Bill Herbert  | |
|---|---|
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| Born | 1961 Dundee, Scotland  | 
| Pen name | W. N. Herbert | 
| Occupation | poet, academic | 
| Language | English and Scots | 
| Nationality | Scottish | 
| Alma mater | Brasenose College, Oxford | 
| Website | |
| wnherbert | |
W. N. Herbert FRSL, also known as Bill Herbert (born 1961) is a poet from Dundee, Scotland. He writes in both English and Scots. He and Richard Price founded the poetry magazine Gairfish. He currently teaches at Newcastle University.[1]
Early life
Herbert was born in 1961 in Dundee. He was educated at Grove Academy and then studied at Brasenose College, Oxford gaining a Doctor of Philosophy in 1992 after completing a thesis on the work of Hugh MacDiarmid.[2]
Career
In 1994, he was one of 20 poets chosen by a panel of judges, as the New Generation in a promotion organised by the Poetry Society.[3] He was one of the writers involved in the Informationist poetry movement that emerged in Scotland in the 1990s.
He became a Professor of Poetry & Creative Writing at the School of English Literature, Language and Linguistics, Newcastle University.[4]
In September 2013, Herbert was appointed as Dundee's first makar.[5]
Awards and honours
He became a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in 2015.[6]
Books
Poetry collections
- Dundee Doldrums (1991)
 - The Testament of the Reverend Thomas Dick (1994)
 - Cabaret McGonagall (1996)
 - The Laurelude (1998)
 - The Big Bumper Book of Troy (2002)
 - Bad Shaman Blues (2006) [7]
 - Three Men on the Metro, with Andy Croft and Paul Summers, Five Leaves (2009)[8]
 - Omnesia (2013) [9]
 - The Wreck of the Fathership (2020)
 
Literary criticism
- To Circumjack MacDiarmid (1992)
 
References
- ↑ Lindsay, Maurice; Duncan, Lesley, eds. (2005), The Edinburgh Book of Twentieth-Century Scottish Poetry, Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, pp. 385–386, ISBN 0-7486-2015-X
 - ↑ "Poetry: Poets A to Z: W. N. Herbert". Scottish Poetry Library. Retrieved 22 February 2016.
 - ↑ Lister, David (13 January 1994). "New generation of writers presents poetry in motion: Some of today's best poetic talents tend to eschew writing of love". The Independent. Retrieved 23 February 2016.
 - ↑ "English Literature, Languages and Linguistics: Staff". Newcastle University. Retrieved 22 February 2016.
 - ↑ Cowing, Emma (15 September 2013). "Dundee appoints WN Herbert as first maker". The Scotsman. Retrieved 8 February 2016.
 - ↑ "Current RSL Fellows". Royal Society of Literature. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
 - ↑ O’Brien, Sean (19 February 2006). "The secret weapon of his generation". The Sunday Times. Archived from the original on 2 March 2016. Retrieved 24 February 2016.
 - ↑ "Three Men on the Metro". P. N. Review 197. January 2011. Retrieved 24 February 2016.
 - ↑ Kelly, Stuart (30 March 2013). "Book review: Omnesia by WN Herbert". The Scotsman.
 
External links
- Biography at the British Council
 - Herbert's page at Newcastle University
 - Professor Herbert's homepage
 - Profile at Bloodaxe Books
 - Profile at Scottish Poetry Library
 
