The Wild British Hymnal: Timeless & meditative poetic portraits from the Great British wild

The Wild British Hymnal is a 200-page poetic anthology exploring animal lives across the varied landscapes of Britain; across open fields, among ancient oaks, along the tidal edge, into the wild night and down into the deep. Through poetry and illustration, it gathers moments of survival, grace and vanishing beauty from across the British wild.

The poems are written in a cadence that recalls older oral traditions of litany, chant and hymn. Their rhythm and repetition are purposeful, designed to slow the reader, draw attention inward and invite listening. Like the rise and fall of waves or the steady pulse of footsteps through wood and field, the verses are cyclic and meditative by design. Shaped by weather, season, tide and terrain, each poem offers a meditative portrait of a single moment of presence; of movement, waiting and endurance. Paired with evocative, full-colour illustrations, they form a quiet act of witnessing: a hymn to nature written in reverence for the creatures and places that endure and in gentle mourning for what is lost and what continues to slip from view.

The Wild British Hymnal is divided into five cantos:

Among the Ancient Oaks

Beneath the branches of the British forest, every creature carries a story. From the quiet persistence of the vole to the ghostly memory of the wolf, these poems trace the fragile lives that move through root, leaf, shadow and sky. Among the Ancient Oaks is a collection of tender, meditative portraits capturing the voices of the forest in moments of grace, survival and vanishing.

Across the Open Field

Between hedgerow and horizon, the countryside holds its own chorus of lives. From the lark’s rising song to the quiet stir of dormice and hares, these poems attend to the fleeting, ordinary miracles of the field. Across the Open Field is a collection of lyrical portraits honouring the resilience, fragility and stillness of the pastoral wild.

Along the Tidal Edge

Where sea and land meet, the shore writes its shifting stories. From gulls and oystercatchers, to crabs, mussels and anemones, these poems follow the fragile chorus of the littoral world. Along the Tidal Edge is a collection of poetic portraits capturing the voices of the shore in moments of hunger, rest, flight and return.

Into the Wild Night

When daylight withdraws and silence falls, another world begins. From owls, glow-worms and nightjars, to slow worms and badgers, these poems uncover the hidden presences of the nocturnal wild. Into the Wild Night is a collection of meditative portraits attuned to lives that flourish in darkness and move unseen through the hours we call sleep.

Down into the Deep

Beneath the surface, where light fades and silence gathers, stranger lives endure. From whales and sharks, to anglerfish and the bioluminescent hunters of the abyss, these poems descend into the hidden realm of Britain’s deep waters. Down into the Deep is a collection of poetic portraits honouring the mystery, resilience and wonder of the ocean’s furthest depths.