We are delighted to announce the shortlist of ten poems in the running to win the 11th Annual Bangor Poetry Competition, which is part of Aspects Literary Festival. The theme of this year’s competition was ‘In the grand scheme of things.’ The winner will be decided by the public and online voting commences on Monday 23rd September through to midnight Sunday 29th September. The ten shortlisted poems will be displayed via our online gallery here for you to read and choose your top three. The winner will be announced at Bangor Castle during Aspects Festival’s closing event, on Sunday 6th October.

Congratulations to the poets on both the longlist and shortlist! This year’s standard was nothing less than exceptional.

SHORTLIST

Jean Tuomey                                Walks with a Gardener

Glen Wilson                                  Sea glass

Niamh Busby                               Ammonites

Kendra Reynolds                        a reclaiming

Iain Campbell                              Skinny dipping

Stephanie Conn                          Blue House

Lynda Tavakoli                             Pouffe

Noel King                                    Village of Athea, 1963

Shelley Tracey                              Full Circle

Ben Keatinge                                Candles

LONGLIST

Di Slaney                                        Grief

Gifford Savage                            It’s all about tomatoes

Rhona Stephens                         Granny Kept a Sweetie Jar

Sean Larney                                 Life’s Venn Diagram

Colin Dardis                                 Stubborn Mathematics

Lucy Crispin                                 cross-section

Siobhan Ward                              A Story of Your Life

Meg McCleery                             All Hallows’ Eve