Heaney & Morrissey in Forward Prize for Poetry

Great news for Northern Irish poetry today. Two out of the six poets shortlisted for the Forward Prize for Poetry are from here. Seamus Heaney for his new collection ""Human Chain" and Sinead Morrissey for "Through the Square Window", the same collection for which she was shortlisted for the TS Eliot prize earlier this year.

Northern Irish poets have been here before. Ciaran Carson won the prize in 2003 for "Breaking News". The following year Leontia Flynn won Best First Collection for "These Days".

It's like a poetry version of that Kevin Bacon party game, based on the idea that other actors and the parts they've played can be connected to Kevin Bacon. Only this time it's Six Degrees of Seamus Heaney.

So (1) Seamus Heaney is a former student of Queen's University Belfast

(2) In 2003 Queen's University sets up the Seamus Heaney Centre for Poetry

(3) Ciaran Carson is Professor of Poetry at Queen's and director of the Seamus Heaney Centre,

(4) Leontia FLynn is a research fellow there

(5) Sinead Morrissey is a lecturer in creative writing there too which brings me to the six degrees..... 

(6) Seamus Heaney

But I don't think Kevin Bacon need worry about losing his party game to the Nobel Laureate for Literature!

Anyhow, the Forward Prize for Best Poetry collection shortlist is:

• Seamus Heaney - Human Chain
• Lachlan Mackinnon - Small Hours
• Sinead Morrissey - Through the Square Window
• Robin Robertson - The Wrecking Light
• Fiona Sampson - Rough Music
• Jo Shapcott - Of Mutability

 The winner will be revealed on the 6th of October.