Get your tickets now for our annual celebration of the best of British and Irish poetry, the prestigious T. S. Eliot Prize Shortlist Readings at the Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall on Sunday 17 January 2027.

You won’t want to miss performances from the shortlisted poets, as chosen by judges Leontia Flynn (Chair), Ishion Hutchinson and Daisy Lafarge.

Masterfully hosted by Ian McMillan (BBC Radio 4’s The Verb) the evening is the best way to brighten up January and start your literary year, offering a unique encounter with contemporary poetry. Yomi Ṣode, shortlisted in 2022, describes the event as ‘participatory, alive, communal’: ‘The Oscars of UK poetry had me fusing poems together, blurring their edges, and leaving space for the audience to lean in.’ Head of Literature and Spoken Word at the Southbank Centre, Ted Hodgkinson notes the way ‘the hall transforms into an intimate space, the distance between poet and audience bridged by poems as distinctive as they are arresting. A poet’s voice and a single spotlight are all that’s required.’

The event will be British Sign Language (BSL) interpreted. Tickets to the live event are now available from the Southbank Centre’s website or by calling their box office on 020 3879 9555 (concessions available). And if you can’t join us in the hall, you can also book tickets to watch the live stream from home.