Kathryn Mannix spent 30 years as a palliative care doctor and cognitive behaviour therapist before turning her attention to improving public understanding of dying. She wants us all to know more about ‘ordinary dying’ so that we can be better prepared, both to accompany our loved ones and also when it’s our own turn to die.

She writes, broadcasts and lectures in the UK, Ireland and around the world. Her first book, With the End in Mind, is a collection of stories about the way people live while they are dying and is based on what she learned during her palliative care career.

Her latest book, Listen: how to find the words for tender conversations is a guide to starting and navigating those important conversations that feel daunting because they matter to us so much.

She lives with her husband and a small flock of chickens in the north east of England.