A writer has beaten more than 170 applicants to become the first-ever poet-in-residence tasked with celebrating London’s bridges in verse.
Cecilia Knapp, a 31-year-old based in Hackney, has been selected by the City Bridge Foundation to take on the coveted year-long role.
The centuries-old charity - which owns and maintains five key London bridges including Tower Bridge - in March launched its search for a poet-in-residence to write about its famous Thames crossings.
It announced Ms Knapp has been appointed to the £10,000 position on Tuesday.
She will be tasked with writing poems about Tower, London, Southwark, Millennium and Blackfriars bridges, as well as the charities the foundation helps fund, and wider issues affecting the capital.
She will also perform her work at events and take part in community and educational outreach activities.
Born in Brighton, Ms Knapp began writing poetry 12 years ago after attending workshops at renowned Camden arts venue The Roundhouse.
She has previously served as Young Person’s Laureate for London, and resident poet at Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children. Her first collection of poems, Peach Pig, was published two years ago.
Speaking of her delight at being selected for the new residency, she said: “It’s really exciting and creatively fulfilling to be able to take on a completely new role and to work with the foundation to design what the job is and what it can do for London.
“It’s inspiring to see how many amazing initiatives the charity funds across the capital and I’m looking forward to using poetry to connect with and celebrate those communities.
“A bridge is a poetic concept – the idea of connecting people – and poetry is a great connector, so using poetry to talk about bridges, and the people that use them, feels like a natural fit.”
City Bridge Foundation chairman Giles Shilson said the volume of applications received for the position was “testament to the strength and diversity of the poetry community in London and beyond”.
“Apart from the power of her poetry and her years of experience, what greatly impressed us was Cecilia’s strong vision for the role and how her poetry could reflect our work in bridging London and connecting communities,” he said.
Judith Palmer, Director of The Poetry Society, which is supporting the role, said: “This is such an exciting residency opportunity, which inspired some really amazing proposals, proving the ability of bridges to capture the poetic imagination.
“We’re very much looking forward to working with Cecilia in the year ahead, learning more about the river’s local communities, and sharing the new work Cecilia creates as she guides us to see these special places through fresh eyes.”
The 900-year-old City Bridge Foundation manages its five Thames crossings at no cost to the taxpayer. It is also London’s biggest independent charity funder, awarding more then £30m a year in grants to good causes across the city.
Ms Knapp’s work will be published on the City Bridge Foundation and Poetry Society websites and social media channels.
