{"product_id":"safe-spaces-poetry-with-jay-bernard-and-plymouth-laureate-of-words-r-c-thomas","title":"Safe Spaces: Poetry with Jay Bernard and Plymouth Laureate of Words R.C. Thomas - Saturday 7 November","description":"\u003cp style=\"line-height: 15.0pt;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-family: Arial, sans-serif;\"\u003e3-4.15pm\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-family: Arial, sans-serif;\"\u003eFoulston Room\u003cbr\u003eSuitable for age 14+\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"line-height: 15.0pt;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;\"\u003eJoin award-winning writer and artist \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; font-weight: normal;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.office.com\/search?q=Jay+Bernard\u0026amp;EntityRepresentationId=e1a9927b-e3b5-890b-9550-63ed0bcf4640\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: windowtext; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;\"\u003eJay Bernard\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; font-weight: normal;\"\u003ePlymouth Laureate of Words \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.office.com\/search?q=R.C.+Thomas\u0026amp;EntityRepresentationId=ee7b0ed4-fce7-8c35-ae52-9f12b44462ee\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: windowtext; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;\"\u003eR.C. Thomas\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e, and poets supported by \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; font-weight: normal;\"\u003eShelter\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e Plymouth for an afternoon of powerful readings exploring ideas of home, belonging, safety and community.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"line-height: 15.0pt;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;\"\u003eThrough poetry that is personal, political and deeply human, this special event brings together voices reflecting on what it means to find, lose and create safe spaces in contemporary Britain.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"line-height: 15.0pt;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;\"\u003eOne of the UK's most celebrated contemporary poets, \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; font-weight: normal;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.office.com\/search?q=Jay+Bernard\u0026amp;EntityRepresentationId=e1a9927b-e3b5-890b-9550-63ed0bcf4640\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: windowtext; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;\"\u003eJay Bernard\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e is the author of \u003cem\u003eSurge\u003c\/em\u003e, an award-winning collection that draws on the New Cross Fire of 1981 to explore memory, justice, identity and the lasting impact of trauma across generations. \u003cem\u003eSurge\u003c\/em\u003e won the Ted Hughes Award and helped establish Bernard as one of the most distinctive voices in British poetry today. \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.office.com\/search?q=Jay+Bernard\u0026amp;EntityRepresentationId=e1a9927b-e3b5-890b-9550-63ed0bcf4640\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: windowtext; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;\"\u003eJay Bernard\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e was named \u003cem\u003eSunday Times\u003c\/em\u003e Young Writer of the Year in 2020 and won the 2017 Ted Hughes Award for \u003cem\u003eSurge\u003c\/em\u003e. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"line-height: 15.0pt;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;\"\u003eThe event also features \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; font-weight: normal;\"\u003ePlymouth Laureate of Words \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.office.com\/search?q=R.C.+Thomas\u0026amp;EntityRepresentationId=ee7b0ed4-fce7-8c35-ae52-9f12b44462ee\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: windowtext; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;\"\u003eR.C. Thomas\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e, whose acclaimed poetry explores landscape, community and the stories that shape our lives, alongside writers from \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; font-weight: normal;\"\u003eShelter\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e, whose poems offer moving perspectives on housing, displacement, resilience and the importance of having a place to call home.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"line-height: 15.0pt;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;\"\u003eTogether, these voices invite us to consider how poetry can open conversations about social justice, community and the fundamental human need for safety, dignity and belonging.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"line-height: 15.0pt;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eJay Bernard\u003c\/strong\u003e (FRSL) is an interdisciplinary writer and artist from London whose work is rooted in sound, poetry and social history. Jay was named Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year 2020 and winner of the 2017 Ted Hughes Award for debut collection \u003cem\u003eSurge\u003c\/em\u003e. Recent work includes \u003cem\u003eFar from the Start\u003c\/em\u003e, an audio installation at Studio Voltaire that re-imagines the Windrush; \u003cem\u003eBlue Now\u003c\/em\u003e, a live rendition of Derek Jarman’s film ‘Blue’; \u003cem\u003eJoint\u003c\/em\u003e, a poetic-play about the history of joint enterprise; \u003cem\u003eCrystals of this Social Substance\u003c\/em\u003e, a sound installation about young people, capitalism and money at the 2021 Serpentine pavilion; \u003cem\u003eComplicity\u003c\/em\u003e, a pamphlet about colonial memory in the urban environment, based on the collection at the Tate; and \u003cem\u003eThe Last X Years\u003c\/em\u003e, a digital and live sound piece produced by Art Angel. Jay was a DAAD literature fellow 2022, a 2023 fellow at the Institute of Ideas and Imagination in Paris and is the 2025 Judith E. Wilson poetry fellow at the University of Cambridge.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif;\"\u003ePlymouth Laureate of Words is a creative partnership between Literature Works, Plymouth Culture and The Box. The Laureate represents their city in words, illuminating its life, culture and stories through a combination of creative writing commissions and public events. The locally based Laureate meets the Plymouth community to inspire and encourage the sharing of stories, reflecting the voices at the heart of the city.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis event is delivered in partnership with\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/literatureworks.org.uk\/\"\u003eLiterature Works\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cimg height=\"179\" width=\"217\" alt=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0332\/2039\/5140\/files\/Story_Ruffs_LW_Logo_Standard_Colour.jpg?v=1760438123\"\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"The Box","offers":[{"title":"Standard ticket","offer_id":57659012153724,"sku":"2844899","price":10.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"Concessions\/Members","offer_id":57659012186492,"sku":"2844900","price":5.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0332\/2039\/5140\/files\/SafeSpacespoetry-JayBernard.jpg?v=1791883813","url":"https:\/\/shop.theboxplymouth.com\/products\/safe-spaces-poetry-with-jay-bernard-and-plymouth-laureate-of-words-r-c-thomas","provider":"The Box","version":"1.0","type":"link"}