Martha Woodward has written poetry throughout her life. She was in her teens when her first poem was published. She continues to write poetry into her 70s and enjoys her creative life to the full.

Her work has appeared on stage, in various exhibitions and in prose and poetry collections. In 2025, she won a national literary award for LBGTQ+ writers and this year her poem Unsharpened appeared in About Larkin, the journal of The Philip Larkin Society.

Martha has selected ten of her own poems, among her personal favourites, for this exhibition. She has also invited some of her friends to contribute a poem each. These are included in the House of Friends, where you will find works by Amanda Crundall, Tracy Hurst, Jane Moss-Luffrum, Catherine Scott, Zainab Tasneem and Georgina Wraith.

Martha says, ‘Poetry is rarely mainstream but for time immemorial it has always been there, an ongoing part of society’s cultural fabric. Today, poetry is more diverse than ever. It is fun. It is irreverent. It can say things that aren’t easily or always said elsewhere. Come and take a look at what a poem can say in a few short words – you might be surprised!’