‘You have to be creative in prison’: Life After Prison podcast joins Inua Ellams for Koestler Arts

Join Life After Prison podcast hosts Zak and Jules, both of whom have lived experience of the UK prison system, as they accompany poet and playwright Inua Ellams for a tour of the 2025 Koestler Arts exhibition.

Night Owls and Abstractions, on display here at the Southbank Centre from October to December 2025, was the 18th annual exhibition from Koestler Arts, showcasing work created by individuals within the UK’s criminal justice system. Curated by Ellams, its title was a nod to both the number of owl-related art works among the more than 7,000 pieces submitted for consideration for the 2025 Koestler prizes and to the creativity that comes to people at night. As Jules reflects in this video: ‘You dream about so much in prison, you dream about every country possible that you can’t go to.’

This video follows Zak, Jules and Ellams around the exhibition as the poet gives an insight into the works he selected for the exhibition, and explores recurring themes such as flight and travel. They also look at works which highlight the adaptability and creativity needed by the artists to use the limited materials available to them to fulfill their ‘need to beautify something’.