In 2014 UCLH Arts and Heritage, with funding from the Oak Foundation, appointed Wendy French as UCLH’s first ever poet in residence. The residency’s intention was to extend access to poetry and the spoken word and assist with improving patient’s well-being. Wendy was commissioned to run creative writing groups for patients within the UCH Macmillan Cancer Centre and also to write her own poetry in response to her experience within the Centre. The resulting work touches on the challenges faced by people living with or facing a cancer diagnosis, and reflects upon the “everyday” which perhaps many of us overlook. The book Thinks itself a Hawk is available to purchase from UCLH Arts and Heritage.
