April 2026 Quote of the Month

"TAKE. UP. SPACE."

From Witch Club in 'Invocation'

by Izzy Brittain. Yaffle's Nest, Horsforth, 2025

See Shop — I Z Z Y B R I T T A I N

(Clicking the image will take you to the book's website and this will have different cookies to this site)

20+ Poetry Things You Could Do Today

1) From this site - check out poets reading their poems...

See: Bob and Poetry.com: Short poetry clips - YouTube

For longer readings and films see: Bob and Poetry.com: Readings On YouTube - YouTube

I add to these playlists all the time so do keep checking.

2) ... And visit the Poetry Magazine's Page

There links to dozens of sites on poetry. Blue Marble Review - Literary Journal for Young Writers, for instance, regularly has a free, new, online magazine to read and posted new poems in Winter 2026.

Or, The Lake - contemporary poetry webzine - POETRY, showcases new poetry nearly every month, the most recent being April 2026.

3. (From How to Go Home | Eleanor Robins | Substack)

The Imagining Realm

If you are having a day in which you are wanting to write poetry, or perhaps would like to be having one of those days, I would like to recommend you spend a few minutes watching this video on Eleanor Robin's Substack page.

To watch click this link: My top practice for creating from the imaginal real

4. (From Writer's Digest)

Wednesday Poetry Prompts - Writer's Digest

Robert Lee Brewer is now offering weekly Wednesday Poetry Prompts, which may contrast a little with my preferred approach from Eleanor Robins, but it is important we all find our own way ahead, and they are by no means mutually exclusive. The archive of these prompts extends over 116 pages. In April 2026, the prompts are daily!

'Are you passionate about writing poetry? This is where you’ll find poetry prompts, solid tips on writing poetry, interviews with poets, and blog posts highlighting various poetic forms. Sit back, relax, and learn more about the craft of poetry!'

To see, click the link Write Better Poetry | Poetic Forms | Poetry Prompts - Writer's Digest

5) (From Plume | Online Poetry Magazine)

Plume Issue #176 April 2026

"In brief, Plume is a magazine dedicated to publishing the very best of contemporary poetry. To that end, we will be highly selective, offering twelve poems per monthly issue."

There is an extensive archive to enjoy, too

For this edition see: Plume Issue #176 April 2026 Archives - Plume

6) (From Of Poetry Podcast – Kitchen table conversations with poets)

Episode 88: Jennifer A Sutherland (Of Greek Myth as Muse, Building a Bearable Myth, and Silence as Agency)

"Jennifer A Sutherland is a poet, essayist, and attorney in Baltimore."

All the episodes are available from the site's homepage.

See Episode 88: Jennifer A Sutherland (Of Greek Myth as Muse, Building a Bearable Myth, and Silence as Agency)

Check out other Podcasts at Poetry Podcasts (List) | Bob and Poetry

7) (From Carol Rumens's poem of the week | Books | The Guardian website page)

Carol Rumens' Poem of the Week

A faultlessly consistent article in a national newspaper, and always available online, too.

See Poem of the week: Carol Rumens's poem of the week | The Guardian

8) (From The Fig Tree | Tim Fellows | Substack)

The Fig Tree Issue 13

'Welcome to issue thirteen of The Fig Tree. This issue’s Featured Poet is Bob Beagrie, who appeared three times in the Fig Tree in 2024. When he submitted again I decided it was time to offer a Featured Poet slot. ... Once again I hope you enjoy reading this issue as much as I did collating it. You are joining over 500 people who are reading the webzine on a regular basis.'

Read this issue at The Fig Tree - Issue 13 - by Tim Fellows - The Fig Tree

All Back issues and the two Coal Mining Anthologies are available at : The Fig Tree | Tim Fellows | Substack

9) (From Dust Poetry Magazine)

Issue 15 is now available.

The new June 2025 edition of this has just been posted. See: Issue 15, Dear World

All 15 editions are available on the website.

