POETRY Swindon has unveiled the programme for this year's five-day festival.

Music, plays, and of course, poetry readings will be performed over six days in October at the Holiday Inn, Christ Church, and the Richard Jefferies Museum’s Tent-Palace of the Delicious Air.

Anna Saunders will be reading from her fifth collection Ghosting for Beginners on October 5 from 1pm at the Tent Palace.

She said: “This is a small festival with a big heart.

"I always go and watch the events so it's brilliant to be on the stage in my own guest slot for the first time.

"It's a great place to see new emerging poets and established writers.

"Poets from all over the world come here, with big names like Kim Moore, Carrie Etter and Tim Liardet attending this year.

"I'm honoured to be on the same bill as some of these iconic poets whose work I've immensely enjoyed on the page.

"It's a stellar line-up and I'm looking forward to seeing them all perform live.

"My newest collection is darkly-comic and hopefully inspiring and uplifting.

"It's about the things that haunt us - memories, lost loves, ghost stories, and happier things like scenes from our childhoods."

The festival kicks off with a performance of acclaimed videogame-inspired Shakespeare spoof Super Hamlet 64 at the Tent Palace on October 3 from 7.30pm.

On October 4, the first full day of the festival features Swindon poets reading from their new collections, musical theatre about TS Eliot’s wife Vivienne Haigh-Wood, and open mic readings from Sarah L Dixon and audience members.

The fifth of the month will offer workshops on writing poetry about difficult times and constructing a narrative, comedy from Susan Taylor and Simon Williams, the launch of an international poetry film project, and the music of Nick Drake performed by Keith James.

The next day includes the Battered Moons Poetry Competition, a late-night poetry quiz, workshops on gender exploration and perspective, and conversations with poetry editors.

Sunday is chock-full of workshops on writing, poem publication and haiku, plus a close reading of a World War One poem, and the launch of anarchist poetry magazine Domestic Cherry.

The festival will close with a Goodbye Brunch with Clare Shaw and Robin Houghton at the Tent Palace on Monday October 8 from 10am.

For more information, visit poetryswindon.org