Surrey’s Big Poetry Weekend celebrates creativity, connection and community

Award-winning poets, spoken word performers, workshops and open mic events come together this August as Surrey’s Big Poetry Weekend aims to show that poetry belongs to everyone.

What does poetry mean to you? For many it will bring back classroom memories of reciting and then being quizzed about ‘what the poet was trying to achieve’.

The Surrey Poet Laureateship is a volunteer-led arts organisation dedicated to making poetry accessible, empowering and representative of the people of Surrey and this weekend, August 1st & 2nd, is the culmination of two years of community building and belief in the power of poetry to bring people together.

Over the past two years, the Surrey Poet Laureateship has created poetry hubs and welcomed more than 200 open mic performers to share their work publicly. It now hopes to bring that same spirit of creativity, accessibility and community to a large-scale annual festival that celebrates Surrey’s poets while welcoming some of the most exciting names in contemporary UK poetry.

Festivalgoers can expect a packed programme across the weekend, including headline performances featuring some of the most exciting names in UK poetry such as Len Pennie, Bradley Taylor and Dakota Warren, alongside a line up of celebrated Surrey poets and emerging voices.

A series of inspiring talks exploring poetry, creativity, and literary life will hear from voices including Adam Gary, Nia Broomhall and Katie Griffiths. Festival panels will bring together poets, performers, educators and creatives for lively discussions exploring poetry’s place in modern life.

Attendees will also have the opportunity to learn directly from experienced poets through hands-on workshops covering writing, performance, creativity, and spoken word, as well as a special performance workshop led by Bradley Taylor, and a poetry for beginners workshop with Surrey Poet Laureate, Adam Gary.

A key feature of Surrey’s Big Poetry Weekend will be its Community Meet-Ups initiative, allowing festivalgoers to help shape the festival experience themselves. Whether attendees are passionate about Victorian poetry, spoken word, performance technique, niche poetry movements, or simply want to meet like-minded creatives, the festival is inviting the public to organise their own community gatherings throughout the weekend.

Adam Gary, President of the Laureateship, says: “When we launched the Surrey Poet Laureateship, people told us poetry was struggling. What we’ve found is the opposite. People are hungry for connection, creativity, and spaces where they can express themselves and be heard. Surrey’s Big Poetry Weekend is our biggest leap yet. We’re bringing together nationally recognised poets, celebrated Surrey voices, and complete newcomers under one roof because we believe poetry should belong to everyone. We want people to leave inspired, connected, and excited about what poetry can do.”

Visit surreypoetlaureateship.org/bigpoetryweekend for more & to book.

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