Court report
In Competition No. 2904 you were invited to take as your first line ‘There’s a breathless hush on the centre…
Off colour
In Competition No. 2903 you were invited to provide an extract from an article in an interiors magazine featuring some…
Howzat!
In Competition No. 2903 you were invited to supply a poem incorporating a dozen cricketing terms. English poets love cricket:…
Pylon poetry
In Competition No. 2901 you were invited to write a poem in praise of a modern-day blot on the landscape.…
Sauce material
In Competition No. 2900 you were invited to write a short story that ends on a condiment of your choice.…
Occasional verse
In Competition No. 2899 you were invited to write a poem commemorating the birth of Princess Charlotte of Cambridge. The…
21st-century Belloc
In Competition No. 2898 you were invited to give an update on one of the children in Cautionary Tales who…
Gizza job
In Competition No. 2897 you were asked for a job application by a well-known writer, living or dead. Inspiration for…
Iffy
In Competition No. 2896 you were invited to take Kipling’s ‘If’ and recast it on behalf of a politician on…
Eating poetry
In Competition No. 2895 you were invited to submit a poem describing a meal with a well-known poet. Sylvia Fairley…
Verses on horses
In Competition No. 2894 you were invited to submit a paean to a famous racehorse. Thanks to David Pearn, who…
On the record
In Competition No. 2893 you were invited to suggest suitable Desert Island Discs for a historical figure, living or dead.…
Consequences
In Competition No. 2892 you were invited to submit an irregular quatrain in which you bring together two people from…
Yawn
In Competition No. 2891 you were invited to think of the most boring lecture topic possible and submit an extract…
End paper
In Competition No. 2890 you were invited to imagine that one of the major newspapers has ceased publication and provide…
Men behaving badly
In Competition No. 2889 you were invited to submit an extract from an imaginary novel written from the perspective of…
Acrostic
In Competition No. 2888 you were invited to submit a poem in the style of a well-known poet, the first…
Heaven and hell
In Competition No. 2887 you were invited to describe your idea of heaven or hell in verse. Nietzsche famously said…
Londoner’s Diary
In Competition No. 2886 you were invited to submit a Pepys’-eye view of modern life. Pepys’s candid and minutely observed…
As you liken it
In Competition No. 2885 you were invited to write a sonnet beginning ‘Shall I compare thee to a [trisyllable of…
Hair brained
In Competition No. 2884 you were invited to submit a poem in praise or dispraise of beards. The beard has…
Your problem solved
In Competition No. 2883 you were invited to cast a well-known writer, living or dead, in the role of agony…
Election blues
In Competition No. 2882 you were invited to submit a blues song written by a well-known politician contemplating the impending…
Lines on law
In Competition No. 2881 you were invited to do as Carol Ann Duffy has done and provide an amusing poem…
Hard sell
In Competition No. 2880 you were invited to provide a publicity blurb for the Bible to sell it to a…
