Poets A Adam, Helen 1909 - 1993 Helen Adam was born in Scotland but spent much of her life in America, as a writer and visual artist. Her poems were included in Donald Allen's... Read more Adamson, Donald b.1943 Donald Adamson is a poet and translator, and a teacher of creative writing and translation studies. Read more Aitchison, James b.1938 James Aitchison is a Scottish-born writer who has published five collections of poetry. Read more Alasdair Mac Mhaighstir Alasdair 1695 - 1770 Modern poetry in Scottish Gaelic begins with the brilliant, controversial figure of Alexander MacDonald, better known as Alasdair Mac Mhaighstir Alasdair... Read more Anderson, Alexander 1845 - 1909 Railwayman, poet and librarian, Alexander Anderson was the author of the famous poem about the wakeful bairnies, 'Cuddle Doon'. Read more Andrews, Gill b.1900 Gill Andrews was shortlisted for the 2010 Picador Poetry Prize, and won the 2008 Frogmore Prize. In 2010, she was awarded a distinction in her... Read more Angus, Marion 1865 - 1946 Coming late in her life to poetry, Marion Angus wrote during the 1920s, frequently in her native Scots, poems suggesting social and emotional... Read more Annand, J. K. 1908 - 1993 James King Annand was born and brought up in Edinburgh. His bairn rhymes continue to delight Scots children, but he was also the author of poetry for... Read more Armstrong, Anne Anne Armstrong grew up in Wishaw and lives in Lanarkshire. Read more Askew, Claire Claire Askew's poetry has appeared in numerous publications, including The Guardian, Poetry Scotland, PANK and Popshot. Her work has been twice... Read more Aytoun, William Edmondstoune 1813 - 1965 Read more a anonymous, Scottish Read more B Baird, Dorothy An Edinburgh native, Dorothy Baird travelled in France, Russia, India and Nepal in her youth, returning to the capital in 1989, where she continues to... Read more Ballantine, James 1808 - 1877 James Ballantine was a stained-glass artist, commissioned to execute the windows in the House of Lords, and a popular local poet. Read more Bamforth, Iain b.1959 Iain Bamforth has followed an international career in medicine, to which he has added several books of poetry. Read more Bateman, Meg b.1959 Meg Bateman has been bringing new qualities to Gaelic poetry since her first publications in the 1990s. Read more Beasant, Pam Pam Beasant was born in Glasgow, educated at Oxford University, and moved to Orkney in 1986. She lives in Stromness, where she was appointed the... Read more Bell, Stan Poet, mural and relief artist, Stan Bell was born in and lives in Glasgow. He has published one collection and a pamphlet. Read more Benson, Fiona Fiona Benson lived in St Andrews and then Anstruther for four years, as she completed the MLit in Creative Writing, followed by a PhD in Early Modern... Read more Bissell, Norman Norman Bissell is a teacher, poet and critic, one of the founders and currently the director of the Scottish Centre for Geopoetics. He was born in Glasgow... Read more Black, D. M. b.1941 D. M. Black was born in South Africa in 1941 and moved to Scotland in 1950; his poetry was widely published in the 1960s and 70s. Read more Blackhall, Sheena b.1947 Sheena Blackhall is a poet, novelist, illustrator, traditional ballad singer and storyteller in North East Scotland. Read more Blacklock-Brown, Angela Angela Blacklock-Brown lives in Edinburgh, and runs the pamphlet imprint Blacklock Press. Read more Boast, Rachael b.1975 Born in Suffolk in 1975, Rachael Boast studied literature and philosophy at Wolverhampton University and then relocated to the West Country for ten years... Read more Bold, Alan 1943 - 1998 Alan Bold was born in Edinburgh and educated at the University of Edinburgh, where he first encountered Hugh MacDiarmid in 1962. He was a poet, literary... Read more Bolton, Deric 1908 - 1993 Deric Bolton was born in Paisley and lived in Edinburgh for most of his life, working as a research chemist. He was a longstanding member of the Poetry... Read more Bowd, Gavin b.1966 Gavin Bowd is a poet and lecturer with interests in modern European literature and politics. Read more Boyd, Mark Alexander 1563 - 1601 Sixteenth-century Scottish poet, soldier and scholar. Read more Brown, George Mackay 1921 - 1996 George Mackay Brown found his inspiration in the eternal cycle of life, and the 'ceremonies of fishing and agriculture' on Orkney. Read more Brown, Hilton 1890 - 1961 Hilton Brown, biographer, novelist and travel writer, was the creator of the daft old sheep-dog 'Glen'. Read more Brown, Margaret Gillies b.1929 Margaret Gillies Brown was born near Edinburgh and lives in Perthshire on the family farm in the Carse of Gowrie, which her sons now work. She trained as... Read more Bruce, George 1909 - 2002 A ground-breaking radio and television arts producer, George Bruce was a poet whose spare poems, wrought with precision, echoed the landscape and... Read more Bryan, Tom b.1950 Tom Bryan was born in Winnipeg, Canada, his father's native country, and has long lived in his mother's native country, Scotland. He is a poet,... Read more Bryce, Colette b.1970 Colette Bryce was born in Derry in 1970. She was a Fellow in Creative Writing at the University of Dunde (2003-05) and then held the North... Read more Buchan, John 1875 - 1940 John Buchan, who became first Baron Tweedsmuir, combined a literary life with his career in public service. In the latter he rose to become Governor-... Read more Buchan, Tom 1931 - 1995 Born in Glasgow and a member of the generation of Glasgow writers who came to prominence in the 1970s, Tom Buchan was a poet and playwright of restless... Read more Buchanan, Eunice Eunice Buchanan was born and brought up in Arbroath, and uses the medium of the Scots tongue which flourishes there for her poetry. Read more Burns, Elizabeth b.1957 Elizabeth Burns has spent much of her life in Scotland; she has published four books and several pamphlets of poetry. Read more Burns, Robert 1759 - 1796 If ever a poet understood the character of his nation, he was Robert Burns. The language he was most fluent in wasn’t so much Scots or English... Read more Burnside, John b.1955 John Burnside is a poet and novelist whose work explores fundamental spiritual and ecological issues about the nature of our dwelling on earth. ... Read more Butler, Larry Larry Butler was born in Illinois, grew up in northern California, and has lived in Glasgow since 1981. He co-founded the Poetry Healing Project out of... Read more Butlin, Ron b.1949 Ron Butlin was appointed Edinburgh Makar in May 2008; he is a poet, playwright, novelist, short story writer and opera librettist. Read more Byron, George Gordon, Lord 1788 - 1824 Lord Byron's mother was Scottish, and for his first ten years they lived in Aberdeen, where