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Poetry Competition 2022-3 Results

The results are in!

Thank you to everyone who entered our national poetry competition, which ran from November 2022 to January 2023.

Poems were submitted by members from all of the regions and devolved countries, and we were delighted to receive over 600 entries, which went through rigorous rounds of judging.

There was no theme for this year's competition, however the poems could be no longer than 16 lines. 

You can read the judges' top 3 entries below, alongside the shortlisted 10. 

Please find our winning three poems below. These will be published in June's edition of Third Age Matters magazine, alongside a bespoke illustration. 

a wooden house with blue shutters

Home

First Place

Jo Peters, Ilkley & District u3a 

a black bird on green grass

A Clamour of Rooks

Second Place

Philip Smith, Sidmouth u3a 

derelict building by bombing

Letter from Kharkiv

Third Place

Kathryn Sim, Sandbach u3a 

These seven poems were considered the shortlist by the judges, to be included in the top 10. 

an older man and woman looking at each other holding hands

Your Eyes

John Steele, St Albans u3a 

buildings on the left and the blue sea on the right, the sky is blue with small clouds

The Church

Lynsey Lancaster, Lancaster & Morecambe u3a 

a gold scratched wedding ring on wooden surface

Old Gold

Rachel Irven, Minehead & District u3a 

a museum in egpyt with people walking through a large hall

Time at the Museum

David Prime, Royston u3a 

a page with cursive script written in blue ink

Poetic Whimsy

Bob Campen, Haywards Heath u3a 

big trees on either side of a path. the trees have no leaves and there is snow on the ground

Winter Trees

Brenda Hall, Ruthin & District u3a 

a blue tit with a yellow chest on a snowy branch

Just a Snowy Scene

Ray Lee, Teesdale u3a 

Thank you to everyone who entered the competition, and many congratulations to the winners. 

Thank you also to the 25 judges who used their time and expertise to judge this competition, alongside the 3 judges who judged the final round. 

A special thanks to u3a creative writing Subject Adviser Marcia Humphries for her help in sourcing a few extra judges when needed. 

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