Edna Eglinton was an English poet and children’s writer who relocated from London to North Tawton, Devon.
Poetry
Edna Eglinton successfully authored the following poetry collections:
Pisgah (Outposts, 1977)
Holiday Viewing (Priaplus, 1982)
Hands Together with David Santer (Old School Press, 1994)
Exposing the Negatives with David Santer (Old School Press, 1996)
Forever Panto (Old School Press, 2001)
How Are Your Spirits (Old School Press, 2001)
Living Mosaic (Indigo Dreams, 2008)
Cause and Effect (HappenStance Poem Card, 2011)
Edna Eglinton was an active director of the Arvon Creative Writing Foundation.
Since 1968, Arvon has been offering people time and space to write with an annual program of residential courses at Arvon’s dedicated rural retreat centres:
- Totleigh Barton, Sheepwash, Devon
- The Clockhouse, Craven Arms, Shropshire
- The Hurst, Craven Arms, Shropshire – the former home of playwright John Osborne
- Lumb Bank, near Hebden Bridge, West Yorkshire – the former home of Poet Laureate Ted Hughes
Edna Eglinton was a member of the Association of Christian Writers. She also submitted her poems for publication in the Quaker Monthly Journal magazine.
Edna was included in an anthology of six Devon-based poets published in 1983 entitled “Listen to Us.”
Edna’s poem “On a Frosty Night” was included in the Poetry on the Buses anthology (Green Books, 2001).
Edna Eglinton enjoyed literary competition success such as winning the Local Poem category in the Plough Poetry Prize, 2004, with her poem entitled “Captured.”
Her poem “The World Needs to Find True Balance” won the Exmouth Library poetry competition, inspired by the Fairtrade fortnight and judged by Rachel May; the coordinator of the Fairtrade Devon campaign, who presented Edna Eglinton with a hamper.
BBC Northern Ireland – One Potato, Two Potato
Edna Eglinton’s poem “Family Visit” was included in BBC Northern Ireland children’s programme ‘One Potato, Two Potato’ during Spring 2007.
Supporting the curriculum in Maths – Numbers and Mathematical Reasoning and English – Talking and Listening (expected outcomes) and Reading.
Family Visit
Two on a motor bike
Four in a car
Six people go to visit
Granny and Grandpa.
Eight people chattering,
In comes Uncle Jim
With cousins Luke and Kylie
And their brother Tim.
There are so many of us
We can hardly shut the door
Granny’s only got ten chairs
So two sit on the floor.
I help Granny cut the cake.
Twelve slices for our tea,
Baby Tim won’t eat and so
There’s an extra piece for me.
By Edna Eglinton (2007)
