Right now, this part of the Black Country is a hotbed of poetic talent. On Saturday, Wolverhampton poetry collective Poets, Prattlers, and Pandemonialists ran the Shrewsbury Literature Festival poetry slam, an event which has grown massively over the past few years and now attracts poets from across the UK. It also attracts a large audience (on Zoom this year, for obvious reasons) who came to watch the fifteen contestants fight it out for the prize of a paid gig at next year’s festival.
This year, the competing poets came from across the Midlands, and as far afield as Swindon, Leeds, and Northern Ireland, and every single one of them produced compelling performances. The winner? That was Walsall poet Gerald Kells, who saw off his talented rivals – and won his first ever slam – to claim the prize. Put the date in your dairies and make sure to see him at Shrewsbury Lterature Festival in the last weekend of November 2021!
Meanwhile, the pandemonialists move seamlessly on to their final Yes We Cant poetry event of the year. Normally this would be held at the Pretty Bricks in Walsall. Now, it is (of course) on Zoom. They’ve developed a reputation over the years for pulling out all the poetry stops for their December event, and – true to form – they’re rounding off 2020 in style, with a headline set from spoken word superstar Luke Wright, while Chrys Salt claims the ‘Alf Ender slot. Demand for this event is going to be high, so get in quick to book a place in the audience, and enjoy top-quality poetry from the comfort of your own sofa. There’s no better way to get ready for Xmas!
