2025 Wigtown Poetry Prizes Judges
20 years of Wigtown Poetry Prize
The judges have been revealed for Wigtown Poetry Prizes 2025
2025 marks 20 years of Wigtown Poetry Prizes.
The awards celebrate Scotland’s three indigenous languages and support emerging and established poets. The prizes have become a renowned contribution to the world of poetry, attracting hundreds of high-quality entries from around the world.
A new judging panel is selected each year consisting of respected poets and language experts with a deep love and understanding of their field.
Hugh McMillan
Judge of Wigtown International Poetry Prize and the Alastair Reid Pamphlet Prize
Hugh McMillan is a poet from Penpont in southwest Scotland. His work has been published widely in Scotland and beyond, and he has won various prizes, most recently the Callum Macdonald Memorial Award in 2017 for Sheep Penned, published by Roncadora. He has featured in many anthologies, and three times in the Scottish Poetry Library’s online selection Best Scottish Poems of the year. His poems have also been chosen three times to feature on National Poetry Day postcards. In 2017 he was writer in residence at the Harvard Summer School. In 2020 he was chosen as one of four ‘Poetry Champions’ for Scotland by the Scottish Poetry Library. In 2021 he was given the role as editor of ‘Best Scottish Poems’. Most recently he became chair of the Saltire Poetry Award.
Hugh said: “The Wigtown Poetry Prizes are Scotland’s biggest, and are career-makers for poets. It’s a thrill to be involved in making some people’s year! I’m looking forward to a record-breaking number of entries in 2025.”
Lesley Benzie
Judge of Wigtown Scots Poetry Prize
Supported by the Saltire Society
Lesley said: "Scots is a living language, so as well as shimmering use of the leid, I'd like to see modern day spoken forms as well as more traditional Scots reflected in the poems. I anticipate language that highlights the additional rhythm, lyricism and musicality that Scots brings to poetry, and to be delighted by use of vivid imagery and striking metaphors to engage the reader’s emotions. I hope to see poems that convey the full array of human experience from the very personal to the universal, to political and world events."
Elissa Hunter-Dorans
Judge of Wigtown Scottish Gaelic Prize
Supported by The Gaelic Books Council
'S e sgrìobhadair Gàidhlig agus Beurla às a' Ghàidhealtachd a th' ann an Elissa Hunter-Dorans, a’ leughadh Eachdraidh de Ealain aig Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann. B’ i a’ chiad Next Generation Young Makar airson bàrdachd Ghàidhlig aig Leabharlann Bàrdachd na h-Alba, agus tha i an-dràsta na dheasaiche Bàrdachd Ghàidhlig airson The Poets’ Republic le Drunk Muse Press. Tha i air leughadh aig Fèis Dandelion, StAnza, agus The Edinburgh Fringe.
Elissa Hunter-Dorans is a Gaelic and English writer from the Highlands, and is currently studying History of Art at the University of Edinburgh. She was the Scottish Poetry Library’s first Next Generation Young Makar for Gaelic poetry, and is currently the Gaelic Poetry editor for The Poets' Republic by Drunk Muse Press. She has performed at the Dandelion Festival, StAnza, and The Edinburgh Fringe.
Thuirt Elissa: "Tha e na thoileachas mòr dhomh a bhith an sàs ann am Farpais Bàrdachd Gàidhlig Wigtown am-bliadhna, agus tha e na urram dhomh an obair as ùire aig bàird Ghàidhlig an latha an-diugh a leughadh. Tha mi an dòchas sgrìobhadh fhaicinn a dh’fhaodas dusladh gach latha a pheantadh le dath agus òran."
Elissa said: "I am delighted to be joining the Wigtown Book Festival by judging the Gaelic Poetry Prize this year, and I feel beyond privileged to read the newest work of today's Gaelic poets. I hope to see writing that can paint the dust of each day with colour and song."
Tom Pow
Judge of Dumfries & Galloway Fresh Voice Award
Supported by Moniack Mhor
Tom Pow was born in Edinburgh in 1950. He has written picture books, young adult novels, travel books and radio plays, but is primarily a poet. He has published many collections, including In The Becoming, New and Selected Poems (Polygon, 2009). Dear Alice – Narratives of Madness (Salt) won the 2009 Scottish Poetry Book of the Year award. His latest publications are the collection Naranjas (Galileo, 2021), the pamphlet Svetlana’s Dance (Mariscat, 2022) and the collection Ghosts at Play (with translations by Nao Miyouchi) (Giovanni Publishing, Japan, 2024).
Tom said: “Two things that excite me about judging the Fresh Voice Award are the pleasure of discovering poets at an early stage of their writing life, and the thought that this award could make a huge difference to them.”
Each prize will be presented at an award ceremony at Wigtown Book Festival 2025, which takes place 26 September - 5 October.
