UK poetry sales are heading towards a record year after a sharp rise in demand for Homer’s The Odyssey following the release of Christopher Nolan’s film adaptation.
Sales in the category passed £8 million during the first 30 weeks of 2026, up 13.3% on the same period last year, according to figures from market research firm NielsenIQ. On current trends, the market is expected to exceed £15 million in annual sales for the first time since reliable records began, with a possible total of £17 million if demand continues into the autumn.
The renewed interest has been strongly linked to Nolan’s adaptation of the ancient Greek epic, which stars Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Zendaya and Anne Hathaway. The film was released in mid-July and has brought new attention to a poem thought to be around 2,700 years old.
UK print sales of The Odyssey rose by 1,400% in the four weeks to 25 July compared with the same period in 2025, according to the data. Editions of The Odyssey and The Iliad have together generated £980,000 in poetry sales so far this year, accounting for about £1.20 in every £10 spent on poetry books in Britain.
The film also delivered a strong commercial opening in cinemas. It took $264 million, or about £198 million, worldwide during its opening weekend, making it Nolan’s biggest opening to date.
The uplift has raised the prospect of Homer challenging the UK record for the highest annual sales by a poet. That benchmark was set in 2017 by Canadian writer Rupi Kaur, whose books, including Milk and Honey, generated £1.2 million through NielsenIQ BookScan’s Total Consumer Market.
Interest in The Odyssey has not been limited to the UK. In the United States, print sales across all editions of the poem are up 76% this year, according to Circana BookScan figures.
Classicist Emily Wilson’s 2017 translation has been among the main beneficiaries of the rise in sales. Wilson’s version, widely discussed since its publication, has become one of the most visible modern English editions of the poem as readers return to the source material behind the film.
Wilson has also been critical of Nolan’s adaptation. Writing in the London Review of Books, she said the film “has nothing convincing to say” and argued that it “lacks psychological, emotional, political and ethical depth”. She also wrote that “Nolan’s Odyssey lacks many of the elements that make the poem great”, adding: “I would be ashamed to have written any part of this script.”
The wider poetry market was already growing before the film’s release. Even when sales of The Odyssey and The Iliad are removed from this year’s and last year’s totals, the category is still up 7.2% and remains on course for its strongest annual performance. The years from 2023 to 2025 were already the most valuable period on record for the UK poetry market.
Philip Stone at NielsenIQ said the sector had been benefiting from a broader shift in how poetry is bought and read. “The poetry sector was already enjoying an upwards trajectory before Chris Nolan tackled The Odyssey, helped in recent years by the popularity of Instapoets, including Rupi Kaur, repositioning the poetry sector from a more academic category into a lifestyle, gift and self-development genre,” he said.
Contemporary poets continue to play a significant role in the market. Scottish writer Donna Ashworth remains Britain’s bestselling living poet of the decade, with her 2025 collection To the Women selling almost 34,000 copies this year. Her work has found a large readership through accessible, reflective writing, although some critics have questioned whether it sits closer to self-help than traditional poetry.
The year’s leading poetry title by value is I Still Believe in Miracles, the debut collection by London-based actor and poet Lucas Jones. According to The Bookseller, the book has generated £400,000 in 2026, making it the year’s bestselling poetry title by value so far.
Audiobook editions of The Odyssey have also benefited from the renewed attention. Stephen Fry’s reading has entered Spotify’s UK audiobook top 10, while Ian McKellen’s narration has appeared in the equivalent chart in the United States.
The figures indicate that Nolan’s film has given a substantial boost to one of literature’s oldest works while adding momentum to an already expanding poetry market. With both classical texts and contemporary collections selling strongly, the category is now positioned for its highest annual sales total on record.
