Verse and Voice Competition

We are delighted to be working in collaboration with Sir John Soane’s Museum for our 2026 Competition, which was free for everyone to enter, of any age, across the world.

Entries are NOW CLOSED

What are the Prompts?

Sir John Soane’s Museum is a national museum, displaying the extraordinary collections of renowned British architect Sir John Soane, including antiquities, furniture, sculptures, architectural models and drawings and paintings, and we have curated ten classical objects to inspire you to respond creatively.

You may be inspired by more than one object, and you should list in your entry email which objects have inspired you for each submission.

Scroll to the bottom of this page for detailed information about each of the ten wonderful objects!

We are very grateful to our two fantastic judges who will be enjoying the work of our entrants and choosing the winners! Please note that our judges cannot provide individual feedback.

Helen Dorey, MBE – Deputy Director and Inspectress of Sir John Soane’s Museum

Regarded as one of the leading scholars of Sir John Soane, Helen joined the Museum in 1986 and has been its Inspectress since 1995. She has published extensively on the Museum and its collections and has led numerous restoration projects within the Museum over 30 years, including the restoration of Soane’s private apartments and the Drawing Office. She is a member of the Council of the Attingham Trust and of the Advisory Council of the Society of Architectural Historians of Great Britain and a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries. She was awarded an MBE in 2017 for services to heritage and is very much looking forward to seeing these creative responses to Soane’s collection.

Barney Norris – Award-winning writer

Barney Norris is a writer whose plays include Visitors, Eventide, Nightfall, The Remains of the Day and Second Best. His novels include Five Rivers, Met On A Wooded Plain and Undercurrent. His work has received the International Theatre Institute’s Award for Excellence, the Critics’ Circle Award for Most Promising Playwright, a South Bank Sky Arts Times Breakthrough Award, an Evening Standard Progress 1000 Award, a Betty Trask Award, the Northern Ireland One Book Award and a Hawthornden Literary Foundation award, and been translated into nine languages. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and a lecturer in creative writing at the University of Oxford, and regularly reviews fiction for the Guardian. In 2026, his new book for Sting’s The Last Ship will tour the world.

Age Categories

Junior: aged 11 and under

Senior: aged 12-18

Open: aged 19 and above

How to Enter

Please read the general rules first and then the rules of the category you are entering.

General Rules

Your work must be your own (i.e. your original poem or spoken word piece).
AI must NOT be used.
Your piece must be written/performed in English.
The Competition is completely free to enter and you don’t need to be a member of an educational institution or of the Classical Association to take part. You can be based anywhere in the world.
You may submit up to two entries (these can be in either or both categories e.g. two Verse, two Voice, or one of each) but you will only be eligible for one prize. To submit multiple entries, please insert the titles of all of your pieces in the box on the entry form and submit your attachments in one email.
Your entry/entries must not have been previously published or accepted for publication in print or online by a third party.
You must complete the entry form AND submit your work to engagement@classicalassociation.org at the same time – poems/spoken word pieces without an entry form, or vice versa, will not be accepted.
Your entry/entries must be submitted by the closing date. This deadline – 23:59 GMT on Friday 27 February 2026 – is final and late entries will not be considered.
You must enter the correct age category (based on your age as of 23:59 GMT on Friday 27 February 2026).
Applicants will be notified about the outcome of their entry by the end of March 2026. The judges are unable to provide individual feedback.
We will only process your data for the purposes of entering you into and administering the competition, and not for any other purpose without your consent. This will not affect any existing marketing preferences you have with us. For further information on how we process your data, please read our Privacy Policy here.
International entries are eligible for monetary prizes.

Verse (Written Poem) Category

You must be inspired by one or more of the ten inspiration objects.
There is no specific prompt or any restriction upon the style of your poem. Be creative!
Poems must not exceed 1000 words in length.

Voice (Spoken Word) Category

You must be inspired by one or more of the ten inspiration objects.
Your spoken word piece must not exceed 8 minutes in length.
You must upload your video to YouTube unlisted.
In the description box of your video you must state the following: ‘this is an entry for the 2026 CA Competition and the views and opinions in this work are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect those of The Classical Association or Sir John Soane’s Museum’.

