Claire Booker is a poet and playwright based in London and Brighton.

She was born in Guildford, Surrey, and grew up in nearby Farnham. She read History at The University of Sussex and after graduating, moved to London where she worked as a press officer for charities and public bodies for some years. She later re-trained as a medical herbalist and clinical hypnotherapist.

Claire Booker has written more than 15 stage plays which have received over 50 separate productions by professional and amateur theatre companies as far a field as Australia, Scotland, France and Spain. Her stage work includes one act and full length comedies, hard-hitting dramas and adaptations. She has also had a number of radio plays broadcast on Radio 4 and local radio stations.

Claire Booker’s poetry takes inspiration from the everyday realities of urban life as well as delighting in the beauty and freedom of nature. More recently she has started writing children’s stories.

Literary recognition of Claire Booker’s work includes winning The Douglas Clarke Award and The Leicestershire Playwriting Competition, three nominations for the George Taylor Award, runner-up in the Southampton International Playwriting Festival, nomination for a Writers Guild MacAllan Award, third prize twice in the Wandsworth All London Literary Competition, and being short-listed for the Arts Council of Great Britain’s John Whiting Award.

Claire Booker has designed and run creative writing workshops and adjudicated play writing competitions for a number of organisations, including The Greyshott & Hindhead Literary Festival, Nottingham and Notts Drama Association and The South London Theatre.

Her commissions have included a one act play for Festival Fringe Theatre Company; an abridgement of Prophesy to the Windby Norman Nicholson for The South London Theatre; a full length drama for The Bunbury Theatre Company; a devised piece for Mind’s Eye; and several radio and television plays.

Her poetry has appeared in Ambit, erbacce, Interpreter's House, Magma, the Morning Star, New Welsh Reader, North, Orbis, Other Poetry, Poetry News, Poetry Salzburg, Popshot, Prole, Rialto, South and South Bank Poetry among others.

Anthologies carrying her work include: Templar Pamphlet & Collection Prize (Skein); Poetry From Art Tate Website (Ed. Pascale Petit); Ver Open Prize; Genius Floored (Ed. Ruth O'Callaghan); Loose Muse (Ed. Agnes Meadows); Pop Up Poetry; the Keystone Anthology (Ed. Janice Windle).

She has been a guest feature at The Shuffle; Torriano Meeting House; Beyond Words; the Camden/Lumen Poetry Series; Poets Off The Shelf; Loose Muse (London, Manchester and Winchester) and hosted Poet in the City's Drop-in at Waterstone's, Piccadilly