Poet-singer, MC-producer, multi-instrumentalist…Dizraeli is a genre all of his own. Former BBC Poetry Slam Championship, frontman of groundbreaking Dizraeli & The Small Gods, he has been played across BBC Radio. His 2020 album, The Unmaster, was nominated for Album Of The Year in Gilles Peterson’s Worldwide Awards
Meet the poets.
In partnership with the Hot Poets, we’ve commissioned ten spoken work artists who can cut through the noise. Based in ten regions of the UK, their voices will add diverse dialects to the mix.
The Poets
Dizraeli
Zena Edwards
Zena Edwards is a writer, performance poet, musician and creative educator from London. Collaborators include Hugh Masekela, Baaba Maal and Akram Khan. Her poetic advocacy work includes climate and environmental awareness, sustainability and well being.
Testament
Testament is a poet, rapper, playwright and record breaking beatboxer. His work includes spoken word theatre show Orpheus In The Record Shop (BBC), play Black Men Walking and radio play Daughter (nominated for Best Drama – BBC Audio Drama Awards 2023).
Kate Fox
Kate Fox is a stand up poet, spoken word artist and broadcaster. A regular on BBC Radio 3’s The Verb, she’s made two comedy series for Radio 4, been Poet in Residence for Glastonbury Festival and completed a PhD in stand up comedy!
Jasmine Gardosi
Jasmine Gardosi is the current Birmingham Poet Laureate. A multiple slam champion, beatboxer and winner of the Out-Spoken Prize for Poetry, her work exploring identity, LGBTQ+ issues and mental health has appeared at the Tate Modern, Glastonbury Festival and across BBC Radio stations.
Iona Lee
Iona Lee is a poet, artist, music-maker and spoken-word performer from Edinburgh. She has appeared on radio and television and read her work across the UK and Europe. Her debut poetry collection, Anamnesis, was shortlisted for the Edwin Morgan Poetry Award.
Ifor ap Glyn
Ifor ap Glyn is a Welsh language writer, performer and TV presenter (BBC4, BBC2). He has published six volumes of poetry and his work has been translated into 20 languages. The National Poet of Wales (2016-22), he’s performed globally, from China to Cameroon.
Chris Redmond
Chris Redmond is a poet, musician, facilitator and co-director of Hot Poets. The frontman of Tongue Fu, he’s performed in 20 countries on five continents with features on BBC Radio 1, 2, 4, 6Music and Sky Arts. In 2023 he was shortlisted for the Out-Spoken Prize.
Bohdan Piasecki
Bohdan Piasecki is a poet and translator from Poland based in Birmingham. He has toured in over 27 countries. In 2023 his poem Almost Certainly was shortlisted for the Forward Prize. Bohdan teaches Creative Writing at the University of Birmingham.
Abby Oliveira
Abby Oliveira is a writer, performer, lyricist, and theatre maker based in Derry in the North or Ireland. She collaborates regularly with musicians, photographers, street theatre companies, acrobats and actors and has had work commissioned by BBC Radio 4, Foyle and RTE Radio.