A pair of lyrical Edgware ladies have set up a poetry society to encourage budding poets to share their musings with others.

Judy Karbritz and Pattie Greenberg established the Jewish Poetry Society to organise poetry readings in coffee shops and homes across Edgware.

"The aim is to give people who have never had any opportunity to share their poetry, apart from with their loved ones, a chance to say it out loud," said Judy.

"We want to meet up informally at people's houses and in coffee shops so people can read out their poetry and get a bit of applause and feedback."

Judy said that the society was inspired by Jewish poets, one of who - Elaine Feinstein - has become their patron. But it is not exclusive to Jews.

"Anybody can come along," she said. "I run a group for people with obsessive-compulsive disorder, who aren't Jewish, and they've come along.

"It's a way of uniting the community through something as innocuous as a cup of coffee and some poetry."

To find out more about the society and upcoming readings visit jewishpoetrysociety.com or enail jewishpoetrysociety@yahoo.com