rich heritage of lace and mining.

Inspire are working with some fantastic well-established groups during this year’s festival. Beeston Library will be home to two of these, with their resident poetry collective Paper Crane Poets performing a showcase on Friday 26 September, featuring a range of local poets. On Saturday 27 September, Beeston locals can also enjoy a poetry workshop - Beyond the Spectrum: Poetry Workshop for Neurodivergent People. First created in 2021, Writing East Midlands’ Beyond the Spectrum is a groundbreaking writing project aimed at disproving misconceptions around neurodivergence. 

Among those also getting excited for this week-long celebration are Eastwood Library, who will be hosting their first Eastwood Poetry Day – combining their Poems While You Wait drop-in session with a morning of poetry sharing. The nearby DH Lawrence Birthplace Museum will be visiting with some local historical artefacts, aiming to prompt discussion, memories, and poetry. Lunch will be provided (kindly funded by Arc Partnership) before the library’s Places of Welcome session begins, a weekly coffee and chat group designed to encourage community and prevent isolation.

For those looking to develop their poetic practice and even perform for others, Bad Ideas Club workshops and the following showcase are perfect. Nottingham-based publishers Bad Betty Press have gathered a group of four poets who will be leading workshops in libraries from now until mid-September: Chris Lanyon, Leanne Moden, Casey Bailey and Georgina Wilding who was the first Nottingham UNESCO City of Literature Young Poet Laureate. Suitable for new and experienced writers, the workshops will be a safe space to explore ideas while learning more about technique in the process. Bad Ideas Club workshops are taking place at Mansfield Central Library, Newark Library, and Hucknall Library on selected dates through August and September. Those taking part in the workshops are also particularly welcome at the Bad Ideas Club: Poetry Showcase, taking place at Mansfield Central Library during the Inspire Poetry Festival on Saturday 27 September where they can perform some of the work created during the sessions.

If the thought of performing for a crowd ignites a spark in participants, the Inspire Poetry Festival programme also proves itself a support for those considering a career in poetry or entering into publication. On Sunday 28 September, James Trevelyan from Birmingham publisher The Emma Press will be at West Bridgford Library hosting his Whiching and Pitching: Planning Your First Poetry Pamphlet workshop, where he’ll be sharing tips and tricks to get noticed by publishers, what editors are looking for, and common pitfalls to avoid. The following day at Beeston Library, local publishers Five Leaves Publications will be celebrating the launch of two poets’ new pamphlets: Rainbow Candles by Tony Challis, and Fragments by Tara Singh.

During the week of the Inspire Poetry Festival, libraries will be awash with opportunities to get involved including a haiku fortune teller craft activity sheet, and tips on how to create blackout poetry. After the festival concludes, Inspire encourage readers to continue discovering new collections with their range of poetry books stocked around the county. As is the same with other stock, poetry books can be borrowed for up to three weeks at a time completely free of charge – a Nottinghamshire library card is the key to exploring your poetic preferences!

In all, this year’s Inspire Poetry Festival is one not to be missed; a week of wonderful workshops, performances and more, that are a must-see for poetry lovers and curious minds.