It is often said that ‘good things come in threes’, so after a year in which it has been hard to find even one thing to cheer about, The Plough Arts Centre in Great Torrington has been delighted to suddenly have three causes for celebration within the space of 24 hours.
The first is that Arts Council England have awarded £40,000 to the Torrington venue from the second round of their Cultural Recovery Fund, to help it through the next few months, as it works towards reopening. Chair of the charity, Hugh Wormington welcomed the award: “As we launch a range of online arts workshops and performances, a 52-date Open Air Theatre Festival, and make preparations to reopen ThePlough@StAnne’s on 17 May, and The Plough Arts Centre on 22 June, it is tremendously encouraging to have further investment from the Arts Council. Having lost virtually all our income from ticket sales over the past 12 months, this public financial support has been an absolute lifeline and has made the difference between survival and closure.”
The second reason for cheers is that the deadline for entries to The Plough Prize for Poetry, The Plough’s international poetry competition, has just closed, with a record breaking number of entries. The competition began in 2003 but the volume of entries this year has taken everyone at The Plough by surprise. Administrator, Gill Clayton, said “We are absolutely amazed to have received 2,856 worldwide entries for The Plough Prize for Poetry this year: the standard has been exceptionally high. Our judge, Roger McGough, certainly has his work cut out for him to pick a winner”.
The third cause for celebration is that Roger McGough, one of the infamous Liverpool Poets and presenter of BBC Radio’s ‘Poetry Please’, has just agreed to visit The Plough Arts Centre on Thurs 28 Oct 2021, when the winners of the poetry competition he judged, will have the opportunity to read their poems, prior to a rare South West performance by Roger McGough, reading from his latest collection ‘Safety in Numbers’. Tickets are on sale now via wwwtheploughartscentre.org.uk
Director Richard Wolfenden-Brown pointed out that “all this good news happened to arrive on Fri 1 April, but as far as we know, nobody is pulling our leg, so we are celebrating this trio of good news with three cheers to the Arts Council, to poets across the world, and to Roger McGough.”
Further info:
Richard Wolfenden-Brown
Director
richard@theploughartscentre.org.uk
Sharon Dixon
(Acting) Marketing & Promotions Manager
sharon@theploughartscentre.org.uk