Recognising the best new poetry published in the United Kingdom and Ireland, the T.S. Eliot Prize is arguably the most prestigious accolade the poetry community has to offer. This year’s shortlist reflects the fearlessness and ferocity of contemporary discourse, with collections ranging from Fiona Benson’s visceral polemic against misogynistic violence and Jay Bernard’s lacerating exploration of the contemporary Black British experience to Ilya Kaminsky’s incandescent condemnation of armed conflict and Vidyan Ravinthiran’s vexed tribute to the North East in sonnet form.