While we may all remember English poet and painter William Blake for the lyrical genius of “Tyger Tyger” or his amazing engravings, when he was a child, Blake was known for claiming to see God sticking his head through his bedroom window and hanging out beneath a tree he claimed was full of angels. Okay then.

Thankfully, he didn’t keep that up for long and went on to be a famous engraver, illustrator and poet. When he met his wife, she was illiterate and after teaching her to read and write, she also became an amazing craftswoman and helped him print his illustrated poems, which we know him for today. Blake was also a radical thinker and hung out with some of the greatest minds of the 18th Century. He even illustrated some of Mary Wollstonecraft’s work and believed that poetry should be for all.

His work has had an impact on pop culture too. Hannibal Lector fans will recognise “The Great Red Dragon” as the painting that the killer, Francis Dolarhyde, eats. Yes, that’s the scene in the films and TV show that we struggle with watching the most. How could he?!