It's poetry in motion for Tullamore, as it becomes a Poetry Town!

Tullamore been announced as one of 20 'Poetry Towns' across Ireland.

The all-island initiative will see free poetry-related activities taking place in Tullamore and each of the other chosen towns in September.

Announcing details of the initiative today (Thursday), Poetry Ireland said the 'Poetry Town' events in Tullamore would be taking place between Friday, September 10, and Saturday, September 18.

Offaly County Council's Arts Office is partnering with Poetry Ireland in organising the initiative.

One interesting aspect of it will see a Poet Laureate being appointed for each participating town.

The chosen Poet Laureates, who will either be from the respective local area or have strong connections with it, will be commissioned to write a poem honouring their Poetry Town and its people.

The Poet Laureates for each town are to be announced next month.

Each poem will be revealed and presented to the people of the participating towns at a series of flagship online events, one of which will be hosted in each town, which will feature contributions from local poets, artists and musicians.

There will also be a wide variety of additional activities in the Poetry Towns.

These will include events involving local poets; poetry workshops; public poetry displays, including 'Poetry Underfoot'; and a range of physical activities called ‘Poems that Move You’, which will vary from town to town.

Local businesses, including cafés and chemists, will also be participating in the activities to celebrate their towns by distributing 'pocket poems' to customers.

The full programme for each town will be made available on the Poetry Town website during the last week of August.

The 20 'Poetry Towns' are as follows: Adare (Limerick); Athenry (Galway); Bailieborough (Cavan); Ballycastle (Antrim); Bandon (Cork); Belmullet (Mayo); Bray (Wicklow); Carrick-on-Shannon (Leitrim); Carrick-on-Suir (Tipperary); Cootehill (Cavan); Dublin 1; Dungarvan (Waterford); Dunshaughlin (Meath); Ennistymon (Clare); Listowel (Kerry); Mountmellick (Laois); Naas (Kildare); Strokestown (Roscommon); Tullamore (Offaly); and Wexford town.

For further information, visit the Poetry Town website: poetrytown.ie.