AN experimental poet has been sharing his unique writing style with staff and students at Teesside University.

Canadian poet Christian Bok has been performing all over the world for more than 20 years.

His 2001 book Eunoia, which won the Canadian Griffin Poetry Prize and took seven years to write, uses only one vowel in each of its five chapters to demonstrate the diversity of the English language and to prove that each vowel has its own personality.

Mr Bok visited Teesside University as part of an international conference to celebrate the work of French author Georges Perec, whose most celebrated novel was written entirely without the letter ‘e’.

He said: “For me Georges Perec is one of the most significant writers of all time and Eunoia was my way of responding to his challenge.

“To write in that way was so much harder than I had anticipated. I had to read the dictionary five times, but it did give me a new found appreciation of the English language.

“It was a great privilege to be invited to Teesside University to share some of my work with fellow creative people who have the same passion for the written word.”

Simon Morris, a Reader in the School of Arts & Media at Teesside University, said: “Christian Bok is one of the world’s greatest poets. To have him here at Teesside University was extraordinary.”