When you are ready to enter, you must:

Complete this entry form.
Attach your submission(s) as a PDF or Word Document and send it to engagement@classicalassociation.org. Your name must not appear on the submission document as submissions will be judged anonymously.
You must not ‘share’ your file via Sharepoint or other sharing platform. Make sure you have downloaded and saved your work to your device and then attach it to your email.
In your email, you must state your full name (your legal/preferred name, but you may also give a pseudonym if you so wish), age, the category/categories you are entering and the title of your poem(s) and piece(s), and the object(s) that inspired you.
Once you have pressed ‘submit’ on the entry form you will receive an automatic confirmation of your entry. You will not receive a response to your email unless we need to contact you.
Please complete the form and submit your work at the same time to ensure your entry is correctly processed.
Make sure you’re submitting in advance of the deadline (23:59 GMT on 27 February). We will not accept submissions after the deadline.
Good Luck! If you have further questions please contact Katrina at engagement@classicalassociation.org.

The Objects

Click each link to find out more about the history of the object.

The Apotheosis of Homer

Model of Pompeii

Statuette of a Lar (Roman Household God)

The Apollo Belvedere

The Ephesian Artemis

The Cawdor Vase

Sarcophagus of Seti I

Statue of a Sleeping Cupid

Temple of Fortuna Virilis

The Triple Hecate

Mythology Competition 2026

Students are invited to submit a piece of Creative Writing, Art or an animation in response to all or a part of:

Key Stage 2 – The Monster in the Maze: Theseus and the Minotaur

Key Stage 3 – The Spinner of Webs: Arachne and Athena

We would suggest students familiarise themselves with the myth through any anthology, and perhaps also listen to the myth being read.

Submissions, following the guidelines laid out below, should be made to tildesley20@gmail.com by 23:59 (BST) on Friday 17th April 2026.

Entry Forms

KS2 Form

KS3 Form

General Guidelines

NO AI is to be used. There is a confirmation statement on the entry form to this effect. The responsible adult is agreeing that no AI has been used by submitting the entries.
Schools may submit up to 10 entries per Key Stage. This can be a combination across the formats if preferred.
All entries should be by individual students, not groups.
All entries must be clearly labelled with the student’s name.
Each school, or Home-Schooled parent/carer/educator, needs to submit an entry form, with their entry/entries.
Please include a brief description in the relevant column of the work, e.g. what it is, and how it was completed (in class, in an afterschool club, as a homework assignment etc).
Only first names should appear on the pupils’ work. This is as the winning entries may be published on the website. If you do not want your pupils’ work to be published, please note this clearly on the entry form.
Please be aware that comic strips can be difficult to place in Creative Writing or Art. The school should place in the category they think is more suitable, and judges will judge accordingly.
Following the judging process, schools and/or parents will be notified by email of prize-winning, or otherwise, entrants and book tokens will be posted accordingly. We aim to have at least one 1st, 2nd and 3rd in each category, but this changes year on year according to numbers of entries. Please note that judges will try to give individual feedback, but this may not always be possible due to the number of entries.
Key Stage specifications for those not following the UK curriculum are: Key Stage 2 – Years 3 to 6 (age 7 – 11); Key Stage 3 – Years 7 – 9 (age 11 – 14).

Omnibus Competitions

Every year, our Omnibus magazine runs two competitions for students aged under 19 in full-time education: a translation prize and an essay prize.

These 2025 Competitions are now closed. The winners will be announced in the March 2026 issue of Omnibus magazine, when the winning entry will be printed.

Sam Hood Translation Prize 2026

More details coming soon.

The Gladstone Memorial Essay Prize 2026

More details coming soon.

You can read previous winning entries into the Competition:

Anna Drummond Young on Plato (Issue 75)

Claudia Thomas on Aeneid 8 (Issue 71)

Natalya Khan on Roman Britain (Issue 67)

Ellie Moodey on Ovid (Issue 63)

Adam Lomax on Cleon (Issue 59)

U25 Competition 2025

As part of our Celebrating Classics Campaign, we launched a brand new competition which was open to everybody, across the world, and celebrated how and why we study the ancient past. Scroll down to read the guidelines for this Competition, which is now closed, or read the Winning Entry!

Why is Classics Important?

Entries in our U25 Write, Speak, Design Competition will be judged in three separate age categories:
12 and under (Junior)
13-18 (Inter)
19-24 (Senior)

How do I enter?

You can enter either as an individual OR as a team of two. You must tick the appropriate box on the entry form and all entrants must be from the same age category.
To enter, you must:

read the Rules below carefully
complete this entry form before the deadline (23:59 GMT on 31 January 2025)
submit your response to the question ‘Why is Classics Important?’

Please complete the form and submit your response at the same time to ensure your entry is correctly processed.