10) (From Top Writing Contests website)

Enter Your Poem Into a Competition

Writing Competitons .Net list all the current competitions that you can enter. If you subscribe to their email they will keep you posted on new ones as they come out. Its brilliant.

See Top Writing Contests

11) (From Between the Covers | Milkweed Editions website)

Between The Covers

Between the Covers is a celebrated literary podcast hosted by writer David Naimon, known worldwide for its generous and in-depth conversations with today’s most vital thinkers. The podcast has garnered international praise in The Guardian, The Financial Times, and Electric Literature for its “incredible and in-depth conversations.” In partnership with Milkweed Editions, Between the Covers continues its mission to create space for immersive literary conversations that illuminate the complexities of contemporary writing.

For the most recent poetry book based podcast see: Joan Naviyuk Kane : with snow pouring southward past the window | Milkweed Editions

12) (From Poetry Extra webpage )

Adventures in Poetry - “The quality of mercy is not strain'd”

Daljit Nagra revisits the BBC's poetry archive.

"Daljit Nagra marks birth and death of William Shakespeare (April 23rd 1564 - April 23rd 1616) as he revisits the BBC's poetry archive to select Adventures in Poetry - "The quality of mercy is not strain'd".." From 2007.

See: Poetry Extra - Adventures in Poetry - “The quality of mercy is not strain'd” - BBC Sounds

13) (From The Buzz – The Hive Poetry Collective Website)

S8:E16 In Celebration of the Muse with Farnaz Fatemi - loaded 22nd April 2026

"Airing on KSQD 90.7 FM most Sundays at 8:00, the Hive Poetry Collective is a buzz of poets in Santa Cruz, California— a swarm of radio conversations, public readings, and writing workshops. " All episodes are available at the website.

Hear the most recent podcast and all the archive at: The Hive Poetry Collective • A podcast on Spotify for Creators

14) (From West Wilts Radio)

The Poetry Place – West Wilts Radio (Click for archive)

"The Poetry Place is a monthly poetry magazine programme bringing you news, views, readings and interviews from today’s poetry community, both locally and further afield. Presented by Dawn Gorman and Peter O’Grady, it brings inspiration and food for thought for everyone, from those who enjoy listening to the occasional poem, to people writing and publishing their own work.

There's a new episode on the last Sunday of every month, with repeats from the archive on the other Sundays of the month."

Hear the most recent new edition first broadcast on 26 April 2026 at : The Poetry Place #76 Apr 26 – West Wilts Radio

15) (From Rattle Poetry)

Critique of the Week: A Live Video Workshop

"It’s hard to find honest feedback about your work, but knowing how your poems are actually landing is more useful than any other advice a poet can get ... so we’d like to extend that experience to anyone who is interested.

With Critique of the Week, we’ll workshop several poems publicly each week, via Facebook and YouTube. Participants will get a chance to hear how the Rattle editors would encounter a poem if it were a submission and offer suggestions for improvement. Everyone is then welcome to join in the discussion in the video’s comments section, providing their own thoughts and feedback. Subscribe to our YouTube Channel so that you don’t miss any of the critiques."

For more information see: Critique of the Week - Rattle: Poetry

Or see the latest live streamed event at : Rattlecast - Rattle: Poetry

Or read the latest daily poem at: Rattle: Poetry

(I sign up to the email daily post and strongly recommend it.)

16) (From Eat The Storms website)

May Storm, An all-county showcase for Poetry Day Ireland, 1 May 2025

Eat the Storms, the poetry podcast, will host its annual Poetry Day Ireland episode, featuring 32 poets, each reading a single poem to represent one of the 32 counties on the island of Ireland, our most popular episode each year. Hosted and produced by Damien B Donnelly, the podcast will go out at 8am on Thursday 1 May, on 12+ platforms including Spotify, Apple, Castbox, Podbean, Amazon Podcasts and YouTube.

