Poetry and Audience
Use this research spotlight to explore the evolving design of the pioneering Poetry and Audience magazine.
Founded in 1953, and still published biannually, Poetry and Audience is one of the longest running poetry magazines in the UK.
You can find back copies of the magazine and some correspondence and manuscript submissions.
First Issue; Volume 1 Issue 1
First Issue; Volume 1 Issue 1
Founded by international student and editor Ralph Maud and publishing its first issue on 6th November 1953, Poetry and Audience magazine was the epitome of the 'little poetry magazine'.
Without even a cover page, the title is handwritten in capitals at the top, and the rest of the page is dedicated to what matters most: the poetry, highlighting the exclusively undergraduate Editorial board.
The issue established the magazine's regionalism in Maud's dialect poem 'Chill words to a lackadaisical courting man' alongside its commitment to retain a sense of poetic perspective with contributions from John Heath-Stubbs, the Gregory Fellow at the time.
With its small size, weekly production, handmade cyclostyled pages and price of one penny, the magazine aimed, as the editorial states here 'to be serious about poetry – without being "damn solemn" (as Hemingway once said)'.
CLASSMARK: University of Leeds, A-0.01 POE
Volume 5: Issue 1
Volume 5: Issue 1
Hubert Dalwood, the resident Gregory Fellow in Sculpture designed this Poetry & Audience logo which quickly became the front cover of the magazine for a period from Volume 5 published on 11th October 1957.
The design appears to be made from a relief or lino print, which was easy to reproduce on an amateur scale by the new editorial team each year. Dalwood also made a relief sculpture which was attached to the editorship and was handed from one to the next but this has since been lost!
Thomas Blackburn was both Gregory Fellow and editorial advisor at this time and other editorial board members included Tony Harrison and AR Mortimer, both of whom would later become editors.
CLASSMARK: University of Leeds, A-0.01 POE
Volume 9: Issue 1
Volume 9: Issue 1
This is another recognisable front cover first used in October 1961. It shows the bold, bright, crisp and clean circle design which was used for the next two years.
The use of a more costly coloured lithography process marked the increasing profile of the magazine. The colours of the design changed periodically, including blue, pink, purple and the ochre seen here.
The now-printed title is encased within a coloured circle, with the editorial board presented underneath.
However, issue numbers and dates were sometimes written on, and any mistakes crossed off, reminding us of the essentially amateur running of the publication. At this time it was still came out weekly and was compiled by students, with minimal intervention from the Gregory Fellow W. 'Bill' Price Turner, or the School of English.
Ben Sherriff's editorial highlights his perceived non-partisan ethos of the magazine. He stated that:
'In choosing the poems we have no political, religious or moral axe to grind' and states that the magazine's tradition 'of publishing six poems a week for the price of a penny has been maintained unbroken'.
CLASSMARK: University of Leeds, A-0.01 POE
Pamphlets Number 2
Pamphlets Number 2
This relief pressing was used on Poetry and Audience's front cover and for its pamphlet series dedicated to individual student poets.
The vivid front cover depicts a sprawling human being with the initials of P&A in the top right hand corner. Offset by its orange background, it makes for a visually striking piece.
This cover is for the second in the series which featured the poetry of John Quail. Edited by Roderick Wilson, it was published in 1969.
Examples of other poets involved include Brian Oxley and Jonathan Brown.
With around 40 other student-run Leeds University Union journals in publication at the time, covering subjects such as film, fine art, the beat generation, jazz, sociology, theatre and foreign cultures, this experimental cover made Poetry and Audience stand out.
CLASSMARK: University of Leeds, A-0.01 POE
Volume 11, Issue 8
Volume 11, Issue 8
This front cover from Volume 11 was published on 29th November 1963 and once again demonstrates the ever-changing design and style of the magazine.
Now made from coloured sugar paper, this cover features several intersecting lines, giving the effect of bricks, whilst drawing the eye to the centre of the page to focus on the volume, issue, year and the continuance of the magazine costing a penny.
