I had great fun at the 2016 CLiPPA shortlist announcement hosted by Barnes Literary Festival on the 12th May. Last year's shortlisted poets (myself included) read some poems and we were treated to some very engaging performances of our work by children involved in the shadowing scheme. I had a chance to catch up with Roger McGough, John Hegley , Joe Coelho and Valerie Bloom, amongst others. A big congratulations to all this years shortlisted poets. A strong list! Winner to b

The sun is shining at last! And I'm preparing for my event in the Brighton Festival - Poems and Pictures Live with the wonderful illustrator and Children's Laureate, Chris Ridell. Click on the link below for more details. http://arts.brighton.ac.uk/whats-on/sallis-benney-events/theatre-events-2026/may-2016/brighton-festival/chris-riddell-poems-and-pictures-live I'm really excited to see how Chris will respond visually to the poems I'll be reading. I guess I'll discover that o