BDA reveals the UK’s 2025 British Sign Language Poet Laureate (BSL)

To watch this in BSL click play below:

The British Deaf Association has announced the winner of its third annual British Sign
Language (BSL) Poet Laureate competition.

The winner is Ishtiaq Hussain, who becomes the 2025 BSL Poet Laureate, an esteemed honour that comes with a £500 prize and the exciting opportunity to perform at DeafZone at Glastonbury 2025.

The charity said that “Ishtiaq’s poetry explores a powerful and important theme, delivered
with a confident and engaging performance that blends humour, fluent movement, and thoughtful use
of metaphor.”

There were also two runners up, Maral Mamaghanizadeh, who takes second place and will receive £200, and Zoë McWhinney, who takes third place and will be awarded £100. The charity said: “Maral’s poem is notable for its strong BSL, clear structure, and effective use of space and symmetry, while Zoë’s piece stands out with a confident performance, rich in language and creativity.”

The BSL Poet Laureate competition was first launched by the BDA in 2022 to celebrate the UK’s
inaugural National BSL Day – marking the anniversary of BSL’s legal recognition as an indigenous
language of Great Britain through the British Sign Language (BSL) Act 2022.

This year, Deaf BSL signers aged 18+ from across the UK were invited to submit a two-minute video of
their original poetry in BSL, on the theme “What I hope for the future of BSL”. Submissions were judged based on language fluency, creativity, originality, content, and performance confidence.

As BSL Poet Laureate, Ishtiaq Hussain will collaborate with the BDA to create and share original poetry throughout the year, while also performing on the Poetry and Words stage at Glastonbury, at the BSL Conference, and at the BDA AGM, ensuring their voice is heard at some of the most exciting events in the UK.

Rebecca Mansell, Chief Executive of the British Deaf Association, said:

“The BSL Poet Laureate competition is a vital way for us to celebrate the richness and uniqueness of BSL and the vibrant culture that surrounds it. It also highlights the incredible talent within the Deaf community and helps raise awareness of the importance of BSL into society. Congratulations to all of this year’s winners—each brought something truly special to their poetry. I’m excited to see how our new Poet Laureate will inspire others, and we look forward to continuing to celebrate and champion BSL.”

The sponsor of the award was DeafZone Glastonbury, which provides BSL access and information to hearing people about the deaf community at Glastonbury Festival.