Award-winning folk singer Iona Fyfe gets ready to Push the Boat Out as Edinburgh’s International Poetry Festival brings a wave of creativity to the capital from 22–24 November.

The programme for Push The Boat Out (PTBO) contains 50 events showcasing some of the brightest stars in poetry, music, and spoken word, Iona will headline an unforgettable evening of poetry-fused song at Dovecot Studios on Saturday 23 November.

Events in the programme will be split over several venues – Dovecot Studios, The Scottish Storytelling Centre, Dance Base and Pleasance.

A spokesperson for PTBO said: “Some of the brightest stars in poetry, music and spoken word join us on some of Edinburgh’s most iconic stages including Alexander McCall Smith, Salena Godden, Raymond Antrobus, Caroline Bird, Ella Frears,
Kathleen Jamie, Imtiaz Dharker, Len Pennie and Michael Pedersen.
Award-winning folk singer Iona Fyfe headlines an unforgettable night of poetry-fused song in our Saturday night gig, and on Sunday we’ll celebrate the life, art, and activism of Benjamin Zephaniah in a special event created in collaboration with Qian
Zephaniah and Kadija Sesay. Created with support from the
Edinburgh 900 programme, our Disrupting the Narrative series
includes performance, discussion and exhibitions from Hannah
Lavery, SCOREScotland, Tinderbox Collective, Niroshini Thambar, Jeda Pearl, Shasta Ali, Niall Moorjani, Alycia Pirmohamed, Lisa Williams and Kat Gollock. Together they offer fresh creative perspectives on how Edinburgh’s colonial history has shaped the city, its institutions and people.

The full programme is here but there is an event on Saturday afternoon with the current and previous Edinburgh Makars that we think will be unmissable. Hannah Lavery and Michael Pedersen will present a Makar-athon at Dovecot on Saturday at 4.30pm.

Join renowned poet and playwright, Hannah Lavery, as she hands over the baton of Edinburgh Makar to the ever-effervescent Michael Pedersen. Hannah and Michael will discuss their own work including Hannah’s recently published, Unwritten Woman, as well as what holding the position of Makar means to them and how the city influences their work. Chaired by Jenny Niven.

Makar is the old Scots word for poet, but it’s also an official position that a poet can hold for their city or, if they’re in Scotland, their country. The Makar acts as a literary ambassador, observing and writing on aspects of their country or city that strike them as important or necessary to observe. 

Part of the Edinburgh 900 Anniversary Programme Tickets here.

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Award winning singer Iona Fyfe
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Founding Editor of The Edinburgh Reporter.
Edinburgh-born multimedia journalist and iPhoneographer.