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William Sieghart: ‘I want people to drop their fear of poetry’

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The publisher and philanthropist on turning to a Philip Larkin poem in a crisis, and the biggest decision you will ever make

Publisher and philanthropist William Sieghart has many strings to his bow: he is the force behind the Forward poetry prize, a philanthropist who has set up charities to help the homeless and mediate in the Middle East. He is chairman of the Somerset House Trust, was commissioned by the government to review libraries and is a pusher – in the best sense – of poetry. After the publication of his anthology, Winning Words: Inspiring Poems for Everyday Life (2012), he has come up with The Poetry Pharmacy: Tried-and-True Prescriptions for the Heart, Mind and Soul, a “self-help book for life, using poetry”. For every affliction – loneliness, love, low self-esteem, lethargy – he prescribes a poem. The Poetry Pharmacy can, he hopes, be consulted as the Victorians might a herbalist and be kept for use in emergencies.

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