TfL launches a celebration of poetry to mark 40 years of ‘Poems on the Underground’. London Poets who have taken part in the scheme are invited to attend a celebratory event at Bank Tube station on 30 January. 40th anniversary edition of ‘100 Poems on the Underground’ will be available to purchase from several retailers, including London Transport Museum and online, and contains poems from Sappho and Shakespeare to Kamau Brathwaite and Wendy Cope. A new set of winter Poems on the Underground will launch on 9 February. Poems will also feature at five stations, including Aldgate East, Seven Sisters and Westminster
Later this year, TfL will publish a free leaflet '40 poems for 40 years' of Poems on the Underground' which will be available at London Underground stations
Transport for London (TfL) has today (Tuesday 6 January) announced a series of special events and publications to celebrate the 40th anniversary of 'Poems on the Underground', which has brought world-class poetry to millions of London Underground customers since 1986, transforming daily journeys into moments of reflection and connection for four decades.
TfL will host a special commemorative event on Friday 30 January at Bank Tube station to officially mark the milestone. London poets whose work has featured in the scheme over the years will be invited to attend the event, alongside poetry readings from staff poets and other poetry lovers.
A special revised edition of '100 Poems on the Underground' is now also available for purchase at several retailers, including the London Transport Museum shop and online. The new edition adds poems by Sappho and Jean Binta Breeze to the poems displayed during the first five years of Poems on the Underground.
A new set of winter ‘Poems on the Underground’ will launch on 9 February, including poems by contemporary British poets – “Syzygy” by Rachel Boast, “A Short Piece of Choral Music” by Jonathan Davidson, and “Narcissus” by Blake Morrison. It also features a haiku by Kobayahsi Issa with original calligraphy by Yukki Yaura, and verses by the Romanian poet Mircea Dinescu and the American Jane Hirshfield.
In addition to the new collection, TfL will be featuring some of the first 100 poems at five selected stations, continuing the expansion of the project beyond train carriages. Poems will be featured at Aldgate East, Heathrow, Seven Sisters, St. John’s Wood, and Westminster.
