Ruler of Dubai reads poem on TV poetry contest El Bait

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid a very special guest as TV poetry show celebrates more than 700,000 entries.

The judging panel on El Beit, the TV poetry contest that airs on Sama Dubai. Reem Mohammed / The National

There was a royal theme to last week’s edition of the popular Nabati poetry competition El Beit, when the show unexpectedly began with Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, reciting his latest poem, in response to a poem by his son, Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, crown prince of Dubai, who’s heritage foundation is behind the show.

The poem exemplified nobility and encouraged generosity towards neighbouring countries.

The show’s general coordinator, Majid Abdul Rahman Al Bastaki also revealed just how popular the second season of the show is proving to be with audiences.

“El Beit poetry show has exceeded all expectations by attracting 740,110 submissions in its second month, with over 1000 retweets,” he said. “This demonstrates our extensive talent pool of distinguished and promising poets.”

This week’s winner, selected by the judges on the Golden Screen, was Rakan Al Subaie from Saudi Arabia, who won Dh100,000 after demonstrating a masterful command of the vocabulary and rhythms of Nabati poetry. He also qualifies for the grand final, which has a prize of Dh1 million.

The National visited the set of El Beit, which is broadcast on Mondays on the TV channel Sama Dubai, just before the filming of last week’s live episode, and you’ll be able to read our interviews with the hosts and backstage team in the newspaper and online next week.