World Book Day 2000: Poetry - Poets in 'Vogue' but out of Pocket

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"POETRY MAKES nothing happen," said WH Auden. It does, however, occasionally hit the headlines and the bestseller lists. For a while, it was the new rock'n'roll, but without the money, drugs or fame.

In 1994, as part of a major promotion called New Generation Poets, a group of carefully vetted poets were paraded up and down the country and even persuaded to feature, a touch uncomfortably, in a Vogue photo-shoot. They were quizzed about their love lives, their interests and their taste in music and clothes, but this sudden surge in curiosity did not, unfortunately, have a significant impact on their sales.

When Ted Hughes died, in October 1998, the grief was …