Cathedrals offer a place for people to encounter the divine without demanding membership or commitment. They offer unconditional hospitality in ancient sacred spaces for those jaded by the secular present. They offer sanctuary.

Celebrating the life of one particular cathedral, Sanctuary is a collection of poems that emerged from prize-winning poet Martyn Halsall’s year in residence at Carlisle Cathedral. They are born from his quiet observation of daily comings and goings, chance conversations, the rhythm of daily worship and the building itself.

They focus on the everyday and the sublime: entrances and exits, light and shadows, nightfall and silence, ancient carvings and modern souvenirs, soaring music and timeless words, tour parties and visitors seek solitude. Here is the whole of human life in microcosm, held in one place.