Rachel Curzon (born 1978) is an English poet from

Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...

, and lives in

North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in Northern England.The Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority areas of City of York, York and North Yorkshire (district), North Yorkshire are in Yorkshire and t ...

. In 2007, she won an

Eric Gregory Award The Eric Gregory Award is a literary award given annually by the Society of Authors for a collection by United Kingdom poets under the age of 30. The award was founded in 1960 by Dr. Eric Gregory to support and encourage young poets. Past winne ...

, and her debut pamphlet was published under the

Arts Council An arts council is a government or private non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the arts; mainly by funding local artists, awarding prizes, and organizing arts events. They often operate at arms-length from the government to prevent pol ...

-supported

Faber Faber may refer to: People * Faber (surname) Companies * Faber & Faber, publishing house in the United Kingdom * Faber-Castell, German manufacturer of writing instruments * Faber Music, British sheet music publisher * Eberhard Faber, German ...

New Poets scheme in 2016.

Work

Curzon, who after studying English at the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

has taught at a boys' school in Hampshire, garnered some fame for publication of her debut ''Faber New Poets 16'' with

Faber & Faber Faber and Faber Limited, commonly known as Faber & Faber or simply Faber, is an independent publishing house in London. Published authors and poets include T. S. Eliot (an early Faber editor and director), W. H. Auden, C. S. Lewis, Margaret S ...

in 2016. The pamphlet was noted as a debut "with promise and punch" by

Guardian Guardian usually refers to: * Legal guardian, a person with the authority and duty to care for the interests of another * ''The Guardian'', a British daily newspaper (The) Guardian(s) may also refer to: Places * Guardian, West Virginia, Unit ...

. After being awarded an Eric Gregory Award in 2007, Curzon was the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

Proms Poetry Competition's over-19 category winner in 2018 for her poem 'Grass Like His Mother', and was shortlisted for the

Oxford Poetry ''Oxford Poetry'' is a literary magazine based in Oxford, England. It is currently edited by Luke Allan. The magazine is published by Partus Press. Founded in 1910 by Basil Blackwell, its editors have included Dorothy L. Sayers, Aldous Huxle ...

Prize 2024, judged by Rachel Long. In 2018, she was also awarded a special prize for the best entry in the Winchester Poetry Prize by a Hampshire-based poet. This was for her poem 'Jardin des Tuileries'. In 2025, Curzon secured the Second Place in The

Pre-Raphaelite The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood (PRB), later known as the Pre-Raphaelites, was a group of English painters, poets, and art critics, founded in 1848 by William Holman Hunt, John Everett Millais, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, William Michael Rossetti, ...

Society's 2024 Poetry Prize for her poem 'Winter in Dinan'. Her work has appeared in such publications as the

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

-based ''

Magma Magma () is the molten or semi-molten natural material from which all igneous rocks are formed. Magma (sometimes colloquially but incorrectly referred to as ''lava'') is found beneath the surface of the Earth, and evidence of magmatism has also ...

'' and ''

Poetry London ''Poetry London'' is a literary periodical based in London. Published three times a year, it features poems, reviews, and other articles. Profile Adopting the title of an earlier bimonthly publication which ran from 1939 to 1951, ''Poetry London' ...

'', the

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Shropshire, Staffordshire, and the West Midlands (county), West ...

-based ''Atrium'', the

Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England, United Kingdom *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England, United Kingdom *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area ...

-based ''

Mslexia ''Mslexia'' is a British magazine for women writers, founded and edited by Debbie Taylor. ''Mslexia'' contains articles and resources on writers, writing, and publishing. Writers who have contributed articles include Diana Evans, Helen Mort, Ha ...

'', the

Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...

-based ''The Tangerine'', in the Guardian, and in the

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of the county of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. It lies by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. The population of the Norwich ...

-based '' The Rialto''. She has also published poems in The

Bridport Bridport is a market town and civil parish in Dorset, England, inland from the English Channel near the confluence of the River Brit and its tributary the River Asker, Asker. Its origins are Anglo-Saxons, Saxon and it has a long history as a ...

