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About DW250

DW250 celebrates 250 years since the birth of Dorothy Wordsworth – diarist, poet, travel-writer, nature-writer – through the commissioning of new work in response to Dorothy’s life and work.

Alongside the commissions there will be a series of online events featuring artists, writers and musicians alongside academic experts, talking about Dorothy’s legacy, new perspectives on her life and their own work.

Dorothy Wordsworth was born on Christmas Day 1771 in Cockermouth, in what is now Cumbria, in the North West of England. The only sister of the poet William Wordsworth, she is best known for her journal kept from 1798 and 1803, which William drew on to write his poems. She kept many further journals, including several travel journals, and wrote her own poetry.

Dorothy has most often been written about in relation to her famous brother. This project reconsiders Dorothy in her own right, occasioned by her 250th birthday on December 25th 2021, and asks what her influence is today.