Manchester Poetry Prize

The Manchester Poetry Prize is a literary award celebrating excellence in creative writing. It was launched by Carol Ann Duffy and The Manchester Writing School at Manchester Metropolitan University in 2008, and was the first phase of the annual Manchester Writing Competition. Open internationally to writers aged 16 or over, the Manchester Poetry Prize awards a cash prize of £10,000 to the writer of the best portfolio of poems submitted. In addition, during the 2008 and 2010 Prizes, a bursary for study at MMU (or cash equivalent) was awarded to an entrant aged 18–25 as part of the Jeffrey Wainwright Manchester Young Writer of the Year Award. Entrants are asked to submit a portfolio of poetry (three to five poems; the total length of the portfolio should not exceed 120 lines). The poems can be on any subject but must be new work, not published elsewhere (in print, or online).

By the closing date of 1 August, the 2008 Manchester Poetry Prize had attracted 1,137 entries (almost 4,700 poems) from over 30 countries. The 2008 competition was judged by duffy with poets Gillian Clarke and Imtiaz Dharker completing the panel. They short-listed six finalists, and the winners were announced at a gala prize-giving ceremony held on Thursday 16 October 2008 at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester - an event which officially opened the 2008 Manchester Literature Festival, and featured readings from the judges and all six short-listed entrants. The evening was hosted by James Draper from the Manchester Writing School and featured welcome speeches from the Manchester Literature Festival's Matthew Frost and Rosa Battle from Manchester City Council (representing the Lord Mayor's Office).

The joint winners, Lesley Saunders and Mandy Coe, impressed the judges with their contrasting but brilliant styles and shared the £10,000 Prize. Helen Mort, 23, from Sheffield, won the Manchester Young Writer of the Year Award. The runners up were Mike Barlow, Allison McVety and Rosie Shepperd.

The Manchester Writing School launched the second Manchester Poetry Prize in 2010 with Simon Armitage, Lavinia Greenlaw and Daljit Nagra as judges. The competition closed on 6 August having received more than 1,000 portfolios (almost 4,000 poerms). The award ceremony again formed part of the Manchester Literature Festival and was a gala dinner held at Manchester Metropolitan University, hosted by James Draper and Matthew Frost (this time working as a humorous double act) with music from the Gavin Barras Duo and readings from the judges and six finalists.

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