he attended the Grammar, until he succeeded to his title.... Read more C Cadwallender, Kevin Poet, editor and writer Kevin Cadwallender was born in Hartlepool and now lives in Scotland. He is the Scottish commissioning editor for Red Squirrel... Read more Caie, John M. 1878 - 1949 A senior agriculturalist, J. M. Caie wrote about the rural life of North-East Scotland in the 1930s, and was the author of the poem about the vaunty frog... Read more Caimbeul, Maoilios b.1944 Maoilios Caimbeul/Myles Campbell was born in Staffin, served with the Merchant Navy and then studied at the University of Edinburgh, graduating in 1976.... Read more Cairns, Robin Robin Cairns is a performance poet and travels across Scotland performing on a regular basis. His publications include Last Man With Sky (Red Squirrel,... Read more Calder, Angus 1942 - 2008 Angus Calder was a journalist, historian, editor and critic - and in later years, a poet. Read more Calder, Robert R. b.1950 Robert R. Calder, born 1950 in the north of Lanarkshire, now freelances between the same place (now called South Lanarkshire) and South Western Germany.... Read more Cambridge, Gerry b.1959 Gerry Cambridge is a poet, essayist, editor and harmonica player with interests in print design and typography as well as a background in natural history... Read more Cameron, Hazel B. Hazel Buchan Cameron was born and brought up in Renfrewshire and lived in Perthshire for over 25 years, where she worked as a farm secretary before moving... Read more Campbell, Angus Peter b.1954 Angus Peter Campbell (Aonghas P(h)àdraig Caimbeul) was born on the Island of South Uist. A graduate in Politics and History from the University of... Read more Campbell, Donald b.1940 Donald Campbell is a playwright and director, theatre historian and poet. Read more Campbell, Stuart B. b.1957 Stuart B. Campbell was born in 1957 and originates from the central-belt town of Larkhall, Lanarkshire. On leaving school, he worked as a library... Read more Campbell, Thomas 1777 - 1844 Read more Carruth, Jim b.1963 Jim Carruth is a Renfrewshire-based poet and is involved in the work of two of Scotland's poetry organisations. Read more Clanchy, Kate b.1965 Born and brought up in Scotland, the poet Kate Clanchy now lives and works in Oxford, where she was recently made City Poet. Read more Clark, Polly b.1968 Polly Clark was born in Toronto in 1968 and brought up in Lancashire, Cumbria and the Borders of Scotland. She has worked variously as a zookeeper, a... Read more Clark, Thomas A. b.1944 The poetry of Thomas A. Clark has been consistently attentive to form and to the experience of walking in the landscape, returning again and again to the... Read more Cockburn, Ken b.1960 Ken Cockburn works as a freelance writer, translator, editor and writing tutor, based in Edinburgh. His poetic practice often involves collaborators and... Read more Cocker, W. D. 1882 - 1970 W. D. Cocker is the author of some of the most enduringly popular poems in Scots, embedded in the hearts of the people of Scotland as much as in the... Read more Conn, Stewart b.1936 Stewart Conn has for many years lived in Edinburgh. In 2002 he was appointed the city's inaugural Makar. Collections include Stolen Light: Selected... Read more Connolly, Anne Entry in preparation Read more Corrie, Joe 1894 - 1968 Read more Coutts, John Read more Crawford, Robert b.1959 Robert Crawford is Professor in the School of English at the University of St Andrews, and one of Scotland's most distinguished poet-critics. He was... Read more Crockatt, Ian b.1949 Ian Crockatt is a poet who explores the poem series as a form, and who has interests in skaldic poetry. Read more Crowe, Anna b.1945 Anna Crowe is a poet, translator and creative writing tutor living in St Andrews. Read more Cruickshank, Helen 1886 - 1975 The poet Helen Cruickshank did much to promote, popularise, and chronicle the Scottish Literary Renaissance movement in the middle years of the 20th... Read more Cunningham, Allan 1784 - 1842 As a boy, Allan Cunningham had walked in Robert Burns' funeral procession; as a man, he composed poems and songs himself ('Hame, Hame, Hame'... Read more D Daiches, Jenni b.1941 Poet and author Jenni Daiches has written extensively on Robert Louis Stevenson and other literary and historical subjects. Read more Davidson, John 1857 - 1909 A Scot who found work in London as a jounalist, he was prolific in his production of popular ballads, literary dramas and novels. Read more Davidson, Peter Read more Davidson, Robert Founder and managing editor of Sandstone Press, Robert Davidson is also a published poet, lyricist and librettist. Read more De Luca, Christine b.1947 Christine De Luca is a Shetland writer now living in Edinburgh. She writes her poetry in English and in Shetlandic, her mother tongue. Read more Dharker, Imtiaz b.1954 Born in Pakistan, Imtiaz Dharker grew up a Muslim Calvinist in a Lahori household in Glasgow and eloped with a Hindu Indian to live in Bombay. She is now... Read more Dillon, Des b.1960 A writer who works in many fields, but for whom poetry remains his first and abiding passion. Read more Doherty, Karen Karen Doherty has been published in magazines and also in The Thing That Mattered Most: Scottish poems for children (SPL/B&W, 2006) Read more Donaldson, Julia Julia Donaldson is the current Children’s Laureate. Read more Donati, Colin b.1962 Colin Donati is a poet, translator and musician who writes in both Scots and English. Read more Doyle, Sir Arthur Conan 1859 - 1930 It was of course the stories featuring the immortal Sherlock Holmes that made his creator, Edinburgh-born Sir Arthur Conan Doyle famous, but Doyle also... Read more Drinan, Adam 1903 - 1984 Read more Drummond of Hawthornden, William 1585 - 1649 Accession to the lairdship of Hawthornden Castle at the age of twenty-four allowed William Drummond to give up the study of law and devote himself to the... Read more Duffy, Carol Ann b.1955 The first female, Scottish Poet Laureate in the role's 400 year history, Carol Ann Duffy's combination of tenderness and toughness, humour and... Read more Dunbar, William 1460 - 1520 William Dunbar is most closely associated with the court of King James IV, and his poems frequently refer to that milieu and his hopes for advancement... Read more Dunn, Douglas b.1942 Douglas Dunn is a major Scottish poet, editor and critic, whose Elegies (1985), a moving account of his first wife’s death, became a critical and... Read more Dutton, G. F. Read more E Elliot, Jean 1727 - 1805 Jean, or Jane, Elliot, was a daughter of Sir Gilbert Elliot of Minto. Her version of 'The Flowers of the Forest' is her only surviving work.... Read more Elliot, Walter b.1934 Walter Elliot is a writer, broadcaster and historian who has