Welcome to Australia's largest regular poetry slam!

And bless you (assuming you sneezed because it’s hayfever season). Here’s another way we will bless you: with FREE tickets to the October Bankstown Poetry Slam!

Yet ANOTHER blessing for you. We have TWO feature artists this month, and they are the most beautiful brotherhood you will ever witness:

Elliot Cameron York and Jihad Yassine!!

Elliot York Cameron is a performing writer and teaching artist who grew up on Dharug and Dharawal lands, and currently lives on Gadigal land. He is a two-time Bankstown Poetry Slam Grand Slam Champion and a former Australian Poetry Slam NSW state finalist. Elliot co-wrote and performed in "They're Poets, After All", which was shortlisted for best in spoken word & storytelling at the 2025 Sydney Fringe Festival, and his work has been published in Bare Knuckle Poet and Baby Teeth Journal.

[Photo credit: Lightnavigating Studio]

Jihad Yassine is a poet and winner of the 2025 Bankstown Poetry Grand Slam. He was a finalist for Australian Poetry Slam 2024, and a finalist of the 2024 National Youth Poetry Slam. He has featured at numerous poetry slams across Australia. He writes about the clash of identity in being an Arab man living in an English world, so as to give people who struggle with language and heritage something to relate to. He loves to hike and explore nature and does so to keep himself in wonder of Allah. Home Between the Cedar Trees is his debut collection.

[Photo credit: Aphrodite D.]

Anyone can also sign up to perform on the night, this is your chance to win a spot in our 2027 (which was at the Sydney Opera House - Concert Hall this year!) Grand Slam!!

Sign up time is at 6:15 pm!

Your free ticket gets you access to the slam, fresh watermelon, world class poetry and some Bankstown class dad-jokes, courtesy of our MC Bilal Hafda.

For rules on participating in the slam, please see below.

🍉 If you are intending to sign up to perform at the slam, please book a ticket and arrive at 6:15 pm to sign up at the door. There's no guarantee that you will get a spot to perform on the night, if we have more sign-ups than there is time to get through, but we will do our best to make sure we have as many people as possible.

🍉 Regular slam rules apply: No age restrictions/ STRICT 3 minute time limit (try to limit poem introductions)/ no props or music/ if you want to sing in your poem (first of all how dare you be so talented) it should be part of your poem not the whole piece/ poetry must be your original work.

🍉 The top 4 scoring artists will be granted a spot at the Grand Slam.

🍉 Please note that signing up does not guarantee a performance spot. We have a lottery system in place whereby we randomly draw names so that it is fair for everyone, given the high sign up numbers!

Poetry aficionados, appreciators of HipHop and literature that beats with a thunderous heart — you absolutely do not want to miss this!

Please note that BPS is a not-for-profit charitable organisation so any extra donations go a long way in helping us support our artists! Thank you for your generosity ❤️‍🔥

If anyone has any questions, please feel free to ask away or email info@bankstownpoetryslam.com

October Bankstown Poetry Slam ft. Elliot York Cameron and Jihad Yassine

Choose your tickets

General Admission ticket

Donations

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