We are deeply saddened to share the news that Chris Holifield, Director of the Poetry Book Society 2003–16 and Director of the T. S. Eliot Prize 2016–22, died on 3 September 2025.
The Directors of the T. S. Eliot Foundation write: ‘We would like to extend our deepest sympathy to Chris Holifield’s family. Having worked with Chris for many years we want to acknowledge our appreciation, and also admiration for her, in the fullest way possible. She worked tirelessly to ensure the award deserved its reputation as “the prize most poets want to win”. Chris was also courteous, resourceful, determined and fun. She cared deeply about the poets and most importantly she cared about their work and loved – each year – to bring the shortlisted collections to a wider audience. We know Mrs Eliot was very grateful and so are we.’
Having spent all of her career in publishing, Chris was an unwavering force for good in promoting literature and sharing it with readers. A former Deputy MD of Cassell, Editorial Director of BCA and Publishing Director of the Softback Preview Club, Chris founded WritersServices, a website providing editorial services for writers, in 2001. In 2007, concerned about the lack of support for children’s poetry, she, Gaby Morgan and Jonathan Douglas set up the campaigning group Children’s Poetry Summit.
Appointed Director of the Poetry Book Society in 2003, Chris defended the organisation energetically after its funding was withdrawn by Arts Council England in 2011 and during the difficult years that followed. In 2016 the T. S. Eliot estate took over the Prize, having funded it since its inception, with Chris appointed as Director. The Poetry Book Society, its membership and book club were transferred to Inpress, the sales and marketing agency for independent publishers.
As Chris told The Bookseller at the time, ‘The Society, founded by T. S. Eliot and once chaired by Philip Larkin, has done so much to promote poetry over the past 60 years, but the decision of the Arts Council to withdraw funding […] meant that its demise was inevitable […] I am grateful that the trustees of the T. S. Eliot estate have stepped in to ensure that the T. S. Eliot Prize […] will continue.’
With Chris at the helm this proved an exciting phase for the Prize. A new website and video archive were launched and the annual readings given by the shortlisted poets grew steadily into the largest poetry event in the UK. With the support of the T. S. Eliot estate, the prize money was also significantly increased.
For Chris the Prize brought rewards both personal and far-reaching. For her an annual highlight was visiting Valerie Eliot ‘in the rather grand Kensington flat she had shared with her husband to take copies of the shortlist, and thank her for supporting the Prize’. Another memorable moment came in 2010, after the Shortlist Readings had moved to the Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall. ‘Although we had achieved good audiences in the Queen Elizabeth Hall, moving to the RFH’s vast auditorium was a major risk’, Chris wrote. ‘Though Seamus Heaney wasn’t well, he had promised to “come [to the Readings] if he could” and after Christmas phoned to say he would make it after all, thus contributing to the biggest audience we ever had and ensuring that the largest annual poetry event in the country would continue to achieve that status year after year’.
Chris retired as Director in May 2022, saying ‘It has been a privilege and a pleasure to run the T. S. Eliot Prize for 20 years […] and to play a part in its growth in influence and prestige.’ It had, she said in an article for the T. S. Eliot Prize website, ‘been quite a ride’. Despite her illness, she continued to run both WritersServices and the Children’s Poetry Summit, and to attend and support a range of poetry events and projects. She loved to travel and to spend time with her daughters and grandchildren, who will miss her dearly.
Chris Holifield, 3 June 1947–3 September 2025