collected vernacular and oral poetry of the Borders in The New Minstrelsy of the Scottish... Read more Evans, Sally b.1942 Sally Evans is the editor of Poetry Scotland broadsheet magazine, and has several books of poems to her name. Read more F Feaver, Vicki b.1943 Vicki Feaver moved to Dunsyre, South Lanarkshire in 2000. She previously taught creative writing at the University of Chichester where she is now Emeritus... Read more Fell, Alison b.1944 Alison Fell is a Scottish novelist, poet and journalist who lives in London. Read more Fellows, Gerrie b.1954 Of Scottish descent, Gerrie Fellows was born in New Zealand, lives in Glasgow, and works as a creative writing tutor. Read more Ferguson, Gillian K. b.1965 Gillian Ferguson is an Edinburgh-born poet and journalist; she has responded to the Human Genome project with a major web-based sequence of poems on the... Read more Fergusson, Robert 1750 - 1774 Edinburgh-born poet Robert Fergusson achieved so much poetical success in his short life of twenty-four years that Robert Burns called him 'my elder... Read more Finch, Brian D. b.1954 Brian D. Finch was born in Stirlingshire in 1954. His collection Talking with Tongues was published by Luath Press in 2002. Read more Findlay, Alistair b.1949 Alistair Findlay is a West Lothian poet, former social worker, editor and local historian. Read more Finlay, Alec b.1966 Alec Finlay was born in Scotland in 1966. He is an artist, poet and publisher. He now lives and works in the North East of England. In 2002 he became the... Read more Finlay, Ian Hamilton 1925 - 2006 Ian Hamilton Finlay was a short-story writer, poet, concrete poet, visual and conceptual artist, sculptor, gardener and classical moralist, now... Read more Fitt, Alison Mary Read more Fitt, Matthew b.1968 Matthew Fitt is a poet and educator, working in the field of Scots language education. Read more Flett, Alison b.1965 Alison Flett was born in Edinburgh in 1965 and now lives in Orkney, where she works in the Learning Support Department of her local secondary school. She... Read more Follon, Cheryl b.1978 Cheryl Follon lives and works in Glasgow. She has two books of poetry published by Bloodaxe, Dirty Looks (2010) and All Your Talk (2004). Read more Forbes, Lillias Scott b.1918 Read more Forrest-Thomson, Veronica 1947 - 1975 Biography in preparation. Read more Fraser, Bashabi Read more Fraser, G. S. 1915 - 1980 G. S. Fraser was born in Glasgow in 1915, and served in South Africa during the Second World War. A poet, literary critic and reviewer, he was also a... Read more Fraser, Olive 1909 - 1977 Olive Fraser was born in Aberdeen, and died in the same city sixty-eight years later, the early promise of her life and work having been sadly blighted by... Read more Frater, Anna b.1967 Born in Stornoway, Isle of Lewis in 1967, Anna Frater was brought up in the village of Upper Bayble in the Point district of the island. Scottish Gaelic... Read more Friel, Raymond b.1963 Raymond Friel was born in Greenock in 1963. After graduating from Glasgow University he moved to England and qualified as a teacher. His poems have been... Read more Fulcher, Tamara Tamara Fulcher's first collection, The Recreation of Night, was published by Shearsman Books at the beginning of 2008. She lives in Edinburgh with her... Read more Fulton, Graham b.1959 Graham Fulton was born in 1959 and lives in Paisley. He began writing poetry in 1987 and his work has appeared in numerous magazines, anthologies and... Read more Fulton, Robin Macpherson b.1937 Robin Fulton Macpherson was born in Arran in 1937, attended primary school in Arran and Glasgow and secondary school in Golspie, Sutherland. He attained... Read more G Galbraith, Iain Iain Galbraith, born in Glasgow in 1956, studied Modern Languages and Comparative Literature at the universities of Cambridge, Freiburg and Mainz. His... Read more Gamble, Miriam b.1980 Miriam Gamble was born in Brussels in 1980 and grew up in Belfast. She studied at Oxford and at Queen's University Belfast, where she completed a PhD... Read more Garioch, Robert 1909 - 1981 Robert Garioch was the author of many sharp poems observing the foibles of contemporary Scottish life, and of versions in Scots of Giuseppe Belli... Read more Garry, Flora 1900 - 2000 Flora Garry came from the farming lands of Buchan; trained as a teacher, she wrote stories and drama for radio from the 1920s, and poetry from the 1940s,... Read more Gibbons, Eddie Eddie Gibbons was born in Huyton, Liverpool, but has been living and working in Aberdeen since 1981. An engineering draughtsman by trade, he is also a... Read more Gibson, Magi b.1953 Magi Gibson is an award-winning poet whose work has been widely published in anthologies and literary magazines in the UK, Ireland, USA and Canada.... Read more Gillies, Valerie b.1948 Valerie Gillies was the second Edinburgh Makar, or poet laureate of the city, 2005-2008. She was instrumental in shaping the role, an ancient office... Read more Gillis, Alan b.1973 Alan Gillis was born in Belfast. He is Lecturer in English at Edinburgh University, and editor of Edinburgh Review. His third poetry collection, Here... Read more Glen, Duncan 1933 - 2008 Duncan Glen was born in Cambuslang in 1933, and died in 2008. He was a printer, typographer, designer, artist, editor, publisher, essayist, scholar and... Read more Glenday, John b.1952 A poet who combines the everyday and the transcendent, John Glenday's first collection, The Apple Ghost, won a Scottish Arts Council Book Award and... Read more Goodwin, Mark O. b.1960 Devon-born Mark O. Goodwin lived and worked in London doing a variety of jobs before moving to Skye in 1994. Latterly, he worked for the gallery An... Read more Gorman, Rody b.1960 Rody Gorman was born in Dublin, Ireland in 1960 and now lives in the Isle of Skye, Scotland. He has published the poetry collections Fax and Other Poems (... Read more Govan, Anita Anita Govan was born in Stirling.Much of her work focuses on performance poetry and she travels around Scotland facilitating workshops for schools,... Read more Graham, James 1612 - 1650 Read more Graham, W. S. 1918 - 1986 William Sydney Graham was born in Greenock, Renfrewshire, and spent most of his adult life in Cornwall, where he scraped together a living as a writer.... Read more Gray, Alasdair Alasdair Gray is a Glasgow writer and artist, most famous for his novel Lanark (1981): 'if a city hasn't been used by an artist, not even the... Read more Gray, Sir Alexander 1882 - 1968 A civil servant and Professor of Political Economy, Sir Alexander Gray’s reputation abides not only in his own field, but as a Scots poet –... Read more Gray, Yvonne Yvonne Gray was born in Ayrshire and grew up in Renfrewshire, Lanarkshire and Midlothian. She studied at