Acclaimed poet and mental health campaigner Hussain Manawer will be performing live extracts from his debut poetry collection 'Life is Sad and Beautiful' at Blenheim Palace on Wednesday, 11th May.

The Poetry Breakfast, which coincides with Mental Health Awareness Week, will be in front of an audience in the Palace's Orangery from 9.30am-11am and includes a discussion of its themes with actor Larry Lamb.

All profits from the event will go to Blenheim's charity of the year. Restore is an Oxfordshire-based mental health charity that supports people to take control of their recovery, develop skills and lead meaningful lives.

Hussain visited the Oxfordshire UNESCO World Heritage Site last year to record a special film for the BAFTAS and returns to officially launch his new collection and to host an event exploring loneliness and depression as part of the wider Mental Health Awareness Week campaign.

'Life is Sad and Beautiful' invites the reader on Hussain's own journey through depression and grief after the loss of his mother and out the other side to a better place.

“Depression became such a part of my life; it was embedded in me as a person. I felt as if it was written in bold, yet invisible across my face,” he said.

“It sat within the sympathetic eyes that looked at me from the ones who loved me. It hovered around my spirit, shook parts of my soul and dragged me through episodes of my years. But somehow, through poetry, I found a way out. I was able to make sense of it all.

“The cultural identity crisis, the depth of grief, the power of loss, the effect of mental health and societal stigma, I was able to identify all of life's most powerful heartbreaks and 'red flag' their relationships and connections with depression.

“I then hovered over them with a magnifying glass, which in this case was my pen, and began deciphering, analysing, breaking down every little thing that was affecting me and the way I feel,” he added.

Hussain is a globally acclaimed poet, mental health advocate and producer - who was born in Newham and shortly after grew up in Ilford, Essex.

Tagged 'The Original Mummy's Boy', Hussain derives much of his inspiration from his own experiences and intense grief at the sudden loss of his mother.

He is a renowned mental health activist who has won critical acclaim for his work.

Dignitaries, major brands and broadcasters seek him out to articulate the struggle and shame that so many find suffocating.

Among the credits to his name are commissions from The Royal Family and the BBC, as well as collaborations with Tyson Fury and a poetic contribution to Marcus Rashford's free school meals campaign.

He most recently appeared alongside Prince Harry and Oprah Winfrey in the mental health docu-series, 'The Me You Can't See', alongside Lady Gaga, Glenn Close and others.

A selection of poems from the collection will also be on display as part of a new exhibition in collaboration with award-winning Canadian photographer Joel Robison in the Palace's Stable café.

• Hussain Manawer's Poetry Breakfast with Larry Lamb is on Wednesday, 11th May from 9.30am – 11am at The Orangery, Blenheim Palace. Tickets cost £25 which includes a copy of 'Life is Sad and Beautiful', coffee and pastry with all profits going to the Restore charity. To book go to https://www.blenheimpalace.com/whats-on/ .