About
Timothy Goldring was born in the United Kingdom in 1953, the son of a Royal Navy engineer. In 1960, the family moved to Singapore, then a Crown Colony in the twilight of British rule.
His childhood unfolded across the fading landscape of Empire--'that area in your map book shaded pink', colonial clubs, and a child's promise that this vast dominion belonged exclusively to him and his father. That world ended abruptly in 1968 when his family sailed for England on the SS Achille Lauro, leaving behind the only home he had known.
Over the following five decades, Goldring built businesses across Europe, Russia, Africa, India, and Southeast Asia--technology ventures, wind farms, property development--always, he would later recognise, searching for something he had lost.
His poetry collection Bird Talk won the 2021 Koestler Award, the UK's oldest and most prestigious arts programme for people in the criminal justice system. The judging panel compared his work to T.S. Eliot. His collection The Boat of Myself: 21 Poems from Prison received the Paris Book Festival Poetry Prize.
He lives in the United Kingdom.
Books
Trapped in the Tropics
a Survivor's Guide to Changi Prison - A Transformative Journey
Friends & Family release - An early iteration of the prison narrative, originally shared with friends and family. Trapped in the Tropics represents one thread of the larger story now told in full in Edge of Empire.
Available via Amazon, Apple Books, and other platforms.
AWARDS & RECOGNITION
2021 Koestler Award for Poetry
Bird Talk -- First-Time Entrant Award
The Koestler Awards are the UK's oldest and most prestigious arts programme for people in the criminal justice system, running since 1962. Poetry is their largest category with nearly 1,000 entries annually. Past exhibition curators include Antony Gormley, Grayson Perry, and Benjamin Zephaniah.
From the judges:
“This is a fascinating and beautiful collection of verse, filled with rich language and imagery... Your writing style is unique and I love that the basis of your writing is rhyme... it reminded me of T.S. Eliot's 'The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock'. You clearly understand how to play with words and language to create the biggest impact and I was blown away by your writings.”
Paris Book Festival Poetry Prize
The Boat of Myself: 21 Poems from Prison
From the judges:
“This is a powerful work from a fresh new voice. One hopes that Goldring will continue to explore the world and provide readers with fresh introspection. His abilities may have been tapped only through circumstances, but he has discovered a wonderful reservoir of insight through that experience.”
Prisoners Abroad Highly Commended Award
Bird Talk -- awarded for work by British prisoners overseas
Get in Touch
Email:
timothygoldring53@gmail.com