2015 T. S. Eliot Prize Readings, Southbank Centre

The T. S. Eliot Prize Readings are arguably the most important event in the contemporary poetry calendar. With previous winners including Paul Muldoon, Ted Hughes, Carol Ann Duffy, Derek Walcott and Seamus Heaney, this is a much-coveted award. Former poet laureate Andrew Motion called it "the prize most poets want to win," while critic Louise Jury considers it "the world's top poetry award."

Although the award is dated as the 2015 T.S. Eliot Prize, it is presented in early 2016, on 11 January to be precise. The night prior to the announcement sees ten of the finest contemporary poets in the English language descend on the Southbank Centre to share their work, giving readers an unrivalled chance to experience the full breadth of poetic endeavour. From meditative nature poetry to pop culture-citing reminiscences, the evening promises staggering diversity and quality.

This year, the judging panel is chaired by Pascale Petit, whose collection Fauverie was shortlisted for last year's award. Joining her are Forward Prize winner Kei Miller and rising star Ahren Warner.

For the most part, the nominees are well-established talents. Don Paterson gets the nod for his bounteous and formally accomplished 40 Sonnets, Sean O'Brien for his elegiac The Beautiful Librarians, and Claudia Rankine for Citizen: An American Lyric, an incisive, prose-infused exploration of prejudice. But there are some less well-known names too. Rebecca Perry, for instance, is nominated for Beauty/Beauty, a precise, emotive work and the poet's first full collection.

See below for the full shortlist, which should also serve as a very respectable reading list.

Mark Doty - Deep Lane (Cape Poetry)
Tracey Herd - Not in this World (Bloodaxe)
Selima Hill - Jutland (Bloodaxe)
Sarah Howe - Loop of Jade (Chatto & Windus)
Tim Liardet - The World Before Snow (Carcanet)
Les Murray - Waiting for the Past (Carcanet)
Sean O'Brien - The Beautiful Librarians (Picador)
Don Paterson - 40 Sonnets (Faber)
Rebecca Perry - Beauty/Beauty (Bloodaxe)
Claudia Rankine - Citizen: An American Lyric (Penguin)