The Commonwealth Poetry Prize was an annual poetry prize established in 1972, for a first published book of

English poetry This article focuses on poetry from the United Kingdom written in the English language. The article does not cover poetry from other countries where the English language is spoken, including Republican Ireland after December 1922. The earliest ...

from a country other than the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

. It was initially administered jointly by the

Commonwealth Institute The Commonwealth Education Trust is a registered charity established in 2007 as the successor trust to the Commonwealth Institute. The trust focuses on primary and secondary education and the training of teachers and invests on educational pro ...

and the

National Book League National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...

. In 1985 the prize received sponsorship from

British Airways British Airways (BA) is the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom. It is headquartered in London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a populati ...

. £11,000 prize money was provided for the prize, which was advertized as "the world's most comprehensive award for poetry". Poems by 35 winners of the prize, each introduced with a brief biographical note, were collected in a 1987 anthology, ''Under another Sky''.

Alastair Niven Alastair Neil Robertson Niven Hon FRSL (born 25 February 1944) is an English literary scholar and author. He has written books on D. H. Lawrence, Raja Rao, and Mulk Raj Anand, and has been Director General of The Africa Centre, Director of L ...

, ed., ''Under another sky: an anthology of Commonwealth Poetry Prize winners''. Manchester, England: Carcanet, 1987. The prize was discontinued in 1987, and a

Commonwealth Writers Prize Commonwealth Foundation presented a number of prizes between 1987 and 2011. The main award was called the Commonwealth Writers' Prize and was composed of two prizes: the Best Book Prize (overall and regional) was awarded from 1987 to 2011; the Best ...

established in its place.

Commonwealth prize winners

References

{{reflist Awards established in 1972 Awards disestablished in 1987 Commonwealth literary awards Poetry awards