TXAKOLI by Julie Irigaray

1 txiki = little ; muxu = kiss ; maite = love (in Basque)

Julie Irigaray is a French Basque writer based in Birmingham. Her pamphlet Whalers, Witches and Gauchos was published by Nine Pens (2021) and her debut collection Etxe will be published by The Poetry Lighthouse in 2027. Julie's poetry has been featured on BBC Radio 4, and her poems, articles and translations have appeared in over sixty publications across the world (UK, Ireland, US, Italy, Spain, Canada, Mexico, Singapore and South Korea), including Poetry Ireland Review, The Rialto, Poetry Wales, and Ambit. Julie's poems have won or been finalists in twenty-five poetry competitions, including The London Magazine Poetry Prize 2024 and the Bridport Poetry Prize 2025. She works as a creative writing tutor for The European Writers’ Salon.