Edinburgh University then worked in Angus as an... Read more Green, Stephanie b.1948 Stephanie Green, born 1948 in Sussex, is of Irish/English parentage. She was educated at Trinity College, Dublin (1970), with a Masters in Modernism (in... Read more Greig, Andrew b.1951 Poet, novelist, sometime mountain climber and musician, Andrew Greig has faced dangers that have enriched his verse. Read more Gunn, George b.1956 George Gunn was born in Thurso in 1956 where he still lives. He has been a deep-sea fisherman, a driller for oil in the North Sea and a journalist - he... Read more H Hadfield, Jen b.1978 Jen Hadfield's second collection, Nigh-No-Place, won the 2008 T S Eliot Prize. With family in Canada and England and a deep love of her adopted home... Read more Haggith, Mandy Mandy Haggith lives on a woodland croft in Assynt, where she works as a freelance researcher and writer. She is passionate about forests and has been... Read more Hamilton, Elizabeth 1758 - 1816 Read more Hamilton, Janet 1795 - 1873 Married at thirteen, mother of ten, self-taught in reading and writing (the latter in her 50s), by the time she died Janet Hamilton was the author of... Read more Harding, Mike Mike Harding was born in Manchester in 1944. He is a folk musician, actor and presenter. He has hosted a show on BBC Radio 2 and has publised over 25... Read more Harrison, Lesley Lesley Harrison has worked and travelled in some of the world's more remote places, and through her poems explores how it is to live in these... Read more Hay, George Campbell 1915 - 1984 George Campbell Hay is unique among the poets of the interwar Scottish Renaissance movement in having written in all three of Scotland's... Read more Henderson, Hamish 1919 - 2002 To sum up Hamish Henderson as a poet, or even to classify or identify what could be termed 'the poetry of Hamish Henderson' is challenging. This... Read more Hendry, Diana b.1941 Diana Hendry grew up by the sea and has worked as a journalist, English teacher and tutor in Creative Writing at the University of Bristol. Her poetry has... Read more Hendry, J. F. 1912 - 1986 J. F. Hendry was born in Glasgow in 1912. He served in the Intelligence Core during the Second World War, and then continued to work as a translator. With... Read more Henryson, Robert 1435 - 1505 Robert Henryson was one of the greatest medieval poets whose masterpiece is a retelling of the story of Troilus and Cressida. Read more Herbert, W. N. b.1961 A poet of great variety, equally at home in Scots and English, W.N. Herbert’s work draws from tradition and contemporary culture to create poems of... Read more Herd, Tracey b.1968 Tracey Herd was born in East Kilbride in 1968 and now lives in Dundee. She studied English and American Studies at the University of Dundee, graduating in... Read more Hershaw, William b.1957 William Hershaw was born in 1957 in Newport on Tay. Both sides of the family had a coal-mining background, although his father joined the Fire Brigade.... Read more Hodgson, Brent b.1945 Brent Hodgson was born 1945 in Blenheim, New Zealand, and now lives in Ayr. Since the early 1990s his fiction and poetry has appeared in many publications... Read more Hogg, James 1770 - 1835 Known as the 'Ettrick Shepherd', James Hogg's talent for writing was discovered by Sir Walter Scott, to whom he had sent poems for The... Read more Hubbard, Tom Tom Hubbard is a university lecturer, bibliographer, editor and a poet who writes in both English and Scots. Read more Hutchison, Alexander b.1943 Alexander Hutchison, a poet and translator in Scots and English, was born in 1943 in Buckie in the north-east of Scotland, and has worked mostly as a... Read more I Imlah, Mick 1956 - 2009 Mick Imlah was born in Aberdeen in 1956 and spent his early years in Milngavie before the family moved to Kent. He graduated from Oxford with a First in... Read more J Jackson, A. B. b.1965 Andrew Buchanan Jackson was born in Glasgow in 1965. His first book, Fire Stations (Anvil Press), won the Forward Prize for Best First Collection in 2003... Read more Jackson, Alan b.1938 Alan Jackson, born in 1938 in Liverpool of Scottish parents, moved to Edinburgh in 1940. His reading career began on the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and in... Read more Jackson, Andy b.1965 Andy Jackson was born in Manchester in 1965, and moved to Scotland in 1992, settling in north-east Fife and working at Dundee University. He has since had... Read more Jacob, Violet 1863 - 1946 Violet Jacob, known for her novels of Scottish history and her poetry written in the rich dialect of Angus, was born into an aristocratic family, and... Read more Jamie, Kathleen b.1962 Kathleen Jamie is a poet, essayist and travel writer, one of a remarkable clutch of Scottish writers picked out in 1994 as the ‘new generation poets... Read more Jamieson, Robert Alan b.1958 Alan Jamieson was born in 1958 in the crofting community of Sandness on Shetland. After publishing two novels (Soor Hearts and Thin Wealth) and a... Read more Jennings, Paula Paula Jennings' work has appeared in literary magazines, national newspapers and anthologies. It has been translated into Polish, broadcast on... Read more Johnstone, Brian b.1950 Brian Johnstone is a poet, literary events organiser and creative writing tutor. Born in Edinburgh in 1950, he has lived in the Fife countryside since... Read more K Kassabova, Kapka b.1973 Kapka Kassabova was born in Sofia, Bulgaria, and at the end of the Cold War her family emigrated first to Britain, then to New Zealand. After twelve years... Read more Kay, Jackie b.1961 Jackie Kay was born and brought up in Scotland. She has published five collections of poetry for adults (The Adoption Papers won the Forward Prize, a... Read more Killick, John John Killick was a teacher for 30 years, in further, adult and prison education and became a freelance writer in 1989. He then worked as a writer in... Read more Kinloch, David b.1959 David Kinloch was born and brought up in Glasgow, Scotland. He is a graduate of the Universities of Glasgow and Oxford and was for many years a teacher of... Read more Knowles, David David Knowles is a former RAF Tornado pilot, a poet, and poetry editor of independent publishing house Two Ravens Press. His first book of poetry, Meeting... Read more Knox, William 1789 - 1825 William Knox has been saved from obscurity by the lasting fame of his poem 'Mortality', which was a favourite of American President Abraham... Read more Kreitman, Norman b.1927 Norman Kreitman was born in London. He subsequently trained as a doctor at Westminster Hospital, later specialising in psychiatry. In 1966 he moved to... Read more Kuppner, Frank b.1951 Frank Kuppner was born in Glasgow in 1951 and has lived there ever since. His first