Allie Esiri read Modern and Medieval Languages at Cambridge and is an award-winning curator,
described by The Sunday Times as a ‘poetry powerhouse’. Her anthology A Poem for Every Day of
the Year was in the best books of the year list in The Times and the Observer. Her previous anthology,
A Poem for Every Night of the Year was a best book of the year in The Times and the New Statesman
and won the IBW book award. She hosts an annual poetry show at the National Theatre and regular
events at major festivals including Hay, Cheltenham and Edinburgh.

Allie Esiri read Modern and Medieval Languages at Cambridge and is an award-winning curator,
described by The Sunday Times as a ‘poetry powerhouse’. Her anthology A Poem for Every Day of
the Year was in the best books of the year list in The Times and the Observer. Her previous anthology,
A Poem for Every Night of the Year was a best book of the year in The Times and the New Statesman
and won the IBW book award. She hosts an annual poetry show at the National Theatre and regular
events at major festivals including Hay, Cheltenham and Edinburgh.

Zanna Goldhawk creates her illustrations from her seaside cottage in Cornwall. She takes huge inspiration from nature and animals, and has a mild obsession with colour and pattern (and coffee). Zanna studied illustration at the University of Gloucestershire, where she started her illustrated gifts and stationery business Papio Press with her husband. Now she splits her time between designing beautiful products and illustrating gorgeous books.

Peter Forbes was the editor of Poetry Review, Britain's most prestigious poetry magazine, for sixteen years. He is a regular contributor to the broadsheets, including the Guardian, Independent, Daily Telegraph and Financial Times, as well as in a wide spectrum of magazines, including New Scientist, New Statesman and Country Life. In 1999 he edited Scanning the Century: The Penguin Book of Twentieth Century Poetry (Viking) and in 2002 Penguin published the paperback of his translation of Primo Levi's The Search for Roots.

Simon Russell Beale has won numerous awards for his theatre work, including three Laurence Olivier Theatre Awards. His most recent theatre appearances have included King Arthur in Spamalot at the Schubert Theatre in New York and the Palace Theatre in London and Face in The Alchemist at the National Theatre. Simon's television work includes A Dance To The Music Of Time for which he won a BAFTA for Best Actor, Dunkirk and The Young Visiters.