Cathedral Fellowship | William Collins, Chichester's forgotten poet

Doug Nicolls, chair of the William Blake Cottage Trust, explores the life and work of the Chichester born poet whose most celebrated work is the collection Odes on Several Descriptive and Allegoric Subjects, which includes "Ode to Evening" and "Ode to Fear". Collins is considered a transitional poet between the Neoclassical and Romantic eras. His odes are known for their strong emotional content and imaginative themes that presaged the Romantic movement. He died in Chichester in 1759, and there is a plaque dedicated to his memory in the Cathedral.

Event details

Tickets
--
Date
Monday 15 February 2027, 14:00
Venue
Vicars’ Hall

 


At the Cathedral Fellowship members of the congregation meet old friends and make new ones. If you are new to the Congregation, it’s an excellent opportunity to meet new people and to begin to feel at home. We meet once a month for a talk or presentation on a wide range of topics, some of which are related to the Cathedral and Christian belief and practice and others are of more general interest. All our presenters are informal and approachable. There are no tickets and no membership, though we ask for a donation to cover expenses. 

We generally meet either in George Bell House, 4 Canon Lane or in Vicars’ Hall (do check the venue) with the talk followed by questions and discussion and the all-important cup of tea. We start at 2.00pm and the gathering lasts about 75 minutes.

Everybody is very welcome. 

For further information contact fellowship@chichestercathedral.org.uk.

2026/27 series:

21 September - The Deans of Chichester
19 October - Aubrey Beardsley
16 November - Antonin Dvorak, the man and his music
18 January - Artificial Intelligence
15 February - William Collins, Chichester's forgotten poet
15 March - The Very Reverend Dr Edward Dowler, Dean of Chichester
19 April - Barbara Pym, novelist
17 May - The Romans in Chichester
21 June - Matthew J. Evans, author of the Chichester Crime series