CREATIVE young lyricists from Rugby High School have beaten thousands of competitors to win prizes in a prestigious poetry competition.
Ananditha Venkatramanan from Year 10 and Arthur Lawson from Year 13 were invited to Shakepeare’s Globe Theatre in London to receive their Foyle Young Poets of the Year Awards.
Their entries were among the top 100 winning poems out of over 15,000 submitted by 11-17 year olds.
They won a year’s youth membership of The Poetry Society and a bag full of books donated by publishers.
Their poems will be published in an online anthology next spring, and The Poetry Society will provide publication, performance and development opportunities, and access to a paid internship programme.
Poet judges Jane Yeh and Jonathan Edwards said they were inspired by what they read.
Jane said: “I was astonished – and humbled – to read so many poems brimming over with inventiveness, ambition, and sheer quality.
“The standard of numerous entrants’ work displayed remarkable maturity and talent.
“I look forward to reading many of these writers’ work in years to come.”
Jonathan added: “The poems show such joy and invention in language that it is an absolute pleasure to spend time with them.”
The Foyle Young Poets of the Year Award is the biggest poetry competition for 11-17 year olds in the world, and has kickstarted the careers of young poets since it began 25 years ago. Visit https://tinyurl.com/34wzeubu for more information.
