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Latest Anthology from Writers Group programme
membership
contacts
& address for post
Local Poets Laureate List Liverpool Poets Places to find poems Nobel Prize Winners (Literature, just a selection) In 2011 Shortlands Poetry Circle celebrated our 100th year! See: Centenary Just
a few of us:
Shortlands Poetry Circle was established in 1911 by Miss Catherine Punch. Its aim was to promote the study and appreciation of poetry, and it has been going strong and remained true to that aim ever since. "Edward VII had died the year before. Stainless steel had not been invented. Dylan Thomas had not been born. Stravinsky was yet to compose The Rite of Spring" (Christopher Highton, Past President, 1997). The group continued to meet regularly through both World Wars and, in 1947, it became the North-West Kent Branch of the English Association and was long affiliated to Bromley Arts Council (now Bromley Arts Trust). The Circle also enjoyed long-standing relationships with both the Poetry Society and the Poetry Library at the Southbank. Along the way, the Circle has given birth to a Drama Group, alas now disbanded, and, soon after the end of the Second World War, a Writers' Group (ages ranging from twenties to eighties), which has produced five anthologies of poetry (in 1971; for the Circle's Diamond Jubilee in 1981; in 1997; each passing breeze at the start of the Centenary year; and the rainbow comes and goes, in 2021, celebrating the Circle's 110th anniversary). Sweet
are the pleasures that to verse belong, "so
wrote John Keats to his friend George Felton Matthew" A friendly and informal group, the reading Circle meets regularly for the reading (never our own, but for one annual programmed meeting) and enjoyment of poetry, followed by a general get-together over tea and biscuits. Discussions are lively, the topics are wide-ranging (see programme) and the selection of poets' work varies from the old favourites to the newest and less-well-known, with often surprising and exciting choices, often from the Laureate List or local poet list. There is a Summer Celebration meeting, where entertainment is provided (ticket sale event), an annual 'Portfolio' reading event run by the Circle's writers, a celebratory Christmas reading, occasional 'special' events, such as a quiz or readings, and the group is occasionally involved in collaborative events with other local groups and gives periodic readings at suitable outreach venues (Contact President if you would like to discuss a project). Latest
anthology of poems by Members and Past-Members Our writers have come together once again to celebrate an anniversary - in this case, the 10th anniversary of our Centenary.
Visitors are most welcome at the meetings (£2.50 donation including refreshment - see getting there), as are new and potential members of all ages (see Membership).
The programme is set
well in advance so that there is plenty of time to
research the poets or topic of the day and make
your selections. (see Great
places to look for poems) Meetings are twice a month, on Tuesdays, during the academic year, from 2:30 to 4:30pm at Ripley Arts Centre and one online meeting each month, on a Monday, using Zoom.
Please feel free to
print the programme and pass copies
to your friends and colleagues. We also have a mailing list. Please let us know if you would like to receive the new programmes as they are published, and details of our special events as they arise, by joining our mailing list Date Poem Topic Autumn 2024 Live: Tue 26 Nov Seasonal poems Online: Mon 2 Dec Seasonal poems OR Topic: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow Live: Tue 10 Dec Topic: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow Spring 2025 for Jan/Feb meetings: see our Laureate List Live: Tue 14 Jan Open Choice & Short Talk: Ann Barlow on Rabindranath Tagore Online:
Mon 20 Jan Open Choice OR Poems
by Poet Laureates to 1900 Live:
Tue 28 Jan Poems
by Poet Laureates to 1900 Live: Tue 11 Feb Topic: Sight & Sound Online:
Mon 17 Feb Topic: Sight &
Sound OR Poems by Poet Laureates from 1900 Live:
Tue 25 Feb Poems
by Poet Laureates from 1900 Live: Tue 11 Mar AGM & 1 poem from all present, Open Choice Online: Mon 17 Mar Open Choice OR Topic: Parents & Children Live: Tue 25 Mar Topic: Parents & Children and diary dates for Summer term 2025: live, Tue: Apr 22 May 13 & 27 Jun 10 & 24 Jul 8 online,
Mon: Apr 14
May 19 Jun 16 Jul
14 Membership is by annual subscription, with a reduction for those joining after the Spring term. The rates are currently (w.e.f. AGM, March 20):
Full Membership
£30
(members who expect to attend most meetings)
Associate Membership
£ 15 (members who expect to attend intermittently
Visitors
live
meetings £ 2.50
donation per visit, including 50p for refreshments President: Anne Stewart +44(0) 1689 811394 / +44 (0) 7850 537489 e-mail Membership Secretary: Christine Pope +44(0) 208 464 9810 Correspondence by post: Shortlands Poetry Circle, c/o 20 Clovelly Way, Orpington, BR6 0WD. Ripley Arts Centre - how to get there: First, let us know you're coming so we can look out for you! Contact the Membership Secretary. Regular Venue: Ripley Arts Centre, 24 Sundridge Avenue, Bromley, BR1 2PX. For Ripley Arts Centre, google map has a "get 'there' from 'here' function", for directions by road. There are a few parking spaces in the grounds for those with walking difficulties (entry from the North part of Sundridge Avenue), and local street-parking (e.g. in the road opposite and in the West part of Sundridge Avenue). By Rail: The nearest station is Elmstead Woods (on the Orpington line). The walk from there to Ripley Arts Centre is probably at least 15 minutes, along Elmstead Lane and Sundridge Avenue. Bus: Number 314 (Bromley to Eltham route).