collection of poetry was A Bad Day for the Sung Dynasty (1984), and a... Read more L Laennec, Christine Read more Laing, R. D. 1927 - 1989 R. D. Laing was born in Glasgow in 1927. He studied medicine and became an innovative psychiatrist. His Wisdom, Madness, and Folly: The Making of a... Read more Lamb, Helen Helen Lamb is a poet and fiction writer. A winner of the Scotland on Sunday/Women 2000 short story prize, Helen’s work has been widely... Read more Lang, Andrew 1844 - 1912 Andrew Lang was a prolific writer, of many diverse interests; a journalist, respected critic, poet and folklorist. Read more Leighton, Robert 1822 - 1869 Read more Leonard, Tom b.1944 Born in Glasgow, Tom Leonard is best known for poetry written in the urban speech of that city. This, and his seminal critical writings, have had a major... Read more Leviston, Frances b.1982 Frances Leviston was born in Edinburgh in 1982, and moved to Sheffield in 1991. She read English at St Hilda's College, Oxford, and has an MA in... Read more Linden, Eddie b.1935 Poet, editor, and literary legend, Eddie Linden draws on his difficult Glaswegian childhood for his verse. Read more Lindsay, Maurice 1918 - 2009 Maurice Lindsay was the foremost champion of Scottish culture in the second half of the twentieth century. A poet, writer and broadcaster, with ... Read more Lipton, Douglas b.1953 Douglas Lipton was born in 1953 in Glasgow where he lived for the first half of his life. He was educated at the University of Strathclyde, and also... Read more Little, Pippa Pippa Little was born in East Africa and raised in Scotland. She now lives in Northumberland. Having worked as a literacy development worker, OU tutor and... Read more Livingstone, Eleanor Eleanor Livingstone is a poet, reviewer and editor who lives in Fife. Since 2005 she has been a Director of StAnza, Scotland's International Poetry... Read more Lochhead, Liz b.1947 Appointed Scots Makar – the National Poet for Scotland – in 2011, Liz Lochhead is both transgressive and popular; as Anne Varty wrote, ‘... Read more Loose, Gerry b.1948 Gerry Loose lives on his boat at Bowling. He is a recipient of a Robert Louis Stevenson Fellowship and a Creative Scotland Award. He has worked as Poet-in... Read more Lumsden, Roddy b.1966 Roddy Lumsden was born in St Andrews, and now lives in London. His first collection, Yeah Yeah Yeah (1997) was shortlisted for the Forward and... Read more M Mac a’ Phearsain, Iain S. b.1965 Iain S. Mac a’ Phearsain was born in Edmonton, Alberta, in 1965. His father’s side has Islay roots, while his mother’s family originated... Read more MacAulay, Donald b.1930 Read more MacBeth, George 1932 - 1992 Entry in preparation. Read more MacCaig, Norman 1910 - 1996 A poet who divided his life and the attention of his poetry between Assynt in the West Highlands, and the city of Edinburgh, Norman MacCaig combined... Read more MacDiarmid, Hugh 1892 - 1978 Hugh MacDiarmid (C.M. Grieve) was Scotland’s most influential and controversial writer in the 20th century. He urged and enabled the regeneration of... Read more MacDonald, George 1824 - 1905 George MacDonald was born in Huntly, Aberdeenshire, in 1824. After studying Moral Philosophy and Sciences at Aberdeen University, he trained for the... Read more MacFhionnlaigh, Fearghas b.1948 Read more MacGillivray, Alan Alan MacGillivray is a retired teacher and lecturer, who has specialised in the teaching of Scottish literature, teaching English in schools from the... Read more Macgillivray, James Pittendrigh 1856 - 1938 Sculptor as well as poet, Macgillivray became a member of the Royal Scottish Academy in 1901, and was appointed King’s Sculptor in Ordinary in 1921... Read more Macintyre, Lorn b.1942 Lorn Macintyre was born in Argyll in 1942. He has researched and scripted television documentaries for BBC Scotland. He is the author of the Chronicles of... Read more MacIntyre, Martin Martin MacIntyre grew up in Lenzie, near Glasgow, his father being originally from South Uist. Read more Mackay, Rob Donn 1714 - 1778 Read more MacKenzie, Rob A. Rob A. Mackenzie was born in Glasgow. He studied law and then abandoned the possibility of significant personal wealth by switching to theology. He spent... Read more Mackie, Alastair 1925 - 1995 Alastair Mackie (1925-1995) was born in Aberdeen. He graduated from Aberdeen University after serving in the Royal Navy during World War II. He then... Read more Maclaren, Hamish 1901 - 1987 Hamish Maclaren (Douglas Hamish Van Lenepp Maclaren, 1901-1987) was born in Tain, Ross-shire, Scotland, on March 7th 1901. He was the fourth of five... Read more MacLaverty, Ciara b.1968 Ciara MacLaverty was born in Belfast in 1968 and has lived in Scotland most of her life, where she studied Arts at Glasgow University. She has had ME from... Read more Maclean, Alasdair 1926 - 1994 Entry in preparation. Read more MacLean, Sorley 1911 - 1996 Sorley MacLean's mastery of his chosen medium and his engagement with the European poetic tradition and European politics make him one of the... Read more MacLeod, Anne b.1951 Anne MacLeod lives on the Black Isle with her husband, four children and two dogs. A dermatologist by profession, she has published two collections of... Read more MacNeacail, Aonghas b.1942 Aonghas MacNeacail has been a leading voice in Gaelic poetry for decades, as poet, and as a regular literary commentator in print and on Gaelic radio. He... Read more MacNeil, Kevin b.1972 Kevin MacNeil was born and raised on the Isle of Lewis, Scotland in a Gaelic-speaking environment. He was the British Council Writer in Residence at... Read more MacNeil, Paraig Paraig MacNeil is a storyteller of the oral tradition, telling stories of Scottish history from memory, punctuated by verse and song, riddle and rhyme.... Read more Macphee, Kona b.1969 Kona Macphee is a UK-born, Australian-bred poet now living and working in Scotland. She was born in London in 1969 but grew up in Australia, where she... Read more Macpherson, James Read more Maitland, Sir Richard 1496 - 1586 Read more Maley, Willy Willy Maley is a critic, editor, teacher, and writer. A former Scotsman Fringe First Winner at the Edinburgh Festival (1992), his eight plays, mostly co-... Read more Maloney, Al Read more Mangan, Gerald b.1951 Glasgow-born Mangan has lived and worked in various parts of Scotland and Ireland, and in France, where he now resides. He is a poet, cartoonist,... Read more Manson, John Read more Manson, Peter b.1969 Peter Manson lives in Glasgow. His books include For the Good of Liars and Adjunct: an Undigest (both published by Barque Press) and Between Cup and Lip (... Read more Martin, Angus b.1952 Entry in preparation. Read more McCabe, Brian b.1951 Born in a small mining community near Edinburgh, Brian McCabe has