Amanda Dalton is a poet and playwright. Her first book-length collection, How to Disappear (Bloodaxe Books 1999), was shortlisted for the Forward Prize for Best First Collection and she was chosen as a Next Generation Poet in 2004. Her second collection, Stray, was published by Bloodaxe in 2012. In 2021 Arc published her experimental chapbook, 30 Poems in 30 Days and, in 2022, Smith|Doorstop published a pamphlet of two long poems, Notes on Water. A version of Notes on Water was re-created for two voices and soundscape for BBC Radio 3's Between the Ears. Her third full-length collection, Fantastic Voyage (Bloodaxe Books, 2024), also includes the sequence Notes on Water, along with a QR code linking to the BBC Radio 3 feature.
Amanda writes extensively for BBC Radio 4 and 3 including original drama, poetry-dramas, classic adaptations, re-imaginings of film, and lyric essays. Her theatre writing includes text for outdoor and site-specific performance, and drama for young people including commissions with Manchester’s Royal Exchange, Sheffield Theatres and Keswick’s Theatre By The Lake.
Freelance since 2017, much of her career has been focused on teaching, mentoring and the curation and artistic leadership of innovative cross art-form projects, often in collaboration with other artists and communities. Her website is https://www.amandadalton.co.uk
She lives in Hebden Bridge.
Photo: Claire McNamee