Great places to look for poems: Local Library Independent and Second-hand bookshops:
The
Kirkdale Bookshop, Kirkdale Road, Sydenham; Beckenham Bookshop, High Street, Beckenham — if they haven't got what you're looking for, they will usually be able to get it for you within 24 hours Barely Read Books, The Green, Westerham—we've heard this is a very good second-hand bookshop but not whether it has a poetry section (we'd be glad to hear from you if you know) On the net: Ancient: Bartleby English Verse Poem Hunter
Modern:
nth
position
Peony
Moon
Poethead (women
poets) Old and New: Black Cat Poems Schmoop We'd love to know your favourites. If you'd like to contribute, please email the details of your favourite poetry places to the site editor Ben Jonson and Sir William D'Avenant are considered by some to have been 'unofficial' laureates, but the formal list begins with the appointment of Dryden:
“The Mersey
Sound”, edited by Adrian Henri and first published in 1967, is still
obtainable. the most well-known:
their contemporaries:
others with Liverpool connections:
We'll add more if we find them! Local Poets - just a few of them...
and current/past Circle members/associate members: Nick
ALLDRIDGE Isabel
BERMUDEZ Jean
ELLIS
Wikipedia has a 'Winners for Literature' list here with links to pages about them. Amongst them, these names most may have come across in relation to poetry:
SHORTLANDS POETRY CIRCLE CENTENARY, 2011 Letters of Congratulation
from: What a year! It's all behind us now, including the painstaking archiving of the year's records... Who knows what our successors will be looking for in 2111! It has been tremendous fun and I think we'll still be talking about our Centenary Lunch, with our wonderful guest poet, Alan Brownjohn, when we're putting our next set of celebratory events together, whenever that may be. Meantime, a selection of our photos are gathered here. Tues
15
Mar 11: launch of celebratory
anthology "each passing breeze" 7th
May: Spring Into Summer ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 17th
June: Members gave a reading at The Croft Tearoom, St Mary Cray ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 28th
June: Centenary Lunch at the Bromley Court Hotel ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 8th October: We invited 5 modern poets to give us a 'Poet Taster' at the Beckenham Bookshop. Michael
Bartholomew-Biggs, June English, Katherine Gallagher, Each poet gave a short but impressive reading of 12 minutes - and each so different! Lesley McLetchie read from the Writers' celebratory anthology for the centenary, each passing breeze, and Maggie Hoyle read poems from the 'Schools Portfolio' - poems written by the students of local schools, who were invited to take part in our Centenary 'Schools Poetry Project'. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Shortlands
Poetry Circle wishes to thank Enitharmon Press for their generous
Enitharmon
Press are publishers of poetry and high quality art books: and
a special thank you to local
schools for taking part in our Schools Poetry Project,
A Selection of Photos from Shortlands Poetry Circle Events
Centenary Lunch, Bromley Court Hotel, 28th June 2011 Photos courtesy & copyright © Isabel Turvey
Poet Taster reading, Beckenham Bookshop, 8th October 2011 photos by & copyright © Maggie Hoyle & Anne Stewart
photos from the launch of the Writers Group anthology, "each passing breeze" at Beckenham Bookshop on 15th March 2011 Photos courtesy & copyright © Isabel Turvey
Getting into the Centenary spirit... photos from the "Interiors & Exteriors" reading on the 8th February 2011
Bryan Corrin
Shortlands Poetry Circle, 2006 just a few of the members
Left to right: Ann Barlow, Lesley McLetchie, Joyce Remmett, Patsy Paine, Bryan
Corrin & Wyn Parkinson, Elizabeth Sibsey, Dorothy Clift, Alan Smith, Pat Jacobs & Maggie Hoyle
Note: this page created for Shortlands
Poetry Circle by poetry p f
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