SA Poetry Slam 2026 – Heat 5 with the lot!

SA Heat 5 of the 2026 Australian Poetry Slam completed the run to the finals with an extraordinary night of poetry! An enthusiastic packed house, an over-subscribed sign-up list, a slam-off, a fabulous featured guest, generous catering from library and, most importantly, 20 amazing poets who competed for the last two places in the SA State Final.

National rules require that only 20 poets can compete in any heat, so when we had 24 sign-ups, a ballot was held for the final five place on the competitors list. We know how disappointing it is to turn up ready to compete and then not have the opportunity to do so. But there are many more events on the local poetry calendar where you can perform your work. We look forward to hearing you next time around.

With such high quality on stage, it was not surprising that scoring was as tight as it gets. First place got there by just 0.1 of a point, and we had a slam-off for the runner-up position, after two poets were tied in second place at the end of the main round. So huge congratulations to Heat 5 winner, Jas. After the slam-off, Tiffy was declared the runner-up. However, as Tiffy is not able to attend the final, the second spot for the finals went to the slam-off runner-up, Miles Falahey. Congratulations to Jas, Tiffy and Miles!!

Thank you to our guest Nick Falkner who provided a perfectly pitched set while the scores were tallied and checked. Thank you to our audience and judges, without whom the competition would be a very bare event indeed. Thank you to the SWSA volunteers on the night, Kit and Nadia who made sure everything ran smoothly. Special thanks to the staff of Woodcroft Library who have been long-time generous supporters of the SA Poetry Slam, not only providing us with nourishment, but also the prize money for the winner and runner-up.

Now that the heats are done, next up is the SA State Final at Goodwood Theatre & Studios on Saturday, 26th September, 2026.
Click here for more info.
Click here to book tickets.

pics: Ian Gibbins