Lemn Sissay | Let the Light Pour In
Sat 18 Nov 2023 | 8:00pm - 9:00pm
As dawn breaks each morning, Lemn Sissay composes a short poem. He has done this every day for the past decade. The poet, playwright, comedian and acclaimed author returns to Cambridge to present his life-affirming and characteristically witty new collection of these stirring sunrise poems, Let the Light Pour In. Expect resilience and defiant joy.
Introduced by the New Statesman‘s Britain Editor Anoosh Chakelian.
Venue: TTP Stage (Cambridge Union)
Duration: 1 hour
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Author biography
Lemn Sissay OBE is a poet playwright, memoirist performer and broadcaster. He was awarded The Pen Pinter Prize in 2019 when his memoir My Name Is Why reached number one in The Sunday Times bestseller list and won the Indie Book Awards non-fiction prize. Lemn is Chancellor of The University of Manchester and a trustee of The Foundling Museum and The Christmas Dinners. He is patron of Twenty Stories High, The National Association for the Teaching of English Theatre and Ambassador for Place2B. The University of Manchester runs The Lemn Sissay Law bursary and the University of Huddersfield established and runs the first Lemn Sissay PhD scholarship for Care Leavers. He is artistic advisor to The Manchester International festival and was the Guest Director of Brighton Festival 2020 and 2021. In 2021 he was made Honorary Professor at The University of Manchester as well as Visiting Fellow at Jesus College Cambridge.
Lemn’s Television documentaries have been nominated for Griersons, BAFTA and RTS awards. In 2021, Imagine made and broadcast a documentary about his life. His work in radio has been nominated for Sony and Palm D’Ors, and in 2021 he helped select the work for Hold Still a project spearheaded by The Duchess of Cambridge. Hold Still is a Sunday Times Bestseller.
His Landmark Poems in public spaces can be seen throughout Manchester and London. In 2021 alongside Hans Ulrich Obrist of the Serpentine Gallery. Lemn co-curated the acclaimed exhibition ‘Poet Slash Artist’ for Manchester International Festival 2021. In 2021 his poems were performed at the BBC Proms in The Royal Albert Hall. He featured on the Leftfield album. He was the first poet commissioned to write for the London Olympics 2012. He has judged many literary competitions including 2020 Booker Prize, The Gold Man Booker Awards, The National Poetry Competition, The Forward Prize, The Ted Hughes Prize, Cardiff International poetry competition, The Creative Future Literary Awards, and the Bridport Prize.
