Poetry with a Punch

Joelle Taylor is the author of 4 collections of poetry and one novel. Her most recent collection C+NTO & Othered Poems won the 2021 T.S Eliot Prize, and the 2022 Polari Book Prize for LGBT authors. C+NTO is currently being adapted both for theatre, and into a television screenplay, and was featured on Radio Three documentary Butch. She is a co-curator and host of Out-Spoken Live at the Southbank Centre and tours her work nationally and internationally in a diverse range of venues, from Australia to Brazil. She is a Poetry Fellow of the University of East Anglia, and the curator of the Koestler Awards 2023 and has judged several poetry and literary prizes including Fellowship, the Forward Prize, and the Ondaatje Prize. Her novel The Night Alphabet was published in Spring of 2024 and was named both a Spectator and Guardian Book of the Year. Her most recent radio programme A Young Girl’s Guide to Horror was broadcasted end of last year on BBC Radio Four. She is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, and the 2022 Saboteur Spoken Word Artist of the Year. She was recently honoured with a DIVA Award for Excellence and named as number 15in the Independent’s2024 Pride Power list. Her next collection Maryville will be published by Bloomsbury in 2025

Jack Flash is a British poet, rapper, and storyteller from Huddersfield, West Yorkshire. Emerging from the UK hip-hop scene, Flash is celebrated for his compelling narratives, sharp wit, and insightful social commentary. His musical journey began in his teens, gaining recognition through freestyle battles and collaborations with artists like Stig of the Dump and Lunar C. He won the End of the Weak World Championship in 2009, solidifying his reputation as a versatile MC.

Princess Arinola Adegbite, professionally known as P.A.BITEZ is a multi-award-winning British Jamaican-born Nigerian surrealist poet, musician and filmmaker who combines social activism with Afrofuturistic sensibilities. Her awards include Manchester Young Creative of the Year 2021 (Culture Awards) and a Society of Authors Eric Gregory Award 2023. Her poetry has been commissioned by BBC, Selfridges, Chanel and the University of Cambridge. Publications include Modron Magazine, The Poetry Society, Wasafiri and New Writing North.

Theresa Lola is a British Nigerian poet and writer, celebrated for her evocative explorations of identity, grief, and belonging. Through her multifaceted practice, Theresa Lola continues to inspire reflection and dialogue on cultural identity and personal narratives. A poem from her debut book In Search of Equilibrium (Nine Arches Press) has been featured in the UK’s GCSE syllabus.

Bradley Taylor is an award-winning poet born and based in Birmingham. In 2024 he won the Roundhouse Poetry Slam, the night of which was the biggest poetry slam in history. In 2025 he released his debut collection ‘You Missed The Best Part’ before embarking on a nationwide tour.
Bradley has appeared at the Hay Festival, Cheltenham Literature Festival, The Inspirational Youth Awards, on BBC News and on BBC Radio 6 Music as part of Craig Charle’s ‘Class of 2024’, in which Craig Charles described him as ‘A brand new voice and a fresh perspective on the art of poetry and performance’.
Bradley’s work has appeared in Gutter Magazine, Shooter, Strix and across Birmingham train stations as part of Birmingham Hippodrome’s collaboration with photographer Paul Stringer’s project The City That Spoke To Me. He also co-hosts The Big Gay Poetry Night alongside M. L. Walsh.
He writes for, and about, people.

Akeim Toussaint Buck is an interdisciplinary performer and maker, born in Jamaica and raised in England. Graduating from the Northern School of Contemporary Dance in 2014, his choreographic work includes: Snakebox’s PLAY, Windows of Displacement, Reckoning, Sib Y Osis, Beatmotion, Souls & Cells. Film work includes Galvanise & Displaced. Akeim’s work has been supported by Yorkshire Dance, Leeds Playhouse, Leeds Inspired, Geraldine Connor Foundation, the Arts Foundation Futures Award, IRIE! Dance Theatre, Spin Arts, RJC, Deda, Fabric, Streatham Space Project, Serendipity, NSCD, Sadlers Wells and Arts Council England and more.

Kate Fox is a Bradford-born stand up poet and broadcaster. She’s a regular contributor to Radio 3’s spoken word cabaret The Verb, has made two comedy series for Radio 4, been Poet in Residence for the Glastonbury Festival and the Great North Run and completed a PhD in stand up comedy. She is the author of Where There’s Muck There’s Bras: True Stories of the North of England’s Women published by Harper North, and her most recent poetry collection The Oscillations from Nine Arches Press. She is on this year’s Forward Prizes judging panel. She is also a neurodivergent advocate whose latest show Bigger on the Inside explores neurodiversity through the lens of Doctor Who.