The Welsh Poetry Competition 2017 organisers have announced the winners of the 11 ^th international competition, judged by acclaimed poet Kathy Miles , and the overall winner was Rae Howells for the poem Airlings .

The winners were as follows:

1 ^st Prize: Airlings by Rae Howells (Swansea)

2 ^nd Prize: Skimmers by Jane Burn (Consett)

3 ^rd Prize: On watching a lemon sail the sea by Maggie Harris (Llandysul)

Kathy also choose another seventeen poems for the ‘Highly commended’ section with another fifteen poems also given a ‘special mention’. As always winners came from all over the world. All winning poems and judges’ comments can be viewed on the competition web site – www.welshpoetry.co.uk

Judge Kathy Miles said: “It has been a real honour to judge this year's Welsh Poetry Competition. And, with over 500 entries, a somewhat daunting task, not least because of the quality of the work submitted. Subjects were wide ranging; love, loss, the failure of relationships, and – as one would expect in such dark political times – anger at the world we live in. Many poems dealt with heart-breaking scenarios: death, the decline of a loved one into dementia, homelessness, war, the refugee crisis. There were also many pieces that focussed on Wales, and I was reminded again of how much wonderful poetry is inspired by the history, culture and language of the landscape around us.

“Judging is necessarily a subjective process; but from the start I looked for something different. A quirky style, a new slant on an old subject, a strong narrative voice, or imagery that lifted the poem from mere description into something that truly excited the imagination. It was such a strong field that I read each entry many times before deciding on the final placings: every poet had something unique to say, and I wanted to give every poet the chance to shine. The Highly Commended poems in particular were very close, and all of an extremely high standard, so the choice was difficult.

“Inevitably, the poems which made it through were those that kept me awake at night. Poems which tugged at the edges of my dreams, or whose words huddled in little corners of my mind and leapt out when I least expected it. Well done to everyone who entered. It has been wonderful -and humbling- to see so much talent. A huge thank you to Dave Lewis for encouraging and fostering that talent and for inviting me to be the judge this year.”

Full list of winners:

WELSH POETRY COMPETITION 2017

Judged by Kathy Miles

1 ^st Prize: Airlings by Rae Howells (Swansea)

2 ^nd Prize: Skimmers by Jane Burn (Consett)

3 ^rd Prize: On watching a lemon sail the sea by Maggie Harris (Llandysul)

HIGHLY COMMENDED

4 ^th : Ten Minutes – Natalie Ann Holborow (Skewen)

5 ^th : Hare on the lane – Louise Wilford (Barnsley)

6 ^th : Sunflower Encolpion – Mara Adamitz Scrupe (USA)

7 ^th : Bergamask for the Neoplatonists – Mick Evans (Llangadog)

8 ^th : Bones, not human – Caroline Davies (Leighton Buzzard)

9 ^th : The art of moving a piano into an upstairs flat – Kittie Belltree (Cardigan)

10 ^th : lost poem – Mick Evans (Llangadog)

11 ^th : Otters – Gareth Writer-Davies (Brecon)

12 ^th : In the Bowes-Lyon Museum – Pat Borthwick (Kirby Underdale)

13 ^th : Running – Natalie Ann Holborow (Skewen)

14 ^th : Cawl – Mari Ellis Dunning (Swansea)

15 ^th : desert sculpture – Mick Evans (Llangadog)

16 ^th : Rough Magic – Noel Williams (Sheffield)

17 ^th : The Wren – John D Kelly (Newton Butler)

18 ^th : Top Corris – Zillah Bowes (Cardiff)

19 ^th : Grip – Mick Evans (Llangadog)

20 ^th : Bluebeard – Helen May Williams (Pendine)