Hereward CRP hosted a special railway themed Poetry Train event on 1st October to celebrate Railway200.
Guests were joined on board by local poets, including Toby Wood, Peterborough’s first Poet Laureate, and Scott Coe, former Stamford Poet Laureate alongside local poets and poetry groups from Fenland and Ely.
Readings included popular poems, such as TS Eliot’s “Skimbleshanks the Railway Cat” alongside specially written poems including “Railway200 in 200 words”, “Shippea Hill – Mind the Gap”, and “Moving to the Fens”.
On arrival into Ely, a Visit Ely tour guide met the group and walked them to the riverside to enjoy more poetry, focusing on Ely.
They then moved into The Maltings for refreshments and a buffet and listened to more poetry readings before the return journey.
Guests were all given Hereward CRP goodie bags with local brochures and maps in plus a special souvenir booklet with a collection of poems written for the event by Toby Wood.
The guests had enjoyed the evening so much that one had written a short poem during the evening to express his thanks while many sat on the train sharing and reading poems to one another – a wonderful evening and first-of-a-kind cultural event for the CRP!
Funding for the event came from CrossCountry’s Community Rail Development Fund and East Midland Railway’s Community Fund with support from Greater Anglia, who provided travel passes for the participating poets.