Michael Forster

Michael Forster (born 1946) is a prolific writer recently retired from his post as a senior chaplain in a mental health and learning disability NHS Trust where he had served for seventeen years. During this time he regularly worked with service users, carers and staff in a wide range of settings from palliative care suites to secure forensic mental health units. As part of his professional development, he successfully undertook a postgraduate diploma in counselling and psychotherapy.

Michael originally trained for the Baptist ministry at Regent’s Park College, Oxford between 1986 and 1989, but later transferred to the United Reformed Church. He first worked with Kevin Mayhew in 1992, when we contracted a collection of hymn texts. Since then, he has written more than 50 books, about 600 hymn and song lyrics, some of which are in Christian and secular musicals, a couple of Christian pantomimes and a huge amount of material for all-age use.

His talent for satire and parody has been heard on Radio 4. and Michael has collaborated with another Kevin Mayhew author, Sarah Watts, on a show for the School Proms at the Royal Albert Hall.

A keen amateur cabinetmaker in his leisure time, Michael also contributes articles to Good Woodworking magazine. ‘Well, spirituality and carpentry have a long and honourable association, do they not?’ he says.

Now retired, he hopes to draw upon his experience and learning to write and present training material to faith communities and educational bodies.

Those wishing to know more could visit Michael’s personal websites: www.michael-forster.co.uk