The John Pollard Foundation International Poetry Prize 2026 Shortlist Announced
The shortlist for the John Pollard Foundation International Poetry Prize 2025 has been announced, by the Trinity Oscar Wilde Centre. The prize is awarded annually for an outstanding debut collection of poetry in the English language. Valued at €10,000, the prize is sponsored by the John Pollard Foundation, and administered by the Trinity Oscar Wilde Centre in the School of English at Trinity College Dublin. The patron of the John Pollard Foundation is Stephen Vernon, who named the Foundation in memory of his grandfather, John Pollard. The winner will be announced at a ceremony in Trinity in April 2026.
The shortlisted publications are:
- Dane Holt: Father's Father's Father (Carcanet Press)
- Michael Mullen: goonie (Corsair)
- Karen Downes-Barton: Minx (Chatto and Windus)
- Abu Bakr Sadiq: Leaked Footages (University of Nebraska Press)
- Darby Price: All The Lands We Inherit (Black Lawrence Press)
Announcing the 2026 shortlist, chair of the judging panel, Professor Eoin McNamee, Director of the Trinity Oscar Wilde Centre said:
“Along with fellow judges Seán Hewitt and Una Mannion it has once again been a privilege to read first collections of poetry and to choose a shortlist for this year’s Pollard International Poetry Prize. We found ourselves beguiled, held to our task by invention, by poetic languages that are lyric, political, urgent, striking a balance between the ethereal and the worldly. We commend these poets to you.”
Previous winners of the prize were Hannah Sullivan (2019); Isabel Galleymore (2020); Diane Louie (2021); Gail McConnell (2022); Victoria Adukwei Bulley (2023); Patrick James Errington (2024); Gustav Parker Hibbett (2025).
The John Pollard Foundation International Poetry Prize 2026
The John Pollard Foundation International Poetry Prize is for an outstanding debut poetry book collection by a poet, in the English language. The John Pollard Foundation International Poetry Prize is valued at €10,000 and will be adjudicated by a panel of judges nominated by the John Pollard Foundation, and the Trinity Oscar Wilde Centre in the School of English, Trinity College Dublin.
The selection panel will be chaired by the Director of the Trinity Oscar Wilde Centre, (or nominee) at Trinity College Dublin. The John Pollard Foundation International Poetry Prize will be administered by the Trinity Oscar Wilde Centre in association with the Trinity School of English.
Criteria
- The 2026 prize will be awarded to a first book of poetry published originally in the English language between October 1st 2024 and October 20th 2025.
- Only single-authored books are eligible.
- A book shall be defined as having at least 48 pages.
- A publisher may submit one nomination for the prize.
- The winner must be available to accept the prize in person in Trinity College Dublin.
Submission
Submission by the publisher should consist of a PDF copy of the book and a brief author biography (200 words maximum) to: wilde@tcd.ie, (subject line JP Prize Submission). Submission by the publisher will also consist of four copies of the published book for the judging panel, the submission addresses will be provided further to your pdf and author biography submission.
Deadline
The deadline for submissions is October 20th 2025. The winner of the award will be announced in during Trinity Week 2026.