Ledbury Poetry Festival returns with big names to inspire town

Ledbury Poetry Festival has also been inspiring residents and local businesses to get involved.

The Waterstones Children’s Poet Laureate, Joseph Coelho, presented the Ledbury Young Poets Prizes and appeared in an event at The Master’s House.

Gardener’s World presenter Monty Don, bestselling children’s author Michael Morpurgo and Mercury Prize winner Sam Lee have also appeared at festival events.

The Malthouse Cafe's window display (Image: Ledbury Poetry Festival)

Shops around Ledbury have joined in the spirit of the festival by dressing their windows for the Poetry in Blookm competition.

The Malthouse Cafe in Church Lane was named as the winner but Peter Arscott, the Ledbury Poetry Chair, who judged the competition, said there were many impressive displays.

“If it’s to be one winner it is The Malthouse. whose use of space made their display an all-round art installation,” he said.

“But there were so many good displays, from The Kitchen Cupboard’s colour scheme to Stooke Hill and Walsh’s humorous window poem, Tinsmith’s poetry bloom and raft’s cloud of paper poems, and Renaissance’s quiet, almost reverential, homage to Wordsworth.

READ MORE: Prize-winning poets and singers head to Ledbury for poetry festival

“Who knew so many of our shops are run by creatives?”

The festival is entering its final few days but is far from over.

The popular Ledbury Poetry Slam returns this Saturday (July 8), starting at 7.30pm at the Market Theatre.

Sunday (July 9) sees the return of Ledbury Celebration - a fun, free event centred around St Katherine’s Car Park and the Master’s House.

Poet Laureate Simon Armitage will be at Hellens Manor at 8pm on Sunday with his band LYR.

And next Thursday (July 13), John Masefield High School pupils will perform their poems at Ledbury Poetry House, mentored by hip hop artist and performance poet Karl Nova.