The front cover also had several colours, chiefly red and brown. Despite being printed, issue numbers were hand drawn on the front, again indicating the increasing aesthetic awareness of the amateur editorial board.
Jeffrey Wainwright, who replaced John Meyrick after the first term as editor, recalled the chaos caused by the printing process:
'If they used too much ink, then the production would be messy but if they used too little it would make the text too faint.'
This admission may explain the fluctuating light and dark pages in some of the copies.
CLASSMARK: University of Leeds, A-0.01 POE
Volume 13: Issue 1
Volume 13: Issue 1
This cover from 15th October 1965, showcases another hand drawn design which featured stencilled letters along the top and the iconic P&A logo coloured in at the bottom right.
Under the editorship of Brian Oxley, the magazine was demonstrably becoming an integrated part of university life, with adverts for poetry readings of the English Society and accounts of theatre visits being prominent in the magazine.
The editor also pays a homage to previous editor Jeffrey Wainwright. In his opening editorial, Oxley affirms the magazine's desire to 'publish writing that has not yet been absorbed into the static scholastic categories; writing which is 'becoming', which is exciting, fluid, unpredictable.'
CLASSMARK: University of Leeds, A-0.01 POE
Volume 20 Issue 2
Volume 20 Issue 2
Designed by Lee Calcraft, the covers of P&A continued to become more visually appealing, whilst maintaining its handmade spirit.
Here the figure, presumably reading poetry, is unknowingly being spied upon by a host of eyes in the top right hand corner, symbolising the ever-present audience, which the magazine wishes to engage with.
The back cover however, reveals the eclectic and all-embracing nature of the magazine, through stylistic contrast; the precise penned lines, tight forms and complex patterns of the front cover are replaced by an impressionistic explosion of streaks of mauve and pink with a new relief title pressed in black over it.
However, note the similarity of both the 'P' and 'A' to the previous design, suggesting continuity despite the changing editors, contributors and cover designs.
CLASSMARK: University of Leeds, A-0.01 POE
Volume 23 Issue 1
Volume 23 Issue 1
Although not being published weekly by this time, Poetry and Audience continued to experiment with different covers.
This cover illustration by Mary Outram recalls the urban and communal genesis of the magazine, featuring youths sitting in conversation and children playing in the street.
This issue also had internal illustrations by different contributors including one by Oralia Briones featuring butterflies amongst tall grasses. This illustration is printed opposite Brian Oxley's 'Nutting'.
CLASSMARK: University of Leeds, A-0.01 POE
Volume 26 Issue 1
Volume 26 Issue 1
Designed by Andy Arnold, this cover for volume 26, issue 1, creates a self-conscious satirical effect as the magazine nears its 25th anniversary, by depicting the generational difference between the elderly father and his son.
The son's assertion that he will work 'down t'pit' reinforces the regional roots of the magazine despite its international founding editor and prestigious list of contributors, many of whom were students or Gregory Fellows such as Tony Harrison, Jon Glover, Jeffrey Wainwright and Jon Silkin.
Contributions also came from both local and international; Jonathan Brown was based a Park Lane College in Leeds, whilst Brian Purcell sent contributions from Sydney.
CLASSMARK: University of Leeds, A-0.01 POE
Jon Glover, 1970
Jon Glover, 1970
Alongside Poetry and Audience and Stand magazine, several Leeds University students and alumni had a selection of poetry printed by the Northern House Pamphlet series. These include Ken Smith, Tony Connor, Jeffrey Wainwright, Jon Silkin and Tony Harrison.
Jon Glover, current editor of Stand, also had a selection of poems published at this time. He who was on the editorial board of Poetry and Audience and was Editor of Volume 61.
The cover illustration designed by Christine Southworth is intricate and reflective of many of the poem's titles which are loosely linked with the natural world such as 'Shoreline' and 'Three Stonebirds'.
CLASSMARK: University of Leeds, A-0.01 POE