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The 53-year-old Carol Ann Duffy became the fist woman poet laureate of Britain. She succeeded Andrew Motion who has completed his ten-year long tenure as poet laureate. The prestigious post of poet laureate was earlier held by legends like Dryden, Tennyson, Wordsworth and Ted Hughes. The new woman poet laureate, Duffy has penned down many poems dealing with a wide range of topics including those close to everyday life.
Originally, poet laureates used to serve as courtiers, writing odes to significant royal occasions like birthdays and coronations. Over the period, the role of poet laureate has changed. The out-going poet laureate Andrew Motion was instrumental in bringing poetry into schools and starting the Poetry Archive, a compendium of poets reading their work aloud.
While commenting on the new poet laureate, culture secretary, Andy Burnham said that Duffy is one of the leading figures in English literature. Describing her a brilliant modern poet, Burnham said that Duffy has been able to pen down whole range of human experiences that capture the emotions perfectly. Speaking about her new designation Carol Ann Duffy said that she will give best effort to offer her services to the common people.