Visit: May Storm, an all-county showcase for Poetry Day Ireland 2025 – Storm Shelter

Hear the podcast archive at: Listen to the Podcast – Storm Shelter

17) (From BBC Radio 4 - The Verb)

Forrest Gander, Laurie Bolger, SJ Fowler, Rachel Segal Hamilton

Presented by Ian McMillan.

First broadcast on 29 June, 2025.

See The Verb - Forrest Gander, Laurie Bolger, SJ Fowler, Rachel Segal Hamilton - BBC Sounds

Though this has slipped quite far down my list for no particular reason, The Verb is one of my favourite shows on radio and is available in podcast form. There is an archive of 258 episodes available at: BBC Radio 4 - The Verb - Available now

18) (From Moving Poems website)

Watch the Best Poetry Videos on the Web

The latest when I looked: Lost Stream by Fiona Tinwei Lam – Moving Poems

"A poetry video based on a poem about the city’s hidden and lost streams. Animation by Quinn Kelly. Narration by the poet Fiona Tinwei Lam. Audio-recording by Lileth Charlet. Recorded at CEDaR sound studio at the University of British Columbia. Sound design by Bill Hardman. Part of the Vancouver Poet Laureate’s City Poems Project 2022-2024."

Regularly updated there's 2453 videos (and counting) to see at Videopoems | Moving Poems

19) (From Spotify - Web Player: Music for everyone)

Frank Skinner's Poetry Podcast

'Frank Skinner loves poetry and thinks you might like it too.' If you are able to use Spotify, I strongly recommend this podcast, which is free and has the complete archive available. Frank offers wonderful insights into poems and poets that have certainly broadened my understanding. As you would expect, from Frank Skinner his presentation style is highly engaging and entertaining. See Frank Skinner's Poetry Podcast | Podcast on Spotify

20) (From T.S. Eliot website)

T.S. Eliot Prize

The T.S. Eliot Prize winner for 2025 has now been announced, and videos of all the nominees can be seen. Every year of the prize I have enjoyed watching the poets read from their book, and say a little about themselves.

See: 2025 – T. S. Eliot Prize

See the whole amazing archive at T. S. Eliot Prize - YouTube

21) (From Apples and Snakes)

Read, Watch, Listen : Apples and Snakes

Get the latest updates from the Apples and Snakes website at Read, Watch, Listen : Apples and Snakes

Maybe hear the most recent podcast at: S3 EP20 | Amen Noir - Maintaining Presence | Apples and Snakes: The Podcast

The archive of 38 podcasts is available at Apples and Snakes: The Podcast | Apples and Snakes.

22) (From London Review Bookshop website)

New Faber Poetry

"Isabelle Baafi, winner of the Somerset Maugham Award for her pamphlet Ripe, constructs her debut collection Chaotic Good (Faber) around the story of an escape from a toxic marriage. ‘Chaotic Good is a debut of amazing endurance,’ writes poet Will Harris. ‘Its formal pressures create a kind of kaleidoscopic intensity that – with each turn of the chamber – brings newly beautiful and painful shapes into focus.’

Isabelle Baafi was reading from her work in the company of Lavinia Greenlaw, whose most recent book is the essay collection The Vast Extent." From 9 April 2025.

Hear this podcast at: Isabelle Baafi & Lavinia Greenlaw: Chaotic Good | London Review Bookshop

For lots of past videos and podcasts (not exclusively poetry) see: Podcasts & video | London Review Bookshop

23) (From The Poetry Programme - RTÉ Radio 1 (rte.ie) website)

The Poetry Programme

Though the show is sadly off-air now, the immense archive, from 2017 to 2022, is still available to listen to and is recommended.

See The Poetry Programme - RTÉ Radio 1 (rte.ie)

Also see Poetry File - RTÉ Podcasts (rte.ie)

24) (From Bad Lilies)

February 2025 Issue 20

"Bad Lilies is published six times a year and is edited by Kathryn Gray and Andrew Neilson.

We aim to showcase the finest poetry, ranging in technique and subject matter."

See the new issue here: Issue twenty — Bad Lilies