Your response can be ONE of the following:

A written manifesto of 500-2000 words (sent as a PDF)
A poster, which can contain up to 500 words, as well as images (sent as a PDF or jpg)
A video presentation of maximum 15 minutes (sent as a link to an unlisted YouTube video)

Following the instructions on the entry form, your responses must be sent in an email to engagement@classicalassociation.org. In your email you must state your name(s), age and age category, and the type of your response (e.g. manifesto/poster/presentation).

Who are the judges?

Professor Peter Frankopan

Peter is an internationally renowned historian, author and broadcaster who has caught the imagination and fascination of a wide audience with his ground-breaking books The Silk Roads: A New History of the World (also published for children) and The Earth Transformed: An Untold History. He is a Professor of Global History at Worcester College Oxford and the Director of the Oxford Centre for Byzantine Research. He is also the Chair of the Orwell Prize for Political Writing and the recipient of the 2024 Classical Association Prize. Peter presents the popular podcast, Legacy, with Afua Hirsch.

Dr Mary-Ann Ochota

Mary-Ann is a broadcaster and author specializing in anthropology and archaeology. She’s a familiar face on TV programmes like History Channel’s Ancient Impossible and Smithsonian’s Mystic Britain and she works on radio, podcasts, magazines and book projects too. Her most recent book, Secret Britain: Unearthing Our Mysterious Past reveals the histories of sites and artefacts from around Britain. Her work is usually about making academic and technical information mean something to the public – whether that’s to inform, influence or entertain.

Sana Van Dal

Sana is the CA’s Grants Officer and currently the Head of Classics at Trinity School in Croydon. She studied Classics at the University of Cambridge and after a short stint teaching English in France, she returned to London where she pursued a career in Public Relations. Having decided to leave the corporate world, she gained an MA in History of Art from University College London in 2014 and then a PGCE in Latin with Classics in 2016. She has been working as a secondary school teacher ever since, and she is particularly interested in the potential of Classics to raise discussions of EDI issues, and passionate about helping students from all backgrounds feel included in their study of Classics.

Louisa Searle

Louisa is the Director of Education for the English-Speaking Union. She began her career as a secondary school teacher, teaching English Literature & Language in North London as part of the Teach First programme. She left the classroom in 2014 to co-found and then lead the youth philanthropy/social action charity First Give, before joining The English-Speaking Union in June 2024.

What do I win?

More than £2000 prize money will be shared between winning entrants in the Write | Speak | Design Competitions. The winner of each age category will receive a special prize and shortlisted entrants will receive digital certificates. International entrants are also eligible for prizes.

Additionally, all entrants will be entered into our Prize Draw from which random winners will be selected.
Some of the top entrants overall (this might be an individual or a pair) will be selected to present their poster/manifesto/presentation at the Competition Final which will take place in March 2025 in London.

The finalists will receive a complimentary online mentoring session with our Judges to help them prepare for the Final. The presentations at the Final may be recorded and shared afterwards. Further details of the arrangements for the Competition Final will be available after entries close.

The Rules

The Competition is completely free to enter and you don’t need to be a member of an educational institution or of the Classical Association to take part. You can be based anywhere in the world. Entries should be submitted/presented in English (quotes etc. may be their appropriate language), however, posters in any language will be permitted if this would otherwise prevent the entrant from entering the competition. In this case, an accompanying translation into English of all text should be supplied.
Your response must clearly answer the question – Why is Classics Important? You might give a personal interpretation i.e. why Classics is important to you, but you must also consider the place and importance of Classics in the modern world.

You should include at least three distinct reasons when answering the question, and you should consider how Classics could be given greater importance in the modern world.
You must complete all of the entry requirements and enter the appropriate age category.
Your work must be your own and free from plagiarism.
You must submit before the entry deadline (23:59 GMT on 31 January 2025). We will not accept late submissions.

If you know when you enter the competition that you will not be able to attend the Final in person please make sure that you declare this on the entry form. There may be the opportunity to present remotely but we hope that the winner will be able to present in person.

MANIFESTO
If submitting a manifesto, you may include captioned images and/or infographics – these words will not count towards the overall word limit of max 2000. If you are referencing source material, please include a bibliography of your sources at the end (not included within the word count).
Word counts under 500 will not be considered for the competition.
POSTER
If submitting a poster, you must submit either a PDF of the digital poster or a photograph (.jpg form) of the physical poster, in which all parts of your poster can be clearly seen. Do NOT attempt to send the physical poster to the CA.