been a freelance writer since 1980. He has had various residencies and fellowships,... Read more McCarey, Peter b.1956 Peter McCarey was born Paisley and brought up in Glasgow. His work is accessible on his Syllabary website. Collected Contraptions was published by... Read more McDermid, Leonard Leonard McDermid has enjoyed over seventy years of looking at things, and over fifty years of commenting on them in various forms and in a variety of ways... Read more McDonald, Ellie b.1937 Entry in preparation. Read more McEwen, Christian b.1956 Christian McEwen was born in London and grew up in the Borders of Scotland. She has a particular interest in nature writing and the family memoir. Her... Read more McGonigal, James b.1947 Born in Dumfries in 1947, and brought up there and in Glasgow, James McGonigal taught English for fourteen years in secondary schools before working in... Read more McGonigall, William 1825 - 1902 Read more McGrath, Gerry b.1962 Gerry McGrath was born and grew up in Helensburgh, studied modern languages at Strathclyde University and worked as a teacher for several years before... Read more McIlvanney, William b.1926 Although better known as a novelist, William McIlvanney is also a poet; indeed, his rich prose betrays the influence of someone whose first masters were... Read more McIntosh, Alastair Entry in preparation. Read more McKie, Jane Jane McKie, originally from West Sussex, lives in Linlithgow, West Lothian. She has written two collections of poetry: Morocco Rococo (Cinnamon Press),... Read more McMillan, Hugh b.1955 Hugh McMillan works as a history teacher in Dumfries and lives in Penpont. He has five full collections of poetry, the last two being Strange Bamboo (... Read more McNeil, Andrew b.1963 Andrew McNeil was born in Toledo, Ohio, USA in 1963. He was educated at West Anstruther Primary School and Edinburgh University followed by Jordanhill... Read more McSeveney, Angela b.1964 Angela McSeveney was born in Edinburgh and brought up in Ross-shire, Livingston and the Scottish Borders, where she attended Galashiels Academy for six... Read more Meade, Gordon b.1957 Gordon Meade lives with his family in the East Neuk of Fife where he divides his time between his own writing and running creative writing courses... Read more Medrington, Richard Winner of the Edinburgh Poetry Slam 2003 and a regular on the Scottish performance poetry circuit Richard is also Secretary of the School of Poets at the... Read more Meekings, Sam Since 2005, Sam Meekings has lived and travelled in various parts of China, working as a teacher and editor. He has twice been long listed for an Eric... Read more Melville, Nick-e nick-e melville is the author of selections and dissections (Otoliths, 2010), a collection of visual poetry, its companion piece, this is visual poetry (... Read more Miller, Kei Kei Miller is a Jamaican poet and novelist. He read English at the University of the West Indies and completed an MA in Creative Writing at Manchester... Read more Miller, William 1810 - 1872 Called the 'laureate of the nursery', Glasgow-born William Miller was the author of 'Willie Winkie'. Read more Milne, W. S. b.1953 W. S. Milne was born in Aberdeen in 1953, and brought up in Woodside, Portlethen and Dyce. Educated in England, he teaches English and information... Read more Mitchell, Elma 1990 - 2000 Elma Mitchell was born in Airdrie, and lived in London, and latterly, Somerset. She was a librarian, and also worked in publishing, and as a journalist... Read more Mitchison, Naomi 1897 - 1999 Naomi Mitchison, best known as a novelist and social commentator, also wrote poetry, much of which is rooted in her Scottish background and in her... Read more Montgomerie, William 1904 - 1994 Entry in preparation. Read more Morgan, JO Entry in preparation. Read more Morrice, Ken 1924 - 2002 Entry in preparation. Read more Morrish, Chloe b.1979 Chloe Morrish writes poetry in Glasgow. She completed an MLitt. in Creative Writing at St Andrews and has been writing poetry since primary school, when... Read more Muir, Edwin 1887 - 1959 Edwin Muir was born in Deerness, Orkney, on 15 May 1887. His father was a farmer but in 1901 he lost his farm and they left Orkney to live in Glasgow, a... Read more Mulrine, Stephen b.1937 Entry in preparation. Read more Mundair, Raman Raman Mundair is a writer and artist. She is the author of two volumes of poetry, A Choreographer's Cartography and Lovers, Liars, Conjurers and... Read more Munro, Neil 1864 - 1930 Highlander Neil Munro left his native Argyll to find work in Glasgow, but the Highlands stayed in his heart, and featured in most of his literary work,... Read more Murray, Charles 1864 - 1941 Read more Murray, Donald S. b.1956 Donald S. Murray comes from Ness at the northern tip of the Isle of Lewis and now works in close proximity to 'the Ness' at the southern tip of... Read more Murray, Elspeth b.1970 Elspeth Murray, born in 1970, is a poet with a strong record of collaborative work in education, business and the performing arts. In 2006 she will be... Read more Murray, John b.1954 John Murray was born in West Africa in 1954, and brought up in Fife and London. He leads the school of Landscape Architecture at Edinburgh College of Art... Read more N Neaves, Charles Lord 1800 - 1876 Read more Neill, William 1922 - 2010 William Neill was born in Prestwick, Ayrshire in 1922. He joined the RAF on leaving school, and having seen many parts of the world, left the forces in... Read more Nelson, Donald Donald Nelson is a poet and storytelller. Read more Nelson, Helena Helena Nelson was born in Cheshire, and now lives in Fife. She is founder editor of HappenStance Press which specialises in poetry pamphlets. Her... Read more Nicholson, James 1822 - 1897 Read more Niven, Liz b.1952 Liz Niven was born in Glasgow in 1952. She was educated at Glasgow University and Jordanhill College of Education, subsequently living in Easter Ross for... Read more O Oliphant, Carolina 1766 - 1845 Scotland’s greatest songstress, Carolina Oliphant, Lady Nairne, was the author of many beautiful songs often today thought of as traditional. The... Read more O’Rourke, Donny b.1959 Poet, songwriter, film maker, critic, editor, teacher and translator, Donny O'Rourke was born, brought up and educated in Renfrewshire and has degrees... Read more P Paisley, Janet b.1948 Janet Paisley was born in Ilford and raised in Avonbridge. She is a multi-award-winning poet, playwright, fiction, non-fiction, radio, television and... Read more Paterson, Alasdair Alasdair Paterson was born in Edinburgh and now lives in Exeter. He won an Eric Gregory Award for his poetry in 1976. He didn't publish a volume of... Read more Paterson, Don b.1963 Since the appearance of his first collection in 1993, Don