Dorchester hospital patients treated to Thomas Hardy stories

Rod Drew (centre) and Perwina Whitmore (left) voiced the stories and poems at various locations including Hardy's Birthplace Visitor Centre

Hospital patients can visit the woods around Thomas Hardy's birthplace without leaving their beds, in a bid to boost their wellbeing.

Dorset County Hospital patients can listen to Hardy's works, recorded in various locations around Thorncombe Wood, and imagine they are there.

ScreenPLAY developed the project with Arts in Hospital, the Thomas Hardy Society and Dorset Council.

Arts in Hospital's Suzy Rushbrook said patients could "lie back and listen".

All the work, including stories and poems, was recorded in and around Hardy's Cottage and includes specially commissioned music, Dorset County Hospital and Arts in Hospital said.

Co-creator and dramatherapist Sharon Hayden said although the idea of the project was to listen when in the woods, people not able to get there could still benefit.

Sharon Hayden said the app could bring a sense of the woods and the relaxing feeling of being there

"Through listening to the stories, poems and songs you can imagine you're in the woods, surrounded by trees or standing by the pond, maybe visiting Hardy's birthplace, and that sense of being there can be a still moment in your day," she said.

"For those in hospital, we hope the app can bring a sense of the woods and the relaxing feeling of being there."

Ms Rushbrook said: "People are often surprised to learn we manage the biggest collection of contemporary prints, paintings and sculpture in Dorset, but of course when you're a patient sometimes you just want to lie back and listen."

The app is optimised for mobile phones with a choice of seasonal stories and poems linked to four locations in Thorncombe Wood - Hardy's Cottage, Rushy Pond, the wood and Hazel Coppice.

The website includes links to a series of podcasts expanding on the themes in the app.

The project was funded with cash from the National Heritage Lottery Fund, Dorset Council and the Gulbenkian Rural Fund.