Masterclass: Denise Riley
See your own poetry practice blossom under the expert guidance of the celebrated poet Denise Riley.
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The winner of the 2012 Forward Prize for Best Poem and author of Say Something Back, which was shortlisted for the Forward Prize for Best Collection, offers up her insightful expertise to help you discover new ways of writing.
This workshop invites you to take a step back from what can often seem a complicated artform and to embrace the theme of ‘simplicity’.
Simplicity of poetic form and language certainly doesn’t equal simple content. This workshop aims to help you find new ways to put your thoughts to paper by playing with techniques such as brevity, concentratedness and clarity.
Learn from more masters of poetic simplicity by delving into the work of WH Auden, Gwendolyn Brooks, Emily Dickinson, WS Graham, Selima Hill, Philip Larkin and Warsan Shire.
This is a unique opportunity to spend two hours under the guidance of a poet Max Porter once described as having ‘the scalpel-fine touch of a literary surgeon’ (The Guardian).
Need to know
Times & tickets
Dates, times and prices
Dates & times
12 Jul 2026, 1pm
Run time
2 hours (approx)
All timings are approximate and subject to change
Standard entry
from £27 + £4 booking fee
Ticket prices may be adjusted without notice to reflect demand.
Concessions
Learn more about concession discounts
Refunds and exchanges
Find out more about our refund and exchange policy
Poetry International Multi-buy discount
Book multiple Poetry International events in the same transaction and receive a discount:
Two events: 10% discount
Three events: 15% discount
Four events: 20% discount
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For your visit
This event is held at the Royal Festival Hall Southbank Centre
The Royal Festival Hall is open six days a week.
Tuesday – Sunday, 10am – 11pm
Monday, closed.
Plan your visit
The Royal Festival Hall is home to our largest auditorium as well as The Clore Ballroom, National Poetry Library, Members’ Lounge, Festival Bar & Kitchen, Ballroom Cafe and Skylon restaurant.
Getting here
Our address is Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, London, SE1 8XX.
The nearest tube stations to us are Waterloo and Embankment; Waterloo is also the nearest train station. And more than 20 different London bus routes pass within 500 metres of our venues. More information on getting here by rail, road or river is available on our Getting here page.
We’re cash-free
Please note that we’re unable to accept cash payments across our venues.
Access
We’re working hard to remove barriers, so that our facilities and events can be accessible to as many people as possible.
All help points, toilets, performance and exhibition spaces at the Southbank Centre are accessible to all, as are the cafes, bars and restaurants. We also have excellent public transport links with step-free access.
All information about booking wheelchair spaces, step-free access, blue badge parking, access maps and guides and other help available whilst you’re here, including details about our Access Scheme, can be found on our Access page.
Food & drink
On Level 2 of our Royal Festival Hall you can grab a slice of life by the Thames with drinks and freshly made pizza at our Festival Bar & Kitchen which opens out onto our Riverside Terrace. You can grab a coffee and a slice of freshly made cake from our Ballroom Cafe. Or alternatively enjoy destination dining in the restaurant at Skylon.
From coffee to cocktails, filling favourites to fine dining, plus some of London’s best street food – it’s all here at the Southbank Centre.