Paterson has emerged a major poet, as well as an important anthologist, editor and critic. Read more Paul, Nalini Nalini Paul was born in India and raised in Vancouver. She moved to Scotland in 1993 to study Philosophy and English Literature at Edinburgh University.... Read more Peebles, Alistair Alistair Peebles was born in Falkirk and lives in Orkney. He owns and directs Brae Projects. His work is concerned with landscape and his immediate... Read more Perrie, Walter b.1949 Walter Perrie was born in 1949 in the village of Quarter, Lanarkshire. Educated at Hamilton Academy and at the Universities of Edinburgh and Stirling, he... Read more Philip, Andrew b.1975 Andrew Philip was born in Aberdeen, and grew up in a former mining village near Falkirk. He studied Linguistics at the University of Edinburgh. He... Read more Polley, Jacob b.1975 Jacob Polley was born in Carlisle. He has published with Picador two books of poems, The Brink (which was shortlisted for the T.S Eliot Prize, the Forward... Read more Pow, Tom b.1950 Tom Pow was born in Edinburgh on 25 May 1950. His father was an artist influenced by surrealism, who taught at Moray House and Edinburgh College of Art,... Read more Powici, Chris Chris Powici's poetry focuses on human and natural environments. 'My poetry,' he writes, 'engages with the experience of environment and... Read more Price, Richard b.1966 Richard Price grew up in Renfrewshire. He was educated at Napier College and the University of Strathclyde, where his doctoral thesis was on the novels... Read more Prior-Pitt, Pauline Pauline Prior-Pitt was born in Hull. She trained to be an actress and drama teacher. In 1997 she moved to the Isle of North Uist. She began writing poetry... Read more Purser, John b.1942 Purser is a composer, musicologist, and music historian. He is also a poet and playwright. He has published three books of poetry, including The Counting... Read more Purves, David b.1924 David Purves was born in 1924 and educated at Galashiels Academy and Edinburgh University. An environmental biochemist by profession, he is also a... Read more R Rafferty, Seán 1909 - 1993 Seán Rafferty was born in Dumfriesshire in 1909. He studied Classics at Edinburgh University, and moved eventually to South Devon in 1948. He and... Read more Raine, Kathleen 1908 - 2003 Kathleen Raine was half Scottish; the landscape of the Highlands and that of her childhood Northumbria find a place in her poetry, which largely explores... Read more Ransford, Tessa b.1938 ‘No one has done more for the cause of poetry in Scotland ....' - poetry activist Tessa Ransford was the founder of the Scottish Poetry Library... Read more Reid, Alastair b.1926 Alastair Reid is a poet, essayist, translator and traveller, who has been instrumental in bringing the poems of Borges and Neruda into English. ‘... Read more Reid, Robert 1850 - 1922 Read more Rendall, Robert 1898 - 1967 Entry in preparation. Read more Riach, Alan b.1957 Born in Airdrie, Lanarkshire, educated at Cambridge and Glasgow, Alan Riach went to the University of Waikato, New Zealand, in 1986. He returned to... Read more Rice, John b.1948 John Rice was born in Glasgow in 1948 and spent his childhood in Saltcoats, Ayrshire. After attending college in Irvine, he joined the Army’s... Read more Rimmer, Elizabeth Elizabeth Rimmer was born and raised in Liverpool and moved to Scotland in 1977. Her work is inspired by weather, landscape and tradition, the work of... Read more Robb, Lydia Lydia Robb lives in a cottage in the Angus countryside, a source of inspiration for much of her writing. She writes poetry and short stories in both Scots... Read more Roberton, Hugh S. 1874 - 1952 Sir Hugh Roberton was a conductor and composer who founded Glasgow’s Orpheus Choir. Read more Robertson, Gary Born in 1967, Gary Robertson has lived and worked in Dundee all of his life. His love of writing, in particular poetry, has led him to performing regular... Read more Robertson, James b.1958 A poet and award-winning novelist, James Robertson is also a publisher of poetry and of children’s books in Scots which provide a lively... Read more Robertson, James Logie 1846 - 1922 Read more Robertson, Robin b.1955 As well as having a successful career in publishing, Robin Robertson is a poet whose work has won prestigious poetry prizes on both sides of the Atlantic. Read more Robertson, T. A. 1909 - 1973 Vagaland, along with William J. Tait, is the most significant of the Shetland poets of the mid-20th century. Read more Rochford, Gerard Gerard Rochford was brought up in Worcestershire. Apart from a short spell in Hong Kong he has spent most of his life in Aberdeen. He is a founder member... Read more Rocks, Kokumo Kokumo was raised in the Fife village of Cowdenbeath, and hers was the only black family in the area. In the mid 1990's she was diagnosed as dyslexic... Read more Rorie, David 1867 - 1946 David Rorie was a doctor-poet; he studied medicine at Aberdeen and Edinburgh universities, served in the R.A.M.C. during the First World War, and... Read more Rose, Dilys b.1954 Dilys Rose was born and brought up in Glasgow. She travelled widely and worked in various capacities at home and abroad before beginning to write in 1980... Read more Ross, Sandy Thomas Read more Ryland, Anne b.1962 Anne Ryland moved from London to the Borders seven years ago. She works as a part-time tutor in Adult Education at her local community centre. Her first... Read more S Saadi, Suhayl b.1961 Suhayl Saadi, born in 1961 in England of Pakistani parents, was brought up in Glasgow, where he now works as a writer and doctor. His short-story... Read more Salt, Chrys Chrys Salt is an award winning writer and theatre director. She is Artistic Director of The Bakehouse, a flourishing arts venue in SW Scotland, was an... Read more Sangster, Maureen b.1954 Aberdeen born, Maureen Sangster has lived in Scotland all her life except for three years spent teaching English in Nigeria. She has worked in mental... Read more Scobie, Stephen b.1943 Stephen Scobie was born in Carnoustie in Scotland and has lived in Canada since 1965. In 1980, he won the Governor General's Award for Poetry for his... Read more Scott, Alexander 1525 - 1584 Read more Scott, Alexander 1920 - 1989 Alexander Scott was born and brought up in Aberdeen. He taught at Edinburgh and Glasgow Universities, working to establish the Department of Scottish... Read more Scott, Anne Read more Scott, Lady John 1810 - 1900 'Haud fast to the past' was Lady John Scott's motto, which she followed through out her long life as a Borders landowner, using her position... Read more Scott, Sir Walter 1771 - 1832 Though best known now as the author of The Waverley Novels, Sir Walter Scott's first love and earliest success was as a poet. Read