COMMUTERS in Oxfordshire are invited to pit their lyrical talents against those of Alex James for a National Poetry Day competition.

The Blur frontman has thrown down the gauntlet to the county's unsung poets to mark the annual event along with Great Western Railway.

Rail passengers to channel their inner creative thoughts and pen their favourite ditties while travelling by rail.

To get people started Mr James has written a poem inspired by his regular journey travelling from his home in Kingham, Oxfordshire, to London Paddington, which can be read here and includes the stanza:

I must have made that journey five hundred times

London, Paddington

Cotswolds: Kingham, 'middle of nowhere'

And my heart never fails to beat faster, either end

And slower in between

The best entry will receive free rail travel on GWR for a year on a selected ‘immersive’ seat with the best window views, and the first 50 to enter will also receive a free GWR ticket.

For more information on the competition click here.

A celebration of written verse will take place across Oxfordshire today as budding writers and communities mark National Poetry Day.

This morning Oxford resident Lucy Ayrton will read our a poem about The Eagle and Child pub in Oxford, live from the Broad Street watering hole.

She is one of 40 poets and spoken word artists commissioned across the UK to write a poem from the viewpoint of a local landmark or object.

The award-winning storyteller, who has previously performed at Chipping Norton Literary Festival, said: "Oxford is a town where you can meet almost anyone as the population is so varied and changes all the time, but it is still firmly rooted in history.

"The Eagle and Child, with its long and famous history but availability, perfectly represents that. It's also a place where I've personally had many happy times.”

National Poetry Day is an annual mass celebration of all things poetic, with events taking place in streets, schools, businesses and on air and hundreds of pop-up poetry events taking place around the UK.

From 10am until 4pm today Oxford University's Poets in Residence will be at the Natural History Museum to meet members of the public.

There will also be readings, a 'poetry trail' and the chance to for visitors to compose verse of their own to hang on a 'poetry tree'.

A group of writers from Oxfordshire will also by in Cornmarket from midday reading out poems from the newly-published 'Poems for Jeremy Corbyn', a series of pieces written specially for the Labour leader and edited by Oxford local Merryn Williams.

Vivien Urban, 18, from Hungary, and Shukria Rezaei, 19, from Afghanistan, who both came to Oxford in their teens, will also be reciting poetry live today as the voices of Channel 4.

The pair will read out poems they wrote themselves in slots from 12.05pm until 10.50pm between Channel 4 shows such as Gogglebox, Hunted and Hollyoaks.

Ms Urban uses poetry as a way to improve her English, while Ms Rezaei remembers hearing poems from her childhood in Afghanistan.

In a joint statement the pair said: "Since moving to the UK our passion for poetry has really grown so we were thrilled when Channel 4 asked us to recite some of our work on-air.

"Over the years poetry has helped both of us in different ways and this experience has definitely encouraged us to continue writing."

What are you doing to mark National Poetry Day? Email hsomerville@nqo.com with your stories and pictures