T S Eliot Prize for Poetry
The T S Eliot Prize for Poetry was inaugurated in 1993 to celebrate the Poetry Book Society's 40th birthday and honour its founding poet.
Described as ‘the prize most poets want to win' (Andrew Motion, then Poet Laureate) and ‘the world's top poetry award' (Irish Independent), it is awarded to the author of the best new collection of poetry published in the UK and Ireland each year.
The winner receives £15,000 and each of the shortlisted poets receives £1,000.
2010 T S Eliot Prize for Poetry Winner
Derek Walcott
"This year's exceptionally strong and varied shortlist made it difficult to choose the winner, but the judges felt that Derek Walcott's White Egrets was a moving, risk-taking and technically flawless book by a great poet," said Anne Stevenson, fellow poet and chair of the judging panel. Award Tragic comments
2010 Shortlisted
Judges Anne Stevenson (Chair), Bernardine Evaristo and Michael Symmons Roberts chose 6 collections from the record 123 books submitted by publishers, which join the 4 PBS Choices to make up the 10 collections on the shortlisted:
Seeing Stars Simon Armitage (Faber)
The Mirabelles Annie Freud (Picador)
You John Haynes (Seren)
Human Chain Seamus Heaney (Faber)
What the Water Gave Me Pascale Petit (Seren)
The Wrecking Light Robin Robertson (Picador)
Rough Music Fiona Sampson (Carcanet)
Phantom Noise Brian Turner (Bloodaxe)
White Egrets Derek Walcott (Faber) - Winner
New Light for the Old Dark Sam Willetts (Jonathan Cape)
Anne Stevenson said:
"The judges have found this an exceptional year for poetry, with a record number of entries, and have agreed on a strong shortlist which is unusually eclectic in form and theme."
Previous winners:
2009 Philip Gross The Water Table
2008 Jen Hadfield Nigh-No-Place
2007 Sean O'Brien The Drowned Book
2006 Seamus Heaney District and Circle
2005 Carol Ann Duffy Rapture
2004 George Szirtes Reel
2003 Don Paterson Landing Light
2002 Alice Oswald Dart
2001 Anne Carson The Beauty of the Husband
2000 Michael Longley The Weather in Japan
1999 Hugo Williams Billy's Rain
1998 Ted Hughes Birthday Letters
1997 Don Paterson God's Gift to Women
1996 Les Murray Subhuman Redneck Poems
1995 Mark Doty My Alexandria
1994 Paul Muldoon The Annals of Chile
1993 Ciaran Carson First Language: Poems
