METRO POETRY PRIZE
We're excited to reveal that this year's poet judge will be Rowan McCabe! Rowan is a poet and performer from Newcastle upon Tyne. Aware that poetry isn’t a proper job, he decided to create his own and from 2019 to 2020 he travelled the country as the world’s first Door-to-Door Poet. Knocking on strangers’ doors, Rowan asked what was important to them. He then went away and wrote a poem about this, free of charge, before bringing it back and reading it out on their doorstep. Rowan has lived in the North East his whole life and has written a number of collections about the region. He has also written for Channel 4, Radio 3’s ‘The Verb’, and his poetry has been featured in the Guardian and on BBC Breakfast. His first full-length book, The Door-to-Door Poet, was published by Eye Books in September 2025 and became a #1 bestseller on Amazon. Watch this space for more news about our PBS x Metro Poetry Prize on National Poetry Day.
We're delighted to partner with Nexus again on the Metro Poetry Prize! Budding poets are invited to submit their entries to a poetry competition, with the chance of their work being displayed for thousands to read on a Tyne and Wear Metro station. The competition, organised by Nexus, opens today, National Poetry Day, and closes on 17th October 2024. This is the fourth year Nexus has run the competition, which is fast becoming a fixture of the North East and UK poetry scene. The winner and three runners up will see their poem displayed on a large poster at Longbenton, a busy commuter station which is used by more than one million customers every year. The prize also includes £100 Waterstones vouchers and a free membership to The Poetry Book Society for the winner and £50 Waterstones vouchers for the runners up. All poems submitted will be judged by representatives from Nexus and The Poetry Book Society and published poet Jane Burn.
Nexus and the PBS are proud to launch the third annual Metro Poetry Prize, in association with the Poetry Book Society, to give poets the unique opportunity to have their work displayed at Longbenton Metro Station. The theme for the 2023 competition, launched on National Poetry Day, is ‘Journeys’. A winner and three runners up will see their poems published on large posters in Longbenton Metro Station, as well as £100 Waterstones vouchers for the winner and Poetry Book Society membership, and £50 Waterstones vouchers for the runners up. Please send completed entries, including your name, age, address and contact details to poetry@nexus.org.uk