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Walking Away review – Simon Armitage’s prosaic nation

The poet’s account of walking the South West Coast Path could have done with a bit more – well, poetryIn 2010, Simon Armitage walked the Pennine Way, proceeding north to south in the direction of his...

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Poem of the week: The Measure by Jon Silkin

This complex investigation into the significance of love is a fascinating example of 20th-century metaphysical poetryWe all cry for love;But what if we get it? To holdIn sex, and affection,The adored...

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Poet beats Peter Mandelson in race to be Manchester University chancellor

Lemn Sissay – poet, broadcaster and playwright – gets 7,131 votes, beating Hallé music director Sir Mark Elder and the Labour grandee to ceremonial post The Labour grandee Peter Mandelson has failed in...

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Through the Moon short film: the poets of Manus and Nauru – video

Janet Galbraith coordinates a writing group for asylum seekers called Writing Through Fences. They write about their traumatic experiences and also their beautiful moments, shared on Facebook. 'People...

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The Curiosities by Christopher Reid – a collection with a capital ‘C’

From cherries and cufflinks to couches and cravings, Reid’s poetry is not constrained by its USPSpare a thought for the poor souls condemned to write poetry blurbs. Critics can argue for years –...

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Lemn Sissay, foster child, poet and university chancellor: ‘Everything I know...

He beat Peter Mandelson to be elected chancellor of Manchester University, but this doesn’t mean it is ‘time for a party’ – Lemn Sissay is determined to use his new role to help more of his fellow...

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Annie Freud interview: ‘Why I’ve finally embraced the family name’

The poet talks about grand bohemian circles, being a late starter and saying no to a nude to be painted by her father Lucian FreudAnnie Freud lives on a smallholding in Dorset with a dog, sheep,...

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Poetic visions: my Vingt Regards to Messiaen

Messiaen’s epic Twenty Contemplations on the infant Jesus is one of the great 20th‑century pieces for piano. Ahead of a recital, Michael Symmons Roberts explains how its composition at the end of the...

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The Saturday poem: Night in Arizona

by Sarah HoweThe last of the sheet I shuffle off an ankle – a sound like the spilling of sandfrom shovel and the night air blursfor a second with its footfall.Our entwined shape a word in the dark.On...

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Poem of the week: Song by 'Tzŭ-Yeh', translated by Arthur Waley

A flirtatious fourth-century confession of a young woman’s passion is vivid, sharp and sensualAt the time when blossomsFall from the cherry-tree:On a day when yellow birdsHovered in the branches -You...

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Poet Claudia Rankine: ‘The invisibility of black women is astounding’

The writer asked friends for their experiences of everyday racism and turned them into the award-winning Citizen. Here she talks about the power of making private anecdotes publicWhen Serena Williams...

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Students Express: share your spoken word videos

Young people and students: we’d like to see your spoken word videos on the theme of heatHere at Guardian Students, we aim to provide a platform for a wide range of student and young voices. Students...

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Readers recommend: minimalist songs | Peter Kimpton

Stripped back, pared down, sparse or pure? Suggest music that in sound or lyrics expresses clarity or simplicity distilled down to its fighting weight“Less is more,” said the architect Ludwig Mies Van...

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Poster poems: ruins

Symbols of endurance as much as transience, these remnants of another age open on to a great variety of themes. Please share what you can build from the shards of historyAs the latest Greek drama has...

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How we made HaikuJAM, the collaborative creativity app | App story

The app that encourages ‘jammers’ to collaborate through the Japanese art of Haiku has seen some unexpected usesMore app storiesHaikuJAM is a mobile app through which three people can connect to create...

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Lawrence Ferlinghetti: ‘Most of the poets were on something, but somebody had...

The publisher of the Beats talks about Ginsberg the showman, the Albert hall ‘happening’ and how one of his own poets emptied the City Lights tillBreast the brow of Stockton Street in North Beach, San...

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Happiness by Jack Underwood review – death, depression and boiled eggs

Universal truths huddle among the asparagus in a poetry collection that delights in the domesticIn a short YouTube video made for the Poetry Society, Jack Underwood asks why anyone should care about...

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Poem of the week: The Silver Swan by Anon

Artfully simple, this poem can be enjoyed for its pristine surface, but also suggests a melancholy allegory The Silver SwanThe silver Swan, who, living, had no Note,When Death approached, unlocked her...

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Four weeks left to enter the Foyle young poets of the year award 2015

Newsflash: The prestigious poetry competition for 11-17 year-olds closes for entries on 31 July 2015. Don’t miss your chance to enter! There are just under four weeks left to enter the internationally...

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Simon Armitage: Making poetry pay - Podcast

In a culture that has consigned poetry to the margins, Armitage has become something very rare: a genuinely popular British poet. Aida Edemariam hits the road with the busiest man in verse• Click here...

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