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Lesley Benzie

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Contact: [email protected]
Local authority: Glasgow City
Languages: English, Scots
Lesley Benzie's headshot

Lesley Benzie is Aberdonian, and lives in Glasgow. She writes in both Aberdonian Doric and English and won the Wigtown Scots Poetry Prize in 2024, she has also received a Highly Commended in FWS Vernal Equinox and Runner-up in McCash Scots Poetry Competitions and was nominated for 'writer of the year' in the Scots Language Awards in 2022.

Her work has appeared in numerous magazines/anthologies, and she has two poetry collections Fessen/Reared (Seahorse Publications), Graham Fulton, says it’s ‘Lyrical, incisive, true…Gently brilliant’ and previously, Sewn Up (Wisdom Teeth).

Performing as part of the collective ‘Wanderlust Women’, who have toured together far and wide, she has collaborated in three poetry collections: Three Poets 2021, Extra Baggage 2023, and She’s Some Woman 2025 (Seahorse Publications).

Alongside Sheena Blackhall and Sheila Templeton, she’s the third poet involved in the Doric collection, Norlan Lichts 2022 (Rymour Books), nominated for book of the year at the Scots Language Awards.

Lesley has a long history of working in the field of mental health and wellbeing, delivering individual counselling, groupwork and workshops. Since retiring from NHS work in January 2025 she now welcomes any opportunity to deliver her poetry/creative writing talks and workshops.

Local authorities will visit

Aberdeen City; Aberdeenshire; Angus; Argyll and Bute; Clackmannanshire; Dumfries and Galloway; Dundee; East Ayrshire; East Dunbartonshire; East Lothian; East Renfrewshire; Edinburgh City; Falkirk; Fife; Glasgow City; Highland; Inverclyde; Midlothian; Moray; Na h-Eileanan Siar (Western Isles); North Ayrshire; North Lanarkshire; Orkney Islands; Perth and Kinross; Renfrewshire; Scottish Borders; Shetland; South Ayrshire; South Lanarkshire; Stirling; West Dunbartonshire; West Lothian

Events will deliver

Mentoring; Panel event; Reading; Residency; Talk; Workshop

Audience will work with

Care-experienced people; Carers; People experiencing mental health problems; Vulnerable adults

Topics of work

Activism & protest; Childhood; Class & society; Death, grief & bereavement; Discrimination & prejudice; Environment & climate; Family; Gender equality; Health including mental health & wellbeing; Loneliness & isolation; Love & romance; Politics; Poverty; Travel writing; Violence & abuse; Wars & conflicts

Age groups published for

Adults

Age groups will work with

15-18; 18+

Audience size

11-30; 31-100; 100-500