A moving evening showcasing Ukrainian poetry will show the resilience, solidarity and cultural connections created by those writers working during the bloodiest conflict in Europe since the Second World War.
Prominent Ukrainian poet, translator and cultural advocate Yuliya Musakovska and poet, novelist, and Ukrainian Defence Forces officer Anatoliy Dnistrovyi will share their work in both the original language and translation.
Both are producing existentially important poetry that bears witness to the suffering and destruction caused by Russian aggression, while also affirming the strength of the human spirit and the courage of the Ukrainian people.
They will be joined by the acclaimed British poet Fiona Benson for a moving literary connection through culture. The event will be moderated by Hugh Roberts, Professor at the University of Exeter and an avid promoter of contemporary Ukrainian literature through translations produced in collaboration with Fiona and Yuliya, among others.
The event, organised with the Ukrainian Institute London, will be held at the Poetry Café in London on Thursday, April 16 from 6:30 pm to 8 pm. Yuliya will be attending in person and Anatoliy will be joining online from Kyiv.
People can pay what they can afford and proceeds will be given to the Hospitallers Medical Battalion.
Books by the participating poets will be available for purchase at the event.
The event is supported by the British Council and the University of Exeter's Defence, Security and Resilience Network.
Anatoliy worked as a university professor, researcher, and editor, and is now serving as an officer of the Defence Forces of Ukraine. He has published over 20 books - poetry, prose, and essays. His novel Dudes ("Пацики") was listed among the Top 100 Best Ukrainian novels from the early 18th century until the present, according to PEN Ukraine and The Ukrainians. His work has been translated into over 10 languages.
Yuliya has published six poetry collections, most recently Stones and Nails (2024). Her book The God of Freedom, in English translation, was named one of the Top 10 Ukraine-related books of 2024 by The Kyiv Independent. Her work has been translated into more than 30 languages and published globally. Yuliya is the winner of the 2025 Asian Prize for Poetry and the 2025 Diana Der Hovanessian Prize for poetry translation. She is a co-founder of the Lines of Resistance project between Ukraine and the UK, focused on Ukrainian wartime poetry. She translated We Were Here, a frontline poetry collection by Ukrainian veteran Artur Dron', published with Jantar (London) in collaboration with Hugh Roberts and Fiona Benson as editors, and continues to work with them on translating Anatoliy Dnistrovyi's collection, Alarum Days.
