Poetry Aloud

Poetry Aloud is an annual poetry speaking competition open to all post-primary students in Ireland which is organised by the National Library of Ireland and Poetry Ireland, and supported by University College Cork.

A boy in school uniform stands in front of posters for the poetry aloud competiton

About Poetry Aloud

Poetry Aloud is an annual poetry speaking competition open to all post-primary students on the island of Ireland. It is organised by Poetry Ireland and the National Library of Ireland and is supported by University College Cork. Since it was launched in 2006, Poetry Aloud has grown from just a few hundred entries to thousadns of entries each year.

The late Seamus Heaney was a significant supporter of Poetry Aloud. When he won the David Cohen Prize for Lifetime Achievement in Literature, he nominated Poetry Aloud for the accompanying Clarissa Luard Award, and he remarked, “I truly believe Poetry Aloud deserves all the support it can get, because it promotes literature, and, in particular, poetry, widely, intimately and to inestimable effect. But fundamentally, I choose it because it brings poetry into the memory and affections of the young in a way that will make it a lifelong possession and value”. 

The competition is open to all students attending a second-level school on the island of Ireland. Poetry Aloud celebrates the joy of speaking and listening to poetry among post-primary students on the island of Ireland. Poetry Aloud engages students with spoken poetry, building confidence and pride in our written heritage. 

Participants from three categories (Junior, Intermediate and Senior) learn one prescribed poem and one poem of their choosing from selected anthologies and compete at regional heats, semi-finals and the national final in the National Library of Ireland. 

Past participants in Poetry Aloud are included in recorded pieces reading letters and poems in the library’s exhibitions, have participated in commemorative events in the NLI and events organised by Poetry Ireland, and have gone on to pursue careers in acting and become published poets.

Poetry Aloud runs from October to December.

The three categories are:

  • Junior: 1st and 2nd year from Republic of Ireland and years 8, 9 and 10 from Northern Ireland
  • Intermediate: 3rd and 4th year from Republic of Ireland and years 11 and 12 from Northern Ireland
  • Senior: 5th and 6th year from Republic of Ireland and upper and lower 6th years from Northern Ireland

The competition involves three stages. First, regional heats are held at various venues around the country during October. If students progress in the competition, the semi-finals and the national final are held in Dublin in November and December, respectively. 

For any queries, email poetryaloud@nli.ie.

  • Participating teachers are to select students to represent their school from all or any of the three categories (Junior, Intermediate, Senior).
  • Each entry must be accompanied by the below: 
    • Teacher name
    • School name & address
    • Teacher contact email 
    • Teacher contact number

    • Student names & competition category

       

  • Please fill in and return the entry form below.
  • Entry forms to be sent to: poetryaloud@nli.ie
  • The closing date for submissions has been extended to Monday 5th October.

Participants speak two poems according to their category (one prescribed poem and one chosen). 


The prescribed poem for each category for the 2026 competition: 

  • Junior Category poem | Waiting in the Rain by Tony Curtis
  • Intermediate Category poem | The Copybook by Vona Groarke (Infinity Pool, The Gallery Press 2025)
  • Senior Category poem | Agnes Bernelle, 1923 – 1999 by Eiléan Ní Chuilleanáin (Collected poems)
     

And please choose one poem from any of the prescribed anthologies listed: 

  • The Rattle Bag edited by Seamus Heaney and Ted Hughes (Faber and Faber, 1982)
  • Lifelines: Letters from Famous People About Their Favourite Poem edited by Niall MacMonagle (Any edition)
  • Windharp: Poems of Ireland since 1916 edited by Niall MacMonagle (Paperback, Penguin Ireland, 2016)
  • All Through the Night: Night Poems & Lullabies edited by Marie Heaney (Poetry Ireland, 2016)
  • Everything to Play For: 99 Poems about Sport edited by John McAuliffe (Poetry Ireland, 2015)

 

Terms and conditions for entering the competition:

  • All students resident on the island of Ireland and attending a post-primary school are eligible to enter. 
  • Poem selection criteria apply at all stages of the competition. 
  • Poems on the prescribed list cannot be used at any other stage of the competition.
  • The use of props is not permitted.
  • Participants must be accompanied by teacher/parent/responsible adult
  • The judges’ decision is final at all stages of the competition, and no correspondence of any kind will be entered into. 
  •  Notifications regarding the semi-finals (November) and the national final (December) will be sent to teachers following the completion of the regional heats.

Competition Guidelines

  • Students must prepare and speak two poems for all stages of the competition.
  • Poems must be spoken from memory
  • Students must cite the name of the poem and the poet before speaking the poem.   
  • Chosen poems must be not less than 12 lines and no more than 35 -40 lines (all categories)
  • Students will speak the prescribed poem for their category first

Regional heats will be held at venues around the country in October.

  • Schools will be assigned to a regional heat location once all entries have been received and processed. 
  • A panel of qualified adjudicators representing the National Library of Ireland and Poetry Ireland will adjudicate the regional heats.
Poetry Aloud Entry Form