There's no official word, but the Times has announced that Carol Ann Duffy will be the next poet laureate.

The One Show listed a few possibilities, bizarrely including Benjamin Zephaniah. He's extremely awesome, but who'd possibly think he'd accept the laureateship? The BBC also gave their five front runners here. If pressed I'd have swung towards Armitage, because I've seen him read and really, really enjoyed it, but no complaints here for the choice of Duffy.

Wendy Cope has a decent argument against the post here. Personally I don't think it should be abolished, but most of my favourites didn't get the laureateship. It has produced some wonderful work - Charge of the Light Brigade being chief - but there's been a greater quantity of awesomeness coming from people writing without official status or the need to be diplomatic. That it makes people notice poetry a little more is justification for the role, but it's not an automatic label of 'best' poet.

I don't think Motion's been a particularly visible laureate. Maybe if you read the right broadsheets you get exposed to him, but he's not been a voice that I've been aware of. A change will be nice.

We'll see what tomorrow brings.

Update: The Times was right.