The Dreading Slam FREE Poetry

The Dreading Slam is back at The Rising Sun Arts Centre on Sunday 1 November, with poetry taking centre stage in Reading for the evening. It's a free poetry event, so there's no ticket to book in advance — you just turn up and listen.

The night is built around a simple, open-mic style format: local poets taking the mic to share their work. It's a showcase for the town's poetry scene, and because it's a slam, the energy usually comes from the room as much as the stage. If you've been writing yourself and have something you've been wanting to get in front of an audience, this is exactly the kind of space for it. If you're just there to listen, you'll get a good cross-section of what's being written around Reading right now, from the more established names to people stepping up for the first time.

That's the core of it: a platform for local poets to do their thing. The Dreading Slam describes itself as a free poetry event that aims to showcase poetry and provide a platform for local poets, and that's pretty much the whole story. It's about getting people on stage and letting them be heard, without a price tag standing in the way.

It all goes down at The Rising Sun Arts Centre on Sunday 1 November, starting at 19:20. Entry is free, so you can just show up on the night.