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Gboyega Odubanjo: Tributes to 'incomparable' poet after body found

Northamptonshire Police A headshot of the poet Gboyega OdubanjoNorthamptonshire Police
Gboyega Odubanjo was last seen early on Saturday at the festival in Kelmarsh, about 10 miles west of Kettering

Tributes have been paid to an "incomparable" award-winning poet after a body was found in the search for the missing performer.

Gboyega Odubanjo was last seen at the Shambala Festival in Northamptonshire at about 04:00 BST on Saturday.

The 27-year-old, from Bromley, in south London, had been due to perform at Shambala Festival in Kelmarsh on Sunday but did not arrive for his set.

A body was found during a search of the Kelmarsh area on Thursday.

Bad Pretty Press, an independent poetry publisher where Mr Odubanjo worked as an editor, said it was "heartbroken" by news of his "untimely" death.

'Shining light'

In a statement published on X, formerly known as Twitter, they said he was a" beloved friend, colleague and incomparable poet".

He "would have gone on to produce a lifetime of enduring work as one of poetry's shining lights", the publisher said.

Mr Odubanjo had mentored and supported developing artists and "his contribution within the poetry community was invaluable, as was his friendship", it added.

Police said there were no suspicious circumstances surrounding the death.

Poetry Society Gboyega OdubanjoPoetry Society
Mr Odubanjo was one of poetry's "shining lights" said independent poetry publisher Bad Betty Press

His godmother, Antonia Onigbode, said his disappearance had been a "shock to entire family", when speaking to BBC Radio Northampton on Wednesday.

She said Mr Odubanjo was an "exceptionally gifted person" with "a bright future ahead of him".

Mr Odubanjo's pamphlet, Aunty Uncle Poems, was a winner of the Poetry Business New Poets prize in 2020. He had also been the recipient of an Eric Gregory award from the Society of Authors and a Michael Marks pamphlet award.

He had been studying for a PhD in creative writing at the University of Hertfordshire.

The University of East Anglia (UEA), where Mr Odubanjo studied between 2014 and 2019, called him a "well-loved and respected member of UEA's Arts and Humanities community".

Shambala, which takes place at Kelmarsh Hall west of Kettering, hosts poetry performances as well as those by musicians, comedians and speakers.

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