Push The Boat Out: International Poetry Festival

A riotous and loud tour-de-force of a multi-artform gig, showcasing international hip hop, rap, and poetry. Globally recognised Malaysian-Australian poet and rapper, Omar Musa, takes to the stage with a power of poetic words, while Cardiff born-and-bred singer/rapper, Niques, promises to deliver a raucous set with her 90s era inspired tunes. Dunbar’s all-girl rap band,

Join poet Roger Robinson for an invigorating Sunday morning seaside walk along Portobello Beach. At this event, Roger will talk about his new book of writings and photography, Home Is Not A Place, co-authored by Johny Pitts. He will share some of the encounters and anecdotes the duo gathered when they, in their little red

Open to Black writers and writers of colour An in-person, indoors writing workshop on ecopoetics and poetics of place, in collaboration with Scottish BPOC Writers Network. All participants, facilitator and host must adhere to Scottish BPOC Writers Network’s Safer Spaces policy. Please take a lateral flow test within 24 hours before the event. Please bring

Hannah Lavery is a poet, playwright, short story writer, and currently Edinburgh’s Makar, with a list of writing awards longer than any arm. Her poetry lilts from the page, speaking with a gentle urgency on issues like racism, cultural identity, and belonging. Having quickly become one of Scotland’s most-loved writers, her debut collection ‘Blood Salt

In this panel event, poets Ifor ap Glyn, Juana Adcock, and Peter Mackay discuss exactly what it says on the tin: is it time to reject English? Why, when we have so much bilingualism amongst us, do UK-based poets automatically revert to writing in this colonising language, rather than celebrating the written word in other

Poetry is often a place we go to for rest, reflection, and rejuvenation. For poets, writing a poem can be a moment of stillness; a brief and welcome time to pause and examine or explore. A reader can go to the artform and find their lives suspended for the duration of the poem and, in

Anthony Ezekiel (Vahni) Capildeo and Luke Kennard are two poets infamous and celebrated for turning reality on its head: bringing a surreal, dream-like quality to the page and wandering between what we see in front of us and what lies beneath the surface. They remake and reinterpret the world to be just that little bit

Open Book Reading organise and run creative writing groups in community settings across Scotland, in languages including English, Gaelic, Scots and Arabic. Push the Boat Out are delighted to partner with Open Book for a second community showcase, following on from the sold-out success of last year’s event! This showcase performance features poetry written by

Unfortunately Brian Bilston is recovering from covid and will be unable to travel to the festival this weekend. However, we are delighted to say our live events will go ahead; we invite our audience to join us in our Red Lecture Theatre with Bryan Burnett live, and with Brian Bilston appearing via video link at

‘More Fiya’ is a celebration of the remarkable and blistering work of Black British poets in the UK today. Edited by the poet and DJ, Kayo Chingonyi, this anthology is a wondrous spiritual follow-up to Lemn Sissay’s seminal, ‘The Fire People’ and, like Sissay’s text, ‘More Fiya’ burns brightly with talent. Contributing poets Dean Atta,

In this captivating workshop, photographer Kat Gollock and writer Hannah Lavery join forces as they delve into the symbiotic relationship between words and images. Whether used collectively or independently of each other, as research or as the final outcome, this session considers how to harness the interplay between words and images to examine, explore, and

To be a National Poet is an incredible achievement. The poet is not only chosen for the excellence of their poetic calibre, but also for their work to support and promote poetry as a living, breathing artform across the country. The Scots Makar, Kathleen Jamie, was appointed in 2021, following the end of Jackie Kay’s

The Forward Poetry Prizes are some of the most exciting in the UK. Taking place annually, poets are awarded from three categories: Prize for Best Collection, the Felix Dennis Prize for Best First Collection, and Best Single Poem. The 2022 shortlist is an elegant and powerful selection of the UK’s best and brightest poetry. Push

Sunny Govan’s Writers Group takes to the stage in this eclectic mix of the written word. Led by award-winning performance poet and community arts worker, Victoria McNulty, the group have worked together to hone their poetic skills and are ready to share their craft with Push the Boat Out in this special, resplendent takeover event.

In Leyla Josephine‘s debut poetry collection, ‘In Public/In Private’, Josephine questions her urge to share her inner life publicly. A poet, and award-winning film and theatre-maker, Josephine has often used her own life experiences as the foundations of her art: generously sharing her personal stories with audiences and making those private moments public. In this

Rock the Boat is Push the Boat Out’s monthly open mic night, hosted by vivacious poets Catherine Wilson and Julia Sorensen. Well-known and loved as a space to trial out new work, reintroduce old favourites, or maybe even take to the poetry stage for the first time, Rock the Boat is a supportive and energetic

Hugely celebrated and acclaimed poet, Don Paterson, has released a new collection: ‘The Arctic’ is an apocalyptic, savage, and elegiac work, and is now ready to be shared with Push the Boat Out’s audience. But there’s a beautiful twist to the performance. Musician Graeme Stephen joins Paterson for this exceptional and provoking event. A guitarist

Hen Hoose Collective is a group of female and non-binary musicians and producers who collaborate in creating genre-defying, lyrically voracious and beat-pounding music. Established by Tamara Schlesinger (MALKA), the collective find fusion across electro, pop, R&B, indie, folk, and all the spaces in between. Formed at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, with cancelled tours