York College students Oliver Jones and Marie Howley at York Station where they were due to read their poems over the public address system today

It was a dance to the muse of time today as poetry was taken to the people.

A-level English students from York College produced a collection of poems and took them out on to the streets to read to passers-by as they marked the National Poetry Day.

Under the guidance of professional poets Pat Borthwick and Mimi Khalvati, the students wrote the poems based on sounds across the city.

The students experienced everything from the hush of the Minster, to the hum of Parliament Street to gain inspiration for their verse.

As "song" is the theme of the National Poetry Day, the students aim to put the poems to music and the resulting songs will feature on a CD which will be professionally recorded at the Old Dairy Studios, York College.

A-level art and design students will design the graphics for the CD cover and all the hard work is expected to feature in the college's contribution to York Day at the Millennium Dome in 2000.

National Poetry Day was being marked across the country in libraries, arts centres, bookshops, supermarkets, on air and online.

Poet Laureate Andrew Motion was set to appear on BBC Radio 4 and debate his favourite Bob Dylan lyrics on the Poetry Society's website this evening.

The results of a nationwide poll for the Nation's Favourite Song Lyric will be announced on BBC1 tomorrow by Griff Rhys Jones.

Awards worth more than £350,000 to poetry initiatives for new audiences were announced by the Arts Council of England, among them a £50,000 grant to the Yorkshire Art Circus and £20,000 for more poetry on the London Underground.

See National Poetry Events

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