You may remember I published a book called ‘Ten Poems about Abingdon’ last year. There are copies in Abingdon Library, and still, a few are left for sale at The Book Store and Abingdon Museum. The books sell at £5, and the profits, about £4.25 a copy, go to The Abingdon Bridge young people’s charity. (The book was dedicated to Pauline Sykes, who leads the Abingdon Share a Poem group.)

There are other poetry groups in Abingdon and some excellent poets. I know of the U3A poetry group and the Quaker poetry group.

There are also the Ock Poets who meet in Abingdon Library and are eleven months old. They began in March 2022. They are a group who write poetry, have a monthly talk and a themed exercise and share their poems. The next one is tomorrow, but it is best to email the address on the poster first.

Here is an example of a poem by an Abingdon Poet called The Sea by Justin Gosling. Justin passed away last November, and I hope his family won’t mind me sharing this reading. (All Rights Reserved.) He read it in the Abingdon Share a Poem group. It can be found in his poetry book The Jackdaw in the Jacaranda, which can probably be ordered from local bookshops and is definitely available online.