Morpeth Library - National Poetry Day with Northumberland Stanza Group

Members of Northumberland Stanza Group will be reading selections of their poetry at Morpeth’s Northern Poetry Library on National Poetry Day. The theme of this year’s National Poetry Day is Play.

The event will take place on the upper floor of Morpeth library.

Northumberland Stanza Group are affiliated to the National Poetry Society.

The readers will be:

Hilary Elder writes fiction and poetry for children and adults, runs workshops and does collaborative projects. Her work has been published variously, including in The Caterpillar, Tyger Tyger, The Dirigible Balloon, and Northern Gravy, and her debut children’s poetry collection is coming soon from Valley Press.

Gene Groves had 35 poems included in Flambard New Poets 2. Her poetry has appeared in numerous magazines, print and online. Originally from Rhyl but living in Morpeth since 1983, she trained as a teacher, later qualifying as a social worker and working with homeless women before becoming a probation officer.

Chris Hall is the founder of Northumberland Stanza Group and the link between the group and the Poetry Society. She has an MA in Writing Poetry from Newcastle University, and is currently working on a series of poems about Anne Boleyn.

Merrie Snell's work has appeared in literary magazines in the US and UK. She holds an MFA from the University of Iowa and PhD from Newcastle University. She lives in Northumberland with her husband and dog.

Greg Freeman moved from Surrey to Northumberland three years ago. He is news and reviews editor for the poetry website Write Out Loud, and has published three poetry collections.

Mary Beales moved to Northumberland in 2022 and is a student on the MA Writing Poetry course at Newcastle University.

Jamie Thompson lives in Whalton with his wife Di and border collie Pip. He tries to grow prize leeks, and to write poetry.

Philip Hood moved to Northumberland on his retirement in 2017 and has written poetry since that time on themes of place, time and community, with a strong focus on landscape and history.

Northumberland Stanza Group meets on the second Monday of the month to discuss members' poems in the Centenary room at Morpeth Methodist Church on Howard Terrace. Anyone interested in joining should email Chris Hall at [email protected].

Host or Publisher Northumberland Libraries