Hampshire Poet blog - Sept 2026

During his tenure, your Hampshire Poet - Damian Kelly-Basher - will be writing a series of blog posts for us sharing what he has been up to, telling us his poetic plans for the future, and inviting you to get involved in poetry in Hampshire. Read on to find out what's happening in Damian's world!

For September, Damian Kelly-Basher's Hampshire Poet blog explores Univocalic Poetry

This month in Nerd Niche we’re talking up OULIPO. This French literary movement

(Ouvroir de littérature potentielle) began in 1960.

Poetry’s language is constrained by

forms, syllable counts etc, But OULIPO deliberately placed strict rules on language to also remove the conscious choice of the author and increase the role of chance in writing. Not surprising, since some of them came from Dada and Surrealism.

Damian Kelly-Basher hosting Hampshire Young Poets prizegiving at Winchester Poetry Festival 2025 (photo Georgia Penny)

One of the methods they used is univocalic poetry. This allows only one vowel throughout

a poem. (I you choose ‘e’ you can have ‘better’ but not ‘batter’; elected’ but not ‘eloped’).

Univocalics began as experiments with language and meaning (Hey... it was the 1960s, man 😎 ). But they’re also a fun, creative challenge in how to say something using less words and to search for alternatives for how you might express yourself. OULIPO shares this with ancient Japanese haiku (of which, many of them were fans).

Many authors went far beyond univocalic poems. The French author, Georges Perec

wrote a novella called ‘Les Revenentes’ using only the ‘e’ vowel. The Canadian author

Christian Bök wrote a univocalic book (with a chapter dedicated to each vowel) called ‘Eunoia' - believing that "each vowel has its own personality, and demonstrates the flexibility of the English language".

Exercises

Choose a vowel (e and i are easier).

Write a four-line piece using that as the only vowel.

OR

Make a list of words with your chosen univocal.

See how many times you can fit the vowel into a word (e.g. element, deepened)

For Winchester Heritage Open Days, Damian is hosting a free poetry "wordshop" where you can create magical poems from everyday occurrences - and share them (if you wish) at a friendly sharing session at the end. Join us, all are welcome.

Everyday Histories: poetry activities with the Hampshire Poet takes place at Pilgrims' Hall, SO23 9LT on Sat 19th Sept at 10:30am.

Damian Kelly-Basher is Hampshire Poet Laureate 2024-27. The appointment of the Hampshire Poet takes place every two years and is jointly led by Winchester Poetry Festival and Hampshire Cultural Trust. The position of Hampshire Poet provides the opportunity for a Hampshire-based poet to undertake commissions, lead workshops and give readings and talks throughout the county, as well as acting as an advocate for poetry and poets.

https://damkellybash.com/