more Scott, Tom 1918 - 1995 Tom Scott was born in Glasgow and was the son of a shipyard worker. His family moved to St andrews in 1929, and he worked as a labourer in his father'... Read more Selkirk, J. B. 1832 - 1904 Read more Service, Robert 1874 - 1958 Robert Service was born in Preston, raised in Scotland, but emigrated to Canada at the age of 22. He then settled in France before the First World War.... Read more Sìleas na Ceapaich 1660 - 1729 Sìleas, known as na Ceapaich, or Nighean Mhic Raghnaill, was the daughter of Gilliesbuig, Chief of the MacDonalds. She was born some time in the... Read more Sinclair, Lise b.1971 Lise Sinclair lives in Fair Isle, the remote island midway between Shetland and Orkney, where she was born and brought up. She is a poet, musician and... Read more Singer, Burns 1928 - 1964 Burns Singer was born in 1928 and brought up in Glasgow. He read English and Zoology there but abandonned his studies after his mother's suicide.... Read more Smith, Alexander 1830 - 1867 Read more Smith, Donald Donald Smith is a storyteller, novelist, playwright and performance poet. He was born in Glasgow to an Irish mother and was brought up in Edinburgh... Read more Smith, Iain Crichton 1928 - 1998 Iain Crichton Smith was raised on Lewis and much of his poetry is grounded in that severe Presbyterian culture, and his protest against it. He wrote both... Read more Smith, Mary Campbell 1869 - 1938 The author of the well-known poem about the boy on the train to Kirkcaldy, Mrs. Smith was the wife of the headmaster of Merchiston Castle School in... Read more Smith, Morelle Morelle Smith studied English and French at Edinburgh University and currently lives near Edinburgh. She is a writer of poetry, fiction, essays and travel... Read more Smith, Sydney Goodsir 1915 - 1975 Born in New Zealand, Sydney Goodsir Smith nevertheless became one of the most interesting of poets writing in Scots in the mid twentieth century. ... Read more Somerville, Nancy Nancy Somerville was born in Glasgow and is now based in Edinburgh. Her work has been widely published in magazines and anthologies. She edited Goldfish... Read more Sorley, Charles Hamilton 1895 - 1915 Read more Soutar , William 1898 - 1943 William Soutar overcame his ill-health to write poetry in celebration of ‘the generosity of life’, and much verse in Scots for children.... Read more Spark, Muriel 1918 - 2006 Muriel Spark was born in Edinburgh and lived most of her adult life in England and Italy. One of the most highly regarded British novelists of the 20th... Read more Spence, Alan b.1947 Alan Spence is a poet, playwright and novelist, and in all of these genres is influenced by his deep knowledge of Zen and contemplative meditation. Read more Spence, Lewis 1874 - 1955 The author of many glittering words on Edinburgh, Spence was not a native of the city, but came to it as a student, having been born in Broughty Ferry. He... Read more Steele, Gregor Gregor Steele was born in Motherwell and grew up in Carluke. He has has written a fortnightly column for the Times Educational Supplement Scotland... Read more Stephen, Ian b.1955 A writer, artists and storyteller, Ian Stephen was born in Stornoway in 1955 and still lives on Lewis in the Outer Hebrides. He studied English, Drama and... Read more Steven, Kenneth C. b.1968 Kenneth C. Steven was born in Glasgow in 1968 but moved to Highland Perthshire during his schooldays. He has studied and taught in Norway, and translated... Read more Stevenson, Anne b.1933 Anne Stevenson, though of partly Scottish ancestry, is an Anglo-American, born in England in 1933. She is a highly-acclaimed poet, critic and... Read more Stevenson, Robert Louis 1850 - 1894 It is sadly ironic that one of the writers who wrote best about Scotland and the Scottish character was not able to live in the country, and died far from... Read more Sulter, Maud 1960 - 2008 Born in Glasgow of Scots and Ghanaian descent, Maud Sulter was a gifted visual artist, writer, playwright and cultural historian. As a Blackwoman... Read more Symms, Dorcas Read more Symon, Mary 1863 - 1938 Several of the best-known poems telling of the awful impact of the First World War upon the people of Scotland came from the pen of a woman from Dufftown... Read more T Tait, Margaret 1918 - 1999 Margaret Tait was one of Britain's most unique and individual film makers. She produced over 30 films, including one feature, Blue Black Permanent (... Read more Tait, William J. 1918 - 1992 Bill Tait was born in the Shetland island of Yell. He studied at Edinburgh University and taught English in Shetland, England and Dundee. His Collected... Read more Thomson, Derick b.1921 No Gaelic poet has had more influence on the generation that followed him than Derick Thomson. As poet, publisher, and editor of the literary quarterly... Read more Thomson, James 1700 - 1748 Read more Thomson, James B. V. 1834 - 1882 Read more Thomson, Mark Mark Thomson performs his street poetry at poetry slams and festivals. He left working on a building site to write poetry, and formed the street poetry... Read more Thornton, Valerie Valerie Thornton's poems and short stories have appeared in literary magazines and anthologies in the UK, Ireland, Europe, Canada, and America. She... Read more Todd, Ruthven 1914 - 1978 Born in Edinburgh, Ruthven Todd was educated at Fettes College and Edinburgh College of Art. He worked as a farm labourer on Mull, and then in Edinburgh,... Read more Turnbull, Gael 1928 - 2004 Gael Turnbull was born in Edinburgh on 7 April 1928. His father was Ralph Gale Turnbull, who had gone to America to study to be a minister, where he met... Read more Turnbull, Tim b.1960 Tim Turnbull was born in 1960 in North Yorkshire. He worked in the forestry industry for many years and started writing poetry in the early nineties. He... Read more V Van Winkle, Ryan Ryan Van Winkle took up the position of the first Reader in Residence at the Scottish Poetry Library and the Edinburgh City Libraries in 2008. He runs a... Read more Vettese, Raymond b.1950 Raymond Vettese was born in Arbroath in 1950. He was educated at Montrose Academy where he first started writing, mainly in English. A period as a... Read more W Watson, Roderick b.1943 Roderick Watson was born in Aberdeen and educated at Aberdeen Grammar School, Aberdeen University and Peterhouse, Cambridge. A recently retired professor... Read more White, Ian Nimmo b.1948 Born in Paisley in 1948, Ian Nimmo White was the Professional Youth and Community Officer with Fife Council from 1972 to 2004, and lives in Leslie, Fife.... Read more White, Kenneth b.1936 A Scottish poet with an international following, an original thinker who challenges the fixed categories of academia, a prose writer who created his own... Read more