‘We’ve all done stupid things but we’re all capable of redemption’: spoken-word artist Joshua Idehen on fighting hate with hope

His poem Mum Does the Washing went viral – but he started out parroting conservative talking points online. Now the British-Nigerian vocalist preaches a message of radical positivity

The Poems of Seamus Heaney review – collected works reveal his colossal achievement

The complete works, including previously unpublished poems and expert notes, are brought together in one volume for the first time

‘Great range and power’: TS Eliot poetry prize shortlist announced

Ten poets, including Tom Paulin and Sarah Howe, appear on the shortlist for the £25,000 award, which judges described as offering ‘something for everyone’

Poem of the week: To a Lady that Desired I Would Love Her by Thomas Carew

The 17th-century ‘server at table’ to Charles I puts a wry spin on courtly wooing

‘My poems are part of my flesh’: Palestinian poet Batool Abu Akleen on life in Gaza

At just 20, the poet is one of the most vivid witnesses to the conflict. She talks about dreams of Oxford, the deaths of friends and how tragedy has shaped the person she has become

The best recent poetry – review roundup

So Far So Good by Ursula K Le Guin; Thrums by Thomas A Clark; Sculling by Sophie Dumont; Magadh by Shrikant Verma

Brian Patten obituary

One of the Liverpool poets, along with Roger McGough and Adrian Henri, who was a perceptive writer on love

Liverpool poet Brian Patten dies at 79

His poetry often explored love and relationships and he wrote books for children including Gargling With Jelly

Tony Harrison’s poem V to be performed in the Leeds cemetery that inspired it

The site-specific performance of the once controversial poem was planned for its 40th anniversary in October, but will now double as a tribute to the writer who died last week

Prime Minister’s Literary awards 2025: Michelle de Kretser wins $80,000 for Theory & Practice

The author used her acceptance speech to call out the Australian government’s response to the war in Gaza, in a ceremony marked by political commentary

Poem of the week: An Explanation of Doily by Gwyneth Lewis

A strange, humorous, mysterious window out of trauma is both desolate and decorative

Tony Harrison obituary

Outspoken poet and dramatist admired for his stage adaptations, including The Mysteries

Classics with added Yorkshire class: tributes to Tony Harrison

Harrison’s poetry and plays made an electrifying connection with readers and audiences through his use of Leeds dialect, and his ear for rhyme. Writers remember his greatness

‘The man who came to read the metre’: Yorkshire poet Tony Harrison was the National Theatre bard

Harrison, who has died aged 88, wrote copiously for the stage, both as an ingenious translator and dazzlingly original dramatist

Tony Harrison, poet and dramatist, dies aged 88

Known for his outspoken politics, the author was acclaimed for work in theatre, opera, film and TV but wanted to be thought of as a poet above all