A relaxing stroll through St James's Park to the Poetry Pharmacy, Oxford Street, led by Liz Ison, editor of '100 Poems to Help you Relax'.

Join Liz Ison on a journey of exploration through literary St James's, uncovering the hidden histories and stories of London’s writers and poets such as William Blake, Lord Byron, Samuel Pepys and Ignatius Sancho.

We’ll be bringing poetry and literature off the bookshelves and outside by spending time in one of the capital’s most beautiful parks, St James's Park, seeing how the combined power of poetry and parks can help us to relax and unwind, before further literary wanderings through the districts of St James's and Piccadilly, ending up at the Poetry Pharmacy in Oxford Street.

The walk will finish at the Poetry Pharmacy on Oxford Street for tea and cake where participants will also receive a Poetry Pharmacy goody bag!

Ticket price of £38 includes:

Two hour guided walk with anthologist Liz Ison

Delicious refreshments at the Poetry Pharmacy, Oxford Street

A Poetry Pharmacy bundle of a copy of 100 Poems to Help you Relax, edited by Liz, and your own bottle of Relax pills, specially created to celebrate the publication of this lovely book.

About 100 Poems to Help you Relax

100 Poems to Help Your Relax is a collection of calming, relaxing, positive poems to help with anxiety and stress. With poems about pets, nature, creativity and more, there are any number of topics to help you de-stress and forget about your worries. If you struggle to unwind after a long day at work, or it’s difficult to find time that’s just for you, this collection is the ideal solution.

Meeting point: St James's Park Station. 9.50am for a prompt 10am start!

End point: The Poetry Pharmacy, LUSH, Oxford Street

Duration: Approximately 1¾ - 2 hours

Over 16s only

Please note that the walk will happen no matter what the weather is like, so please dress accordingly!

Feedback on Liz's walks:

"It was a wonderfully refreshing and reflective experience to hear poetry read aloud in the beauty of St James’s Park, and to learn about the fascinating literary history around Picadilly. Loved the selection of poetry, from the sublime to pithy. Very moving and thought provoking. Thank you!"

"Wonderful walk – Liz is very knowledgeable, and the tour she put together was full of interesting facts and curiosities and thoughtfully selected poetry. Thank you Liz – will be back for another walk."

"Thank you Liz! The whole morning was absolutely magical. Meeting you and the group, seeing magical places – all incredibly powerful. Can’t thank you enough and look forward to yet another walk!"

About Liz Ison

Liz has been running poetry and literary walks in collaboration with The Poetry Pharmacy since 2024, when The Poetry Pharmacy first opened its store on Oxford Street.

Liz believes in the transformative power of poetry. She runs regular shared reading groups and has conducted workshops encouraging a daily poetry habit and extolling the benefits of reading aloud, and reading together. Liz has edited several poetry anthologies including A Poem to Read Aloud Every Day of the Year (Batsford 2023), 100 Poems to Help you Heal, 100 Poems to Grow your Confidence, 100 Poems to Help you Relax, Poems for Tortured Souls and Poetry of the Zodiac.

She is a museum educator at the Charles Dickens Museum. Liz has a degree in English Literature and social science from the University of Cambridge and a doctorate from University College London for research into childhood speech and literacy development.

You can follow Liz on Instagram @liz.ison and visit her Society of Authors page https://societyofauthors.org/soa-member/liz-ison/

Description supplied by the event organiser.