Whilst doing a degree in philosophy as a mature student, I was diagnosed with Schizophrenia which resulted in me leading an unconventional life. Despite graduating into a low-key criminal, I’ve spent a total of nearly seventeen years in prisons and secure hospitals.

My love of poetry started in a prison hospital wing, where the education teacher tried to gain my interest by introducing me to poetry, it worked, and I was hooked. Over the following years, I’ve read and fell in love with many poets throughout history from Shakespeare to Louise Gluck. From 2010 I started writing poetry, some of which were published in the prison newspaper ‘Inside Times’, and upon my release I had poetry published in literary magazines such as ‘Asylum’.

I gained an Open University degree, which includes modules in creative writing and also, I did an online master’s degree with Falmouth University in screenwriting, during the Covid lockdown. What inspired me to write, ‘The Mad Poet of London’, was Vikram Seth’s novel-in-verse, ‘The Golden Gate’, and I decided on a dark theme due to my sometimes-nightmarish experiences and a love of films and literature in the horror/suspense/thriller genres.

To all my readers out there, all three of you, I hope you enjoy the read and don’t have nightmares!