Simon Callow reads Alexander McCall Smith
09 Dec '25
Something very special for Christmas 2025 – Alexander McCall Smith poems at the Westminster Carols by Candlelight MS concert, 2025 – with Simon...
poetry
Liz Lochhead wins the Saltire Society Lifetime Achievement Award
08 Dec '23
The Saltire Society hosted the annual Scotland’s National Book Awards last night in Glasgow, where it was announced that Liz Lochhead has won...
A Poem for December: ‘Winter’ by Alexander McCall Smith
03 Dec '23
Enjoy this poem ‘Winter’ by Alexander McCall Smith, taken from his debut poetry collection In A Time of Distance. Click the link at the...
Another Way to Split Water longlisted for TWO poetry prizes
10 Aug '23
It’s a fantastic week for Alycia Pirmohamed and her debut poetry collection Another Way to Split Water, which has been longlisted for not one,...
Poem of the Week: ‘The Sun on Princes Street’ by Alexander McCall Smith
26 Jul '23
Our poem of the week is ‘The Sun on Princes Street’, taken from the new collection of poetry by Alexander McCall Smith, I Think of You....
Alexander McCall Smith visits Sweden
24 Nov '22
A visit to Students in Sweden Alexander has just returned from a visit to Sweden. A series of poems he wrote on the subject of trees has been used by...
Remembrance Poem of the Week: ‘Dreamers’ by Siegfried Sassoon
08 Nov '22
Friday is Armistice Day, and an opportunity to commemorate the end of the First World War, and remember those who have lost their lives in service to...
Poem of the Week: ‘Morning Rituals’ by Jenni Fagan
06 Sep '22
From her newly published collection The Bone Library, our poem of the week is ‘Morning Rituals’. Read the poem, and listen to Jenni...
‘My Mum Wears Pink Lipstick’ – from Blood Salt Spring by Hannah Lavery
22 Mar '22
In celebration of Mother’s Day this Sunday 27th, our poem of the week is ‘My Mum Wears Pink Lipstick’ from Blood Salt Spring, the...
2022 Preview: Poetry
21 Jan '22
We have an exceptionally strong poetry offering this year, with new titles from Jenni Fagan, Hannah Lavery, and Alycia Pirmohamed, as well as a...
Christmas Poem 2021: ‘Tinker Talk’ by George Mackay Brown
21 Dec '21
The Twelve Days of Christmas: Tinker Talk George Mackay Brown I saw the four shepherds, black In the sun’s ruin. Four star-cut shadows, soon. Folk...
St Andrew’s Day Poem: ‘Canedolia’ by Edwin Morgan
30 Nov '21
Edwin Morgan(1920-2010), Scotland’s first modern Makar, was one of the country’s most playful and curious poets. His vast body of work...
