Happy New Year Folks! It was lovely to see both Rae Howells / This Common Uncommon and the win for West Cross Common and my first issue of New Welsh Review (featuring Philip Gross, Clare Potter, Abeer Ameer and the Borzello shortlist) both picked for Nation.Cymru's Cultural Highlights 2025: Poetry Roundup alongside lots of other wonderful poets and publications including Rhian Elizabeth, Sophie Bouchiallard, Menna Elfyn, Poetry Wales's 60th anniversary year (including a poem by Ben Wildsmith!), the Afonydd (Arachne Press) anthology edited by Sian Northey and Vanessa Owen, and Beyond / Tu Hwnt (Lucent Dreaming).
I have many more poetry highlights of 2025, of course, but I've been a bit slow gathering them / blogging. I'll definitely miss some here, but... it was a delight to read all the entries for the Borzello Poetry Prize and work with some wonderful poets for Parthian including bringing out new collections by Christina Thatcher (highly commended in the Forward Prizes), Tracey Rhys, Roberto Pastore, Ben Rhys Palmer and Jemma L. King as well as more great poets for the next issue of New Welsh Review out next month, and new Parthian titles yet to be announced.
I was also delighted to see Rhian Elizabeth, Natalie Ann Holborow and Siôn Tomos Owen all gaining deserved recognition at Wales Book of the Year, to go to Hay for Natalie Ann Holborow's The Verb reading and Tracey Rhys' BBC Radio Wales spot and to go to That London for the Forwards to see Abeer Ameer's win for her Modron Magazine poem 'at least' and so much more. Congratulations all!
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