THE EMPTY CHAIR
... a literary project to celebrate Medway's Dickens One Fifty
The Empty Chair Poetry Trail
Wordsmithery has commissioned 10 poets with links to Medway to write new poems inspired by Charles Dickens’ life and works. The poems will be printed on boards which form a trail, placed in locations around Medway and nearby with links to Charles Dickens’ life, including Rochester, Chatham, Chatham Dockyard, Cooling, Chalk and Gad’s Hill.
The trail will be accompanied by a beautiful illustrated map of the locations by Heather Haythornthwaite, which can be downloaded. Physical copies will also be available once permitted.
The trail will go live in Summer/Autumn 2021 - so check back for updates.

In 'The Empty Chair' we have invited Medway residents to fill the spaces left by Charles Dickens with their own writing. Our podcast contains poetry and stories written during our Dickens themed open writing workshops in January and February this year.
'The Empty Chair in Lockdown'
A podcast which is available to listen to here on SoundCloud. Listen to poetry and stories sparked by Charles Dickens launched during the virtual Dickens Festival 2020. Our writers have given us a range of interpretations, all inspired by Charles Dickens’ works and life.
All of Dickens’ books in 150 words, a murderous sister, a ghostly villanelle, Dickens on stage, imagining a nighttime walk with Charlie, a personal view of mental health, an imagined memoir and a memory of the Dickens Festival past. Plus Barry Fentiman Hall reads ‘The Ivy Green’ and ‘The Song of the Wreck’ by Charles Dickens.
(Recommended listening age 14+).