I Went To My Dad's Funeral In Handcuffs | Will Pendray

I Went To My Dad's Funeral In Handcuffs | Will Pendray

From Life After Prison by Prison Radio Association

March 19, 2026 · 41 min

About this episode

Will Pendray discusses his journey through poetry during his prison sentence and his efforts to inspire change in communities.

This week we are joined by author and poet Will Pendray. His debut poetry collection Overgrown contains extracts from throughout his sentence, where he would use poetry to work through the things he was dealing with. Whilst serving his sentence, Will began studying at Open University and would go on to complete an MA in Creative Writing. He now uses poetry to inspire change, returning to prisons and communities to share his work and story.  Useful Organisations  Safe Ground – Use storytelling, creative writing, and the arts in prisons to help people reflect, build identity, and support rehabilitation.    Clean Break – They use theatre, writing, and storytelling to empower women affected by the criminal justice system, helping them express their experiences and build new opportunities.  Longford trust - Supports people with convictions to access higher education while in prison and after release. Provides scholarships, mentoring, and employability support to help individuals build brighter futures and reduce reoffending.  National literacy trust - a UK charity dedicated to improving reading, writing, speaking and listening skills among children and…

People in this episode

Guest: Will Pendray

Topics covered

  • poetry
  • rehabilitation
  • criminal justice
  • personal growth
  • creative writing

Keywords

  • poetry
  • prison
  • rehabilitation
  • creative writing
  • Will Pendray
  • criminal justice
  • personal growth

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Safe Ground, Clean Break, Longford trust, National literacy trust, Unbarred Press

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