In a poignant annual tradition, the poet and painter Frieda Hughes has visited the West Yorkshire grave of her mother, the iconic writer Sylvia Plath, to lay a festive tribute. The visit, which took place on Friday 19 December 2025, saw Hughes plant Christmas hellebores at the graveside in Heptonstall, a ritual performed under the watchful gaze of a nearby street art mural depicting Plath.
A Daughter's Poetic Pilgrimage
Frieda Hughes marked the occasion with a powerful new poem, titled In Memory of My Mother. The verses paint a vivid picture of her journey, beginning at the striking street art on the wall in Hebden Bridge. The artwork shows Plath with her bicycle, an image Hughes describes as her mother's likeness standing "against the wall of my departure." The poem reflects on the passage of time since the mural was created after the Tour de France climbed the nearby Cragg Vale, noting how the painted figure has "watched the world – and me – go by."
The Graveside Ritual in Heptonstall
From the mural, Hughes proceeded to the Heptonstall graveyard where her mother has lain since 1963. The poem movingly describes the act of tending the plot, where Plath rests "beneath the stones I once formed her edges with." Hughes writes of digging "with the determination of a daughter" in the family plot where relatives are "stacked up on one another." She notes the presence of curious onlookers who hover "slightly elsewhere as if occupied, until I’m gone," a testament to the enduring public fascination with her mother's legacy.
Legacy and Reflection
The act of planting Christmas hellebores – winter-flowering plants symbolising hope and peace – is a deeply personal gesture of remembrance. Hughes's poem also touches on her father, the poet Ted Hughes, recalling him stalking the Hebden Bridge hillsides "wearing the skin of his youth." This annual pilgrimage underscores the complex, enduring bond between a daughter and her profoundly influential mother, a figure whose literary shadow and personal tragedy continue to captivate readers worldwide. The ritual, shared through Hughes's own art, offers a rare and intimate window into the family's ongoing narrative.
