Cheltenham Poetry Festival

About

Cheltenham Poetry Festival offers an annual 10-day programme of exciting live literature events each spring and a year-round online programme of workshops and poetry lounges.

The 2025 Cheltenham Poetry Festival will take place 7 - 17 May at venues across Cheltenham. 

This year, words meet the wonders of the universe as they explore the remarkable relationship between poetry and science! Their guests include renowned Radio 4 broadcaster and host of The Infinite Monkey Cage Robin Ince who joins Jo Durrant for a lively discussion that intertwines science, humour, and poetry, Poetry and Pythagoras; an exploration of the intersections between poetry and mathematics and
Origins; featuring Oxford University Professor of Theoretical Physics, Joseph Conlon, who will share poems from his a collection that illuminates the birth of the universe through verse.

Throughout the festival, visitors can look forward to readings from poets whose works are inspired by biochemistry, physics, astronomy as well as other themes which include healing from trauma, the power of poetry to shed light in dark times, the joys and consolations of nature and much, much more.

Attendees will also have the opportunity to participate in workshops, the legendary poetry slam, and engage with both widely published locally-sourced poets and visiting writers including Michael Symmons Roberts, Marvin Thompson, Sean Borodale, Pat Edwards, Fiona Benson, Vanessa Lampert, JLM Morton, slam-champ Shakquille, Barry Hollow, Lily Redwood, Lesley Curwen, Roy McFarlane, Ruth Padel, BBC Head of History Robert Seatter. And, to complement the in-person festival, the Festival is serving up some electrifying and diverse online readings featuring Samatar Elmi, Anthony Vahni Capildeo, Fran Lock, Anthony Anaxagorou and others.

Launched by poet Anna Saunders in 2011, the Festival kicked off with a sell-out performance by iconic punk poet John Cooper Clarke at Cheltenham Town Hall.  It has since gone from strength to strength with audiences who appreciate intellectually-stimulating live literature growing rapidly.

In the last fourteen years the Festival has offered events featuring our greatest living poets, spoken word artists, musicians, actors, dancers, writers and film makers. It focuses on empathic, wise and visionary thinkers and prize understanding, equality and intelligence above celebrities and establishment figures who, in many cases, spread hatred and misinformation under the guise of being ' controversial'.

The Festival also offers an extensive outreach programme for those who suffer economic, physical and other barriers to cultural inclusion.

Full programme announcement coming soon.