No 10 turned down Larkin, Auden and other poets for laureate job

As the months passed, more names were put forward. Some nominated themselves. Allen Ginsberg proposed the singer Donovan, just 21, whose work “Sunshine Superman” and “Mellow Yellow” had topped the charts. In August, Ginsberg sent a hand drawn “flower card” to Number 10 with the words “Donovan for Laureate”. Officials did not respond.