Join us in Dublin on April 18th!
Our 21st Festival launches at 7pm in Poetry Ireland on Thursday, April 18th with an eclectic mix of new and established poets reading their work ahead of the festival in May. The launch evening will also include the reveal of this year’s Festival Anthology featuring poems shortlisted for festival competitions and from invited guests. Strokestown International Poetry Festival runs in County Roscommon over May Bank Holiday weekend, starting on Poetry Day Ireland, Thursday, May 2nd, and continuing until Bank Holiday Monday, May 6th. As always, there will be a must-see line up of international and Irish poets, including former National Poet of Wales Gillian Clarke, award winners Tara Bergin, Iggy McGovern, James Harpur, Enda Wyley, Ceaití Ní Bheildiúin, Paddy Bushe, and this year’s international competition judges Jo Shapcott and Gerard Smyth. There will be more than 70 readings over the weekend, from beginners to old-hands, schoolchildren, competition finalists, and local and international writers. There’ll be the results of six competitions, with film screenings, book launches, workshops, and music – you won’t want to miss any of it! Most of the readings are free to attend, with a small charge for only a handful of ticketed events.
Competition Shortlists
Our shortlists have all now been announced (with the exception of the local schools’ contests), most recently the finalists of the Roscommon Poets’ Prize have been revealed: https://www.strokestownpoetry.org/roscommon-poets-prize-2019/
Go online and follow the links to read the poems: https://www.strokestownpoetry.org/strokestown-international-poetry-prize-2019/
Percy French Competition for Comic Verse: https://www.strokestownpoetry.org/percy-french-prize-2019/
and the Irish language competition, Duais de hÍde: https://www.strokestownpoetry.org/duais-de-hide-2019/