Antony Szmierek

Antony Szmierek is an English poet, spoken-word performer, musician and producer from Greater Manchester whose work combines spoken word with electronic and dance music. He gained wider recognition with the 2022 single "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Fallacy", which received BBC Radio 6 Music airplay, and was named one of the station's Artists of the Year in 2023.

Early life and education Szmierek is from Hyde, Greater Manchester. He worked as an English teacher, including at a college for school leavers with special educational needs. Before focusing on music, he self-published the novels The Albatross and The Hypocrite, and performed spoken word at open-mic events in Manchester.

Career Szmierek began setting his poetry to music during the COVID-19 pandemic, after buying an electric piano. His single "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Fallacy" received BBC Radio 6 Music airplay and brought him wider attention. He released the EPs Poems to Dance To and Seasoning in 2023, and was named one of BBC Radio 6 Music's Artists of the Year that year. His debut studio album, Service Station at the End of the Universe, was released on 28 February 2025 through Mushroom Music and Virgin Music Group; its title and songs reference the work of Douglas Adams. It reached number 68 on the UK Albums Chart and number one on the UK Dance Albums Chart.

Musical style Szmierek combines spoken-word delivery with electronic, house and indie influences. He has described his approach as "Sincerity Overdrive".

Discography Studio albums Service Station at the End of the Universe (2025) Decoding Birdsong (2026)

Extended plays Poems to Dance To (2023) Roadmap (lyrics, poems, sketches and stories; Faber Music, 2025)