Poems of the Month – July 2026 – Maeve Archibald & Mike Riddle

The Poems of the Month for July 2026, selected by 2026 Anthology editors Elizabeth Salna and Erica Jolly, are Life’s Uncertainties by Maeve Archibald and Men of Small Islands by Mike Riddle. The commended poems are Prelude by David Cookson, Nocturne by Martha Landman, Abdullah by Susan O’Brien, and Odysseus Kicks for Goal by Barbara Preston.

Life’s Uncertainties
Maeve Archibald

What If lions had a bad hair day
would the hairdresser curl up in fear
What if peacocks were shy
would politicians open their eyes
What if song birds forgot the tune
would we pass there a weary time

What if kookaburras forgot how to laugh
would we recognise the joke
What if the world stopped spinning
would we all fall into love or out
What if the sky hid her face
would we know the black hours spent
What if your words fell like leaves
would we be led to the question
What if something long forgotten surfaced
would we fill that unforgiving minute

What if I fell over the edge of the future
would I dare to leave friends and all
What if my true feelings overstepped the mark
would you still go hand in hand as my comrade
What if the mournful mopoke should call my name
would I set foot on the road less travelled
What if Wagner evoked my ring of destiny
would my sense of wonder begin a song cycle

.… Click for more

FSP Anthology #50 Launch!

Saturday 29th August 2026
3:00pm

Effective Living Centre
26 King William Road, Wayville
Part of the Church of Christ site, easy to reach by car, tram, bus or train.

Come along and join with us to continue FSP’s 50th Anniversary celebrations with the launch of the 50th FSP Anthology, edited by Val Braendler and Ben Adams.

Please bring $30 cash or card to buy a copy of our big edition and be ready to read your published poem if you wish.

We’d appreciate some good people providing a shared plate for afternoon tea and nibbles.  FSP will supply a few casks of vino and a few specialties.… Click for more

FSP August City Meeting: poetry collection competition winners announced, guest poet with book launch, and special poetry theme!

Friday 7th August 2026
doors at 6:00pm for 6:30pm start

The Box Factory
59 Regent St, Adelaide, SA 5000

$5 to read, free to listen.

Yes, this will be a big night for poetry!

1. The judges have made their decisions and so we’ll be announcing the winners of the New Poets 27 and the 2026 Single Poet competitions.

2. Long-time FSP member Pat Lee will be our Feature Poet with Jude Aqulina helping promote Pat’s newest poetry book, which will be available on the night.

3. The second of three themed poetry events is also part of this meeting: poems on the theme is The worst / best cliché poem (30 lines maximum) can win a place in next year’s FSP Anthology.… Click for more

Poem of the Month – June 2026 – Avalanche

The Poem of the Month for June 2026, selected by 2026 Anthology editors Elizabeth Salna and Erica Jolly, is Where are they now? by Avalanche. The commended poems are I take nothing away by Geoffrey Aitken, After the Revolution by Steve Evans, My Father’s Zen (For my father) by Leon Ferrante, The Poetry Club by Nigel Ford and His Moment by phil saunders.

Where are they now?
Avalanche

I often wonder,
where are they now?

I hear Cinderella’s running dance classes
and Rapunzel’s got a hair salon,
Snow White’s got an apple orchard
specializing in dwarf varieties –
but the Little Mermaid’s had no luck
at all with her singing classes,
Little Red Riding Hood’s running
a bed-and -breakfast for seniors nowadays,
linked in with Peter Pan’s adventures holidays
for the young-at-heart …

apparently Hansel and Gretel are in the gingerbread
architecture business, doing well,
Prometheus does a great trade
with his tanning studio,
Mary Poppins runs a travel agency
with a side line in umbrellas …
and Dr Faust?… Click for more

FSP submission to National Cultural Policy

In 2026, Australians were invited to share their views and help guide the next National Cultural Policy. Prompted especially by concerns about resurgent attacks on freedom of creative and intellectual expression, the Friendly Street committee felt it was imperative to ensure the recognition of poetry’s significance in Australia’s cultural policy. Our submission was the result and was endorsed by various other poets and Friendly Street alumni, including Dr Susan O’Brien and Mike Ladd, who also made individual submissions of their own.

The submission by Friendly Street Poets can be read here in both its original form (hosted on the National Cultural Policy’s submissions page) and with a minor amendment emphasising the late Stephen Lawrence’s remarks about poetry’s ‘lowly’ yet advantageous role within the wider literary sphere.… Click for more

FSP July City meeting and Open Mic

Friday 3rd July 2026
doors at 6:00pm for 6:30pm start

The Box Factory
59 Regent St, Adelaide, SA 5000

$5 to read, free to listen.

Share some poetry, listen to others reading and enjoy the friendly poetry vibes of the biggest and oldest ongoing poetry group in the Southern Hemisphere.

As usual, a strict 3-minute time limit applies, including any introductions, explanations and post-scripts. Bring two typed / printed copies of your poem with all your contact details on the back of the pages for submission to the next FSP Annual Anthology. You also can submit your poem electronically via the form below.… Click for more

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