PRESENTATION
If submitting a video presentation, this may take the form of a mini lecture, a spoken word piece, or an edited short film or animation.
If you are entering as a pair, you must both be heard on the presentation and both be prepared to present at the Final.
Video entries will be judged upon the quality of the content and the delivery of the presentation, not the quality of the filming. Recording on your phone, PC or tablet is perfectly acceptable and AV equipment (e.g. projector, laptop, clicker) will be provided where desired at the Final if you are successful.
We encourage you to think about the visual impact of your presentation; if you choose to include slides or images as part of your presentation you must ensure that they are properly credited.
Your video presentation must be no longer than 15 minutes in length. We recommend it is at least 8 minutes long. Entries beyond 15 minutes will be ineligible and will not be judged.
You must upload your video to YouTube unlisted. Information about this is available here.
In the description box of your video you must state the following: ‘this presentation is an entry for the 2025 CA Competition and the views and opinions in this presentation are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect those of The Classical Association’

What will the judges be looking for?

The judges will be looking for signs of creative and pragmatic thinking, originality and personal input, persuasiveness in your pitch and evidence of detailed research.
The judges will give more credit to the content of your submission than to its appearance, but creativity and attention to detail and presentation will certainly not harm your submission.
You need to tell us why you think Classics is important and you could consider what you think a ‘Classical Education’ could look like in the modern world. To find out why other people think Classics is important and what a ‘classical education’ is, explore our Resource Bank.

Contact

Please make sure you have read the rules on this page carefully before entering. If you still have a question, you can contact us at engagement@classicalassociation.org. The date and time of your submission, your identity and the work you have submitted will all be stored, but will not be used for any purpose other than administering and recording the competition. Read our privacy policy here.

Young Speaker of the Year 2024

We are delighted to announce the winners of our Young Speaker of the Year 2024 Competition.

Oscar Coupe (Hornsea School and Language College) and Kitty Langdon (Tiffin Girls’ School) were selected as joint winners of the Competition and they delivered their presentations as part of the 2024 CA Conference on Sunday 24 March. The judges (pictured above with Oscar and Kitty) were really impressed by their originality, depth of research and enthusiasm when sharing their ideas about the ancient world.

Congratulations to Oscar, Kitty and the Highly Commended speakers, pictured here:

Amber Cann
Tallulah Rose George
Gillighan Lindley Owen (not pictured)
Lleucu Haf Wiliam
Annis Wiltshire

See below for the details of the Competition – and watch this space for something similar in the future!

Competition Information

Are you aged 18-24 and keen to share your ideas about the ancient world? Which classical artefact, concept, place, or text (etc.) intrigues or resonates with you the most? Would you like to discuss the topics that fascinate you with world-leading experts?

Our brand new speaking competition gives you the chance to be at the forefront of the classics conversation and present your ideas in a creative and innovative way at the UK’s largest classics conference to an enthusiastic and interested audience!

The Competition

We want to hear from the next generation of thinkers, scholars, teachers, performers and visionaries so we are encouraging young people from across the UK to enter the CA’s speaking competition.

Simply prepare a 15-20 minute presentation (this could be in any style e.g. a mini lecture, spoken word piece, or even an edited short film) on a topic related to the ancient world and submit a video of your presentation before the closing date. The winner, as selected by our judges, will be invited to deliver their presentation at the Classical Association Conference, which will be held at the University of Warwick from Friday 22 – Sunday 24 March 2024.

There is no specific prompt or any restriction upon the type of classical topic you might discuss but we encourage you to draw upon your personal experiences and interpretations of ancient material and to be creative, thoughtful and innovative in your speech. You may choose to focus upon a particular artefact or a defined topic or tell a personal story – how you grab our attention and retain your audience is up to you!

Entries will be judged upon the quality of the content and the delivery of the presentation, not the quality of the filming so don’t worry about your video production (but please make sure that we can see and hear you). Recording on your phone, PC or tablet is perfectly acceptable and AV equipment (e.g. projector, laptop, clicker) will be provided where desired at the keynote event.

We encourage you to think about the visual impact of your presentation; if you choose to include slides or images as part of your presentation you must, like all speakers, ensure that they are freely available to use in this way under a Creative Commons license and/or are properly credited.

What is the CA Conference?

