WORCESTER Live's poet-in-residence, Ben Parker, is hosting his third poetry open mic night, as part of this year’s Worcester Festival.

Members of the public are invited to come along and read their own work, "or just listen and enjoy a varied and exciting evening of poetry".

The spokesman added: "Born in Worcester in 1982, Ben completed a creative writing MA in poetry at UEA in 2008. Ben first discovered poetry at the age of 21 after overhearing a conversation about Sylvia Plath, and deciding to check it out online."

Ben says “Up to that point I had zero interest in poetry, and pretty much thought it wasn’t for me. But hearing Plath reading, specifically her poem Daddy, switched something on in me and I haven’t stopped reading it since.”

His debut pamphlet, The Escape Artists, was published by tall-lighthouse in 2012 and was shortlisted for the 2013 Michael Marks Award.

In 2014 he started a one-year residency at the Museum of Royal Worcester, and a pamphlet of poems produced during this period was released in 2015, and in 2016 he became poet in residence for Worcester Live, the charity that runs both the Swan Theatre and Huntingdon Hall, as well as the Historic Ghost Walk of Worcester and a number of other events, including the Worcester Festival.

The spokesman added: "Now, as part of this year’s Festival, Ben returns to Worcester’s Huntingdon Hall for what promises to be a welcoming and enjoyable event for all, whether a seasoned performer or new to the spotlight."

The date for the diary is Wednesday, August 23, from 7.30pm.

Tickets are available from the Box Office on 01905 611427