Anthology, ''The Tree Line: Poems for Trees, Woods & People'' (Worple Press, 2017) and ''Apocalyptic Landscape'' (Valley Press, 2024), and has read her poetry at a number of events, including the York Festival of Ideas, the Winchester Poetry Festival, and elsewhere. In 2025, Curzon was one of six New Northern Poets selected for a paid mentoring and development opportunity. Organised by Word Up North in partnership with The

University of Leeds The University of Leeds is a public research university in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It was established in 1874 as the Yorkshire College of Science. In 1884, it merged with the Leeds School of Medicine (established 1831) and was renamed Y ...

Poetry Centre, the New Northern Poets receive 1:1 mentoring from experienced poets from the Centre.

Praise for the pamphlet

Curzon was selected as a 2015–16 Faber New Poet from a longlist that consisted of sixty manuscripts. The judging panel for the award included

Matthew Hollis Matthew Hollis (born 1971) is an English author, editor, professor, and poet, currently living in London, England. Career and background He was born in Norwich, England, the son of politician Patricia Hollis and academic Martin Hollis. He ...

, then Faber Poetry Editor, Luke Brown on behalf of Arts Council England, and poets

Jackie Kay Jacqueline Margaret Kay (born 9 November 1961) is a Scottish poet, playwright, and novelist, known for her works ''Other Lovers'' (1993), ''Trumpet'' (1998) and ''Red Dust Road'' (2011). Kay has won many awards, including the Somerset Maugham A ...

, Helen Taylor, Jack Underwood and

Karen McCarthy Woolf Karen McCarthy Woolf (born 1966) is a poet of English and Jamaican parentage. Early life and education Karen McCarthy Woolf was born in London to English and Jamaican parents. Her father emigrated to the United Kingdom in 1957 as a part of th ...

. Writing for the Guardian in 2016, the poet Sean O'Brien called her a good storyteller, capable of imparting "severe chill". Daniel Roy Connelly, writing for the

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

-based ''Lotus-eater'' magazine, called it "cohesive" and noted it as traversing "outstanding mental landscapes." Connelly called ''New Poets 16'' a "condensed poetic

Bildungsroman In literary criticism, a bildungsroman () is a literary genre that focuses on the psychological and moral growth and change of the protagonist from childhood to adulthood (coming of age). The term comes from the German words ('formation' or 'edu ...

" in which the poems are pervaded by "the frigidity of controlled spaces". The poet Martin Malone, writing for ''The Interpreter's House'', pointed that the work "keeps the reader on

heir Inheritance is the practice of receiving private property, titles, debts, entitlements, privileges, rights, and obligations upon the death of an individual. The rules of inheritance differ among societies and have changed over time. Offi ...

toes" while allowing ample space for speculation. He noted Curzon as exploring "existential angst" and the results of "powerlessness." ''Dundee University Review of the Arts Jenny Gorrod praised Curzon's poetry for "tak ngnothing for granted", pointing at the first poem 'Hydra' as plunging any reader "straight in to an existential crisis", whereas the last poem 'Happy Ending' as "conjur nga bleak image of neglect". She further added that the poet's "voice is urgent and immediate." Laura McCormick Kilbride, writing for ''

The Cambridge Quarterly ''The Cambridge Quarterly'' is a literary journal. It often publishes articles on cinema, music, painting, and sculpture. It also endows a prize for, and publishes, the best Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public uni ...

'', observed Curzon's "simplistic diction s beingunderstated" and her work "striking when it is less particular" in approach, such as when moving towards the "questions of motherhood, personhood, and ownership". In another review, poet Alison Brackenbury noted that the poems in the pamphlet "are haunted by music", pointing out that "Curzon's skilful rhythms are seductive" and are capable of "mov ngreaders from terror into lullaby". Gorrod, in her review, also noted the appearance of " usual musical instruments" in Curzon's debut pamphlet.

Books

*''Faber New Poets 16'' (

, 2014)

Awards

*2007:

*2007: Runner-up, Bridport Prize Competition *2018:

Proms Poetry Competition *2018: Winchester Poetry Prize, for 'Jardin des Tuileries' *2024: Shortlisted,

Prize *2025: Second Place, The

Society 2024 Poetry Prize, for 'Winter in Dinan'

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Curzon, Rachel 1978 births Living people Alumni of the University of Oxford 21st-century English poets English women poets Writers from Leeds