The CA Conference is the UK’s largest annual gathering of classics enthusiasts (professional scholars, practising teachers, students of any age and level), held every year at a different university. It’s fun and friendly as well as informative and people come together to share their latest work, make new friends and connections, hear brilliant talks, catch up over a drink, visit local sites and enjoy a range of entertainment, often including a play or recital, and, in 2024, a very special performance…

Rules and Information

The Competition is completely free to enter and you don’t need to be a member of an educational institution to take part.
You must be aged 18-24 (inclusive) as of 23:59 GMT on Friday 10 November 2023.
Your work must be your own and your presentation performed as an individual (not in a pair or group).
You must be a resident of the UK (and Channel Islands) or a student at a UK educational institution.
Your video presentation must be 15-20 minutes in length (inclusive). Entries below or above this length will be ineligible and will not be judged.
In the description box of your video you must state the following: ‘my presentation is an entry for the Young Speaker Competition and the views and opinions in this presentation are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of The Classical Association/University of Warwick’

The closing date of the Competition is 23:59 (GMT) on Friday 10 November 2023. This deadline is final and late entries will not be considered.

Applicants will be notified about the outcome of their entry by the end of December 2023. Individual feedback will not be given.

How to Enter

Upload your video to YouTube. Guidance on uploading films is available here. The video must be UNLISTED (not public or private).
Complete this entry form. Make sure the link to your video is placed in the correct box.

Once you have pressed ‘submit’ on the entry form you will receive an automatic confirmation of your entry. We will not accept submissions after the deadline.

What do I win?

The winner will receive a bespoke gift and a year’s free membership of the Classical Association. They will also be invited to deliver their performance at the 2024 CA Conference, which they will attend free of charge: conference fees, refreshments and overnight accommodation may be provided. The date and time of the winner’s performance is to be confirmed.

If you know when you enter the competition that you will not be able to attend the conference in person please make sure that you declare this on the entry form. There will be the opportunity to present remotely but we hope that the winner will be able to present in person.

The winner will be eligible to invite up to four guests, who will receive free conference day passes on the day of your presentation.

A number of shortlisted entrants will be awarded with certificates and may be invited to a free workshop with Write2Speak.

Judging Panel

Dr Paul Grigsby

Paul is a Research Fellow in Outreach and Impact in the Department of Classics and Ancient History at the University of Warwick, where he runs the Warwick Classics Network and teaches Greek Religion and the Public Engagement of Classics. His research interests centre on Greek religion and cultural identity, especially for the region of Boeotia in central Greece.

Isabella Vaughan

Isabella is a final-year undergraduate student at the University of Warwick. Her main research interests centre within Greek art. She’s also working on public engagement (especially for younger audiences), and how the uses of 3D modelling and imaging can be used within conversations on repatriation. And she has her very own Parthenon, built out of Lego!

Tyler Luke Cunningham

Tyler is a highly accredited actor, singer, dancer and practitioner of performance education. Tyler trained in Inclusive Performance at Chickenshed Theatre Company and has since delivered hundreds of workshops and classes to people of all abilities. He is the co-founder and co-director of Write2Speak.

Yossi Goodlink

Yossi is an award-winning spoken word artist, actor, and educator. He co-leads Write2Speak with Tyler, and alongside his own performance work he delivers hundreds of spoken word workshops with schools, universities, companies and charities.

Gráinne Cassidy

Gráinne is the CA’s Education Co-ordinator and a former state school teacher and Head of Classics. She is passionate about widening access to classical subjects and supporting teacher and student development; in her spare time, she can be found avoiding training for marathons!

Poetry Competition 2024

RESULTS

Congratulations to all of the entrants in our 2024 Poetry Competition, held in honour of our former CA President Anne Carson, and particularly to those who were highly commended, shortlisted and longlisted. We had an extraordinary number of entries, of such high quality, and from across the world – it was brilliant to see the extent of how the ancient world had inspired these poets and translators.

Huge thanks to our judges of the different categories – Armand D’Angour, Selina Tusitala Marsh, Judith Mossman, Alex McAuley and Sharon Marshall. You can scroll through the list of winners below and listen to the recordings of some of these winning poems! Please note that some of these poems contain adult themes.

ORIGINAL

Junior (11 and under)

Winner: Zara Connelly – ’79 AD’

Second Place: Divit Bhargava – ‘I Salute My Mother’

Third Place: Agnes Asante-Gregory – ‘Maze’

Senior (12-18)

Winner: Maya Le Her – ‘Persephone’

Second Place: Elise Withey – ‘Gilgamesh tries anti-aging mousse’

Third Place: Cherie Wong – ‘Eating Prometheus’

Highly Commended writers included: Idris Scrase, Almila Dükel, Jay Miller, Raine McCusker, Alice Jinks, Carole Tucker, Jamie Heath, Holly Hamel, Claud Harris, Lauren Clarke and Amelie-Grace Nair-Grepinet

Open (19+)

Winner: Emily Lord-Kambitsch – ‘Pluto’s Wife in Transit’

Second Place: Rachel Burns – ‘Hector of County Durham’

