Britain's New Poet Laureate is a Woman

341 years into the tradition of having an official state poet, Carol Ann Duffy's appointment gives the job to a female. The NYT has the story, and BBC News has a profile with details of her background, awards etc. About her work: "In her most popular collection, “The World’s Wife” (1999), overlooked women in history and mythology get the chance to tell their side of the story, so that one poem imagines, for instance, the relief that Mrs. Rip Van Winkle must have felt when her husband fell asleep, finally giving her some time for herself."