An In Conversation with J. T. Welsch

Join us for a thoughtful, carefully held conversation with J. T. Welsch, author of The Poetry of Suicide -Lessons in grief from the lives and deaths of poets

In this event, Welsch reflects on poetry’s long engagement with suicide, drawing together literary voices such as Hamlet, Dante, Sylvia Plath, and Vladimir Mayakovsky with the deeply personal history of suicide within his own family. Rather than offering answers or conclusions, the conversation explores ambiguity, contradiction, and the limits of interpretation, asking what poetry can teach us about experiences that resist simple explanation.

This is not a clinical or sensational discussion, but a reflective one that considers how poetry allows us to sit with difficulty, complexity, and uncertainty, and how it can return a human dimension often lost in public discourse around suicide.

The event will take place as a guided conversation, with space for listening, reflection, and audience questions.

Please note: this event engages with themes of suicide and death. A gentle content note and support resources will be shared. Attendees are welcome to step out at any point. 

The latest in a series of eight events from the Royal Literary Fund, bringing together poets, playwrights, authors and screenwriters from across Northern England. In this event, award winning poets Tahmina Ali, Bob Beagrie and Harry Man discuss how poems can heal, do poems have some particular secret sauce that makes them memorable and can they change the direction of our lives? How do poetry readers access this change? How do poets see their artform’s impact in their own lives? All three writers will dip into the archive of the Royal Literary Fund, drawing on the words of some of the country’s leading poets, using what they find as a springboard for their discussion.

All welcome!

About the panel

Tahmina Ali

Tahmina is a British-Bangladeshi spoken word poet and creative practitioner. A two-time ‘ABC Arts and Culture Award’ winner, she is the founder of poetry night Freespill and has performed at the BBC and The Glasshouse. Her work is deeply rooted in identity and social advocacy, and she facilitates workshops that use poetry as a vehicle for positive change and supporting mental well-being.

Bob Beagrie

Bob is the author of fifteen poetry collections, most recently Hand of Glory (2025). With a PhD in Creative Writing and decades of experience as a lecturer and literature development officer, his work is recognized for its historical depth and lyrical mastery. His poetry has been translated into numerous languages and published globally. Critics frequently praise his ability to blend popular culture with myth and "firework-like" poetic imagery.

Harry Man

Harry is an award-winning poet and translator based in the Tees Valley. His debut pamphlet, Lift, won the UNESCO Bridges of Struga Award, and his follow-up, Finders Keepers, was shortlisted for the Ted Hughes Award. A celebrated translator, his collaboration with Endre Ruset, Deretter, won the Stephen Spender Prize and was named a Book of the Year by Dagbladet. His latest collection, Popular Song (Nine Arches Press, 2024), was shortlisted for a 2026 Gladstone’s Library residency. Harry teaches at the University of Oxford and is widely recognized for his ability to bridge the worlds of science, art, and compassionate narrative.