Ted Hughes poetry festival returns to Mexborough

A POPULAR poetry festival will spring star names to Mexborough over the coming two weeks.
Ted HughesTed Hughes
Ted Hughes

A whole host of award-winning poets will be performing to lucky audience members at events in and around Mexborough as part of a celebration of the town’s poetic past.

The Ted Hughes Festival 2017 is the third annual festival in the name of the late poet laureate, who lived in the town for seven years.

It will celebrate creativity in the Dearne Valley through an exciting programme of events including canal walks, talks and takeovers of public spaces. 

This is all on top of the performances from world class poets including Simon Armitage, Vahni Capildeo and Linton Kwesi Johnson.

The festival, supported by arts group Right Up Our Street, takes place between June 23 and 25.

The main events kick off on Friday, June 23, at Mexborough Business Centre with an evening of poetry featuring a wealth of performers.

Poetry-themed events will take over the town centre the following morning, while more talks and performances from unmissable acts will round out the day.

And on Sunday, June 25, the festival will launch the Ted Hughes Trail, a two-mile walk highlighting locations important to the great writer. 

This event will take visitors on a tour of the paths trodden along Ted Hughes’ Paper Round, as recently featured on Radio 4’s The Echo Chamber.

Starting at 75 Main Street at 11am, it will be led by festival organiser  Dominic Somers and poet Steve Ely and take in the route of Hughes’ childhood delivery round through Mexborough and Old Denaby.

Dominic said: “We are immensely excited to welcome award-winning poets to our town as part of a celebration of the poetic heritage here.

“We hope people from far and wide come to join our world class line-up and share in the brilliant festival we have in store for them.”

Rachel Ryan from Right Up Our Street said: “It has been fantastic to see this event grow each year. 

“It started in 2015 as a Right Up Our Street project and has since developed and gained other external funding to enable it to grow. 

“We are really proud to be able to support creative events like this.”

Prices across the whole programme of events vary, with many being free, and can be found along with more details and information about how to book at www.tedhughesproject.com.

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