Third Place: Jessa Brown – ‘Heurodis Began to Wake’

Runners Up: Sieve Bonaiuti, Karan Chambers, Alexis Deese-Smith, Freya Jackson, Sihle Ntuli

Highly Commended writers included: Ba Seoighe, Rhys Pearce, Innas Tsuroiya, Mark Fiddes, Simon Parker, Len Oliver, Sarah Terkaoui, Emily Formstone, May Robinson, Sarah Sharp, Nancy Graham, Alex MacFarlane, Sarah Gibbons, Lily Birch, Jake Reynolds, Fred Lambert

TRANSLATION

Junior (11 and under)

Winner: Augusta Sileris – ‘The Odyssey’

Highly Commended translators included: Janani Iyer (‘Upanishad’)

Senior (12-18)

Winner: Hannah Gilmore – ‘That Hollow of Your Hand’ (Tibullus 2.4)

Runner Up: Violet Wan – ‘Driving along the Eastern Gate I gaze’ (Nineteen Old Poems)

Highly Commended translators included: Maya Grace Cragg-Hine, Harshit Sahoo, Lachlan Edwards

Open (19+)

Winner: C. Luke Soucy – ‘Horace Ode 4.1’

Runner Up: Margaret Coats – ‘Festal Flourish’ (Tibullus 2.1)

Highly Commended translators included: Julia Irons, Eleanor Williamson, Marko Trandafilovski, Holly Smith, Lily Bickers

‘

Photography Competition 2023

Congratulations to all entrants in our 2023 Competition and to those shortlisted and awarded prizes. Scroll to view the winning photographs.

The Overall Winner – Shadows in the Cave by David Travis

In honour of our 2022-23 Hon. President, Prof. MM McCabe, we tasked entrants to our CA Competition with taking a photograph inspired by one of the following themes: ‘Shadows in the Cave’, ‘Living Well’, ‘Being Wrong’, ‘Democracy’, all concepts discussed by the ancient philosopher Plato.

Plato’s most famous work, The Republic, discusses many ideas that have been hugely influential, such as the Allegory of Cave, the Theory of Forms and the Philosopher-Kings, and we gave entrants the chance to take part in debates that have been going on for millennia by showcasing their interpretation of what these concepts, such as ‘eudaimonia’ (‘living well’) and ‘demokratia’ (‘democracy’, literally ‘people power’) meant to them.

Judges

MM McCabe was joined by professional photographer Max Barstow and Master of Jesus College Cambridge, Sonita Alleyne, as the judges of this 2023 CA Competition.

MM McCabe

Our 2022-23 Honorary President is a distinguished philosopher, academic and author

Max Barstow

Max is an award winning photographer and a philosophy graduate

View more

Sonita Alleyne

Sonita is the Master of Jesus College Cambridge, a celebrated broadcaster and a philosophy graduate

View more

Bloomsbury Writing 2023

In 2023, in partnership with Bloomsbury Publishing, we ran a creative writing competition to give girls, young women and non-binary writers aged 19 or under the opportunity to have their creative work appear alongside bestselling authors Madeline Miller and Jennifer Saint. We asked entrants to submit a piece of creative writing of 1500 words or less, inspired by the classical world, and there were hundreds of amazing entries. See below for the results: huge congratulations to all of the long and short listed writers!

Winner

Cait Kremenstein – In the Bad Times

Cait’s brilliant story has been selected as the overall winning entry and will be published by Bloomsbury in the upcoming Women Re-Creating Classics: Contemporary Voices, co-edited by Dr Emily Hauser (author of the acclaimed For the Most Beautiful) and Dr Helena Taylor, where they foreground discussions and interviews between writers and academics, reflecting on why classical creative retellings are so popular now, and showcase fantastic contemporary receptions of Classics by women writers. Make sure to look out for this exciting publication and read In the Bad Times!

Listen here to our podcast interview with Cait about the inspiration for her winning story.

Runners Up

Hafsa Tifow – An Ouroborosian Odyssey

An Ouroborosian Odyssey Download

Hettie Nolan – Our Penelope

Our Penelope Download

Final Shortlist

Maddy Browne – Orpheus at Temple Meads

Orpheus at Temple Meads Download

Chloe Choi Chu Cam – The Hetaera Confesses in the Whispered Dark

The Hetaera Confesses in the Whispered Dark Download

Emelia Dobson – A grapevine grows

A Grapevine Grows Download

Salma Elsaid – A Daughter Betrayed

A Daughter Betrayed Download

Roberta Jenkins – The Weavers

The Weavers Download

Jay T. A. Miller – He Is Apollo

He Is Apollo Download

Evie Patterson – Women are Stained with Blood

Women are stained with blood Download

Sophie Powers – Daphne

Daphne Download

May Robinson – Pomegranate Juice

Pomegranate Juice Download

Lily Shahata – To Pygmalion

To Pygmalion Download

Lily White – A Woman Scorned

A Woman Scorned Download

Angelina Wu – Chicken

Chicken Download

Shortlisted

Saskia Grace Blacker – An Heir’s Loom

An Heir’s Loom Download

Isobelle Catherine – Bloodlust

Bloodlust Download

Penelope Ceccato – Penelope

Penelope Download

Chloe Choi Chu Cam – Clytemnestra Auditions for the Role of Lady Macbeth

Almila Dükel – Hidden Islands

Hidden Islands Download

Maria Louise Green – Odyssea

Odyssea Download

Isobel Gurnett – Burning of Alyssa

Burning of Alyssa Download

Maisie Harris – Losing my religion

Losing My Religion Download

Esme Hobbs – In the future we cannot see the stars

In the future we cannot see the stars Download

Mathilda Ingall – Daphne Lauri

Daphne LaurīDownload

Charlie James – The Tenth Muse

The Tenth Muse Download

Keira Judd – Goddess of Vengeance

Goddess of Vengeance Download

Vilkas Kraker – Ad Infinitum

Ad Infinitum Download

Raadhikhaa Kumaarr – Ode to Venus

Ode to Venus Download

Sophie Laithwaite – Amidst the Ash

Amidst the Ash Download

Aashi Lalit – Betrayal requires a vulnerable soul

Betrayal Requires A Vulnerable Soul Download

Vanessa Leung – Blood Flower

Blood Flower Download

Amy Luong – The world burns for her

The World Burns for Her Download

L.A. Macari – The Eleusinian Mystery

The Eleusinian Mystery Download

Camille Marty – What is Aspasia?

What is Aspasia Download

Annie McDowell – Fallen Verdigris Leaves

Fallen Verdigris Leaves Download

Phoebe Meyer – Caryatid

Caryatid Download

Peregrine Neger – Unravelled

Unravelled Download

Lucy Nicholson – I watched, I wove

I watched, I wove Download

Hettie Nolan – Andromeda in Ecstasy; Spinster

Rose Ridley – Clytemnestra

Clytemnestra Download

Madeleine Riley-Smith – Miss Fortune

Miss Fortune Download

Nico Rondelli – Iphigenia

Iphigenia Download

Olivia Saunders – The Silent Women of Tragedy

The Silent Women of Tragedy Download

Zoe Sayers – Lucretia’s Elegy

Lucretia’s Elegy Download

Hannah Scotland – Musings on Death

Musings on Death Download

Olivia Lauren Strudwick – I sing of arms

I sing of arms Download

Maryclare Tan – Lucretia

Lucretia Download

Helen Totty – Aphrodite

Aphrodite Download

Imogen Vernon – A Poet’s Tyranny

A Poet’s Tyranny Download

Kitty Volino – Little Bird

Little Bird Download

Jasmine Wales – The Red Amphora

The Red Amphora Download

Violet Wan (Ching) – Eniautos daimon

Eniautos Daimon Download

Ruby Warren – This is what happened to spring

This is what happened to spring Download

Cherie Wong – The Lost Pleiad: Wife of Sisyphus

The Lost Pleiad Wife of Sisyphus Download

Anastasia Zelenskaya – Fallen

Fallen Download

Judging Panel

Emily Hauser, classicist and author

Rani Selvarajah, author of Savage Beasts (2023)

Holly Smith, prizewinner, CA 2022 Competition

Brenna Akerman, Bloomsbury Academic

Creative Writing Competition 2022

To celebrate the appointment of actor, broadcaster, narrator and writer Stephen Fry as the CA’s Honorary President for 2021-22, we held a nationwide Creative Writing competition for writers and classicists of all ages.

We received more than 450 wonderfully creative and entertaining entries inspired by Stephen’s books ‘Mythos’, ‘Heroes’ and ‘Troy’ and these stories took us from ancient athletic festivals to dystopian quarantine prisons and a twentieth century Cornish mineshaft; from the Roman forum to a celebrity mansion via trenches, treehouses and temples; and from the peaks of Mt Olympus to a sofa in the Underworld! We have compiled a compendium of some of the most entertaining stories, which you can read and listen to here:

Epic, A Compendium Download

We were blown away by the standard of entries and the judging panel would like to extend their thanks and congratulations to all who participated. It was very difficult to narrow down the entries and draw up the shortlists from which to choose the category winners.

We are delighted to reveal the winners, and share their stories below. Please note that some of the Senior and Open category stories contain adult themes. Scroll to the bottom to see who was crowned the Overall Winner and to listen to their story, read by Stephen Fry himself!

The Winners

Junior (aged 11 and under) – responding to the theme ‘Myth’

The Aquamarine Immortal by Evie Amira Morgan
Aeschylus and the Black Jewels of Hadesby Matilda Parker-Groom
The World Myth by Amelie Bea Sumner

Commended

‘Echo Echo Echo’ by Emily Nicholson
‘How the Leaning Tower of Pisa Got Its Lean’ by Edmund Harris
‘The Story of Noah Retold’ by Almond Zhichen Zhao
‘Manatimer and the Great Red Spot of Jupiter’ by Eva McTurk
‘Looking for Ulysses’ by Louis Nicol

Winners

Senior (aged 12-18) – responding to the theme ‘Heroes’

Fate’s Engine by Madeleine Friedlein
We Are Very Little Things by Madeleine Whitmore
Stone Cold by Sophie Davies

Commended

‘Relics’ – Marnie McPartland
‘A Ballad of Melancholy’ – Matilda Jenkins
‘Heracles’ – Kitty Langdon
‘Monsters at Home’ – Sophia Dyson
‘One Man’s Hero’ – Rebecca Power

Winners

Open (aged 19 and over) – responding to the theme ‘Troy’

The Mother of Heroes by Allan Gaw
Every Night is Movie Night When You’re Dead by Ian Rory
The River by Holly Smith

Commended

‘The God of Forget’ – Joseph Nevin
‘Just like an honest wool-working woman’ – Susanna Phillippo
‘An Error of Judgement’ – Louise Andrew
‘Son of Troy’ – Emily Small
‘An Ode to an Odyssey’ – Vijay Hare

The Overall Winner

We are delighted to reveal that the Overall Winner of the 2022 CA Competition is: Madeleine Friedlein

As Guest Judge, author Edward Hogan, writes: “Fate’s Engine is just stunning. It cuts between a pit disaster in 1919, and the three Fates, as they spin, stretch, and severe the thread of life. On the one hand, it presents us with an act of heroism, but on the other, it asks us how much control we really have over our lives and actions. These are deep themes. The dangerous work of the early twentieth century miner is vividly realised, and in the mix of epic, poetic flourishes, and earthy detail, I heard an echo of one of my own local heroes, D.H. Lawrence. That said, it’s totally original. I’ve never read anything like it. There’s a unique artistic voice, here, and I can’t wait to see what this writer does next.”

Listen now to Fate’s Engine, narrated by Stephen Fry, our 2021-22 Honorary President:

Verse and Voice Competition

What are the Prompts?

Age Categories

How to Enter

General Rules

The Objects

Mythology Competition 2026

Entry Forms

General Guidelines

Categories

Omnibus Competitions

Sam Hood Translation Prize 2026

The Gladstone Memorial Essay Prize 2026

As part of our Celebrating Classics Campaign, we launched a brand new competition which was open to everybody, across the world, and celebrated how and why we study the ancient past. Scroll down to read the guidelines for this Competition, which is now closed, or read the Winning Entry!

Why is Classics Important?

How do I enter?

Who are the judges?

What do I win?

More than £2000 prize money will be shared between winning entrants in the Write | Speak | Design Competitions. The winner of each age category will receive a special prize and shortlisted entrants will receive digital certificates. International entrants are also eligible for prizes.

The Rules

What will the judges be looking for?

Contact

Young Speaker of the Year 2024

Competition Information

The Competition

What is the CA Conference?

Rules and Information

How to Enter

What do I win?

Judging Panel

Dr Paul Grigsby

Isabella Vaughan

Tyler Luke Cunningham

Yossi Goodlink

Gráinne Cassidy

Poetry Competition 2024

RESULTS

ORIGINAL

Junior (11 and under)

Senior (12-18)

Open (19+)

TRANSLATION

Junior (11 and under)

Senior (12-18)

Open (19+)

Photography Competition 2023

The Overall Winner – Shadows in the Cave by David Travis

Judges

MM McCabe

Max Barstow

Sonita Alleyne

Bloomsbury Writing 2023

Winner

Runners Up

Final Shortlist

Shortlisted

Judging Panel

Creative Writing Competition 2022

The Winners

Commended

Winners

Commended

Winners

Commended

The Overall Winner

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