The Unlooked-for Season

First edition. Thin 8vo. Pp. 39, [1, blank]. Original blue-grey stapled wraps in French flaps, lettered in dark red. No. 8 of 25 numbered and signed copies, printed by Villiers Publications Ltd. Staples a little rusted, extremities lightly bumped, else near fine.

Author's first collection of poems, a number of which previously appeared in London Magazine, Botteghe Oscure, The Listener, Poetry from Oxford 1953, New Statesman, Times Literary Supplement, New Voices, Truth, PEN Anthologies 1956/7, or broadcast on the BBC Third Programme.

Winner of a Gregory Award in 1962, given by the Society of Authors to British poets under 30. In a 1996 poll by the BBC, "Warning" (1961) was named as the UK's "most popular post-war poem." It was also the inspiration for the Red Hat Society, a celebration for women aged 50 and above who are intent on getting the most out of life.