The poetry playground awaits: we invited you to enter our National Poetry Day writing competition... and WIN £50/€60

Meet our winners!

Winner: 'Receipt (Wordplay)' by Jane Bower

Runner-up: 'London' by Jo Wright

Highly commended: 'Sisters' by Deborah Telkman

 

First place

Our overall winner was Jane Bower from Cambridge with her delightfully playful poem, 'Receipt (Wordplay)'. Jane has won a £50 National Book Token featuring her fun poem!

Nikita said: 

"I thoroughly enjoyed the way the poet has used language in this poem in a cleverly playful way, bringing in humour and the sheer joy of creating. I really felt like the poet had delighted in writing this poem, and as a reader, that came across so beautifully. A poem that will brighten up anyone's day, whilst still being true to craft!"

'Receipt (Wordplay)' by Jane Bower

I'm undecided on the word 'receipt'.

To spell it, in itself, is quite a feipt -

That silent P seems rather a conceipt;

It is not used elsewhere – sheep do not bleipt,

Nor garden birds and Twitter-users tweipt -

So should the spelling be made obsoleipt?

Would not its loss be somewhat bittersweipt?

For there's no other with it to compeipt;

Its quirkiness I'd not wish to deleipt.

And thus I have no choice but to repeipt:

I'm undecided on the word 'receipt'.

 

Runner-up

In second place was Jo Wright from Birmingham, with the evocative 'London'. Jo won a £25 National Book Tokens gift card.

Nikita commented:

"There is an elegance to the nostalgia and use of place the poet has created, along with the wonderful quality of bringing real world issues into a poem about play. The language here is visceral, you can see the colours, smell the heat, the fountain, the gin. Powerful and moving."

'London' by Jo Wright

It's summer on the South Bank

Proper, running through the fountain, gin after work, chocolate kebabs summer

And London wriggles like a dog just out of the sea,

In joy and pleasure at engagement with the weather.

Yes it's hot, but England's never hot like this,

Like holidays came home to roost,

In a windrush of this, this, our people and our heat.

Not flaccid grey, but the exhaustion and damp skin of a tumble in the hay,

Of Friday night out-out, to play

In the out, the light,

The long summer day-to-night.

 

Highly commended

And finally, Nikita selected a third, highly commended, poem: 'Sisters' by Deborah Telkman, which she chose:

"... because of how whimsical it is and [how] the ending really captures the joy of play in such a funny way. It's the poem that made me laugh and reminded me that poetry is so alive – it's the kind of poem that you remember so you can tell others about it. Really successfully done by the poet."

'Sisters' by Deborah Telkman

"Come out and play", my sister said

"Don't spend all day tucked up in bed

The sun is out, the day is fine

There's dens to build and trees to climb

Streams to dam and fish to catch,

Or how about a football match?

We could join a game of cricket

You could bat and I'll keep wicket.

Let's ride our bikes or fly a kite

Or get into a pillow fight!"

I fixed her with a beady eye

Drew in a breath and heaved a sigh

"Must I keep reminding you

You're eighty and I'm eighty-two!"

 

Congratulations to our winners, and thank you to everyone who submitted their fun, funny, inventive and often moving work this National Poetry Day. We hope that you enjoyed the poetry playground!

In the mood for more poetry? Don't miss Hollie McNish's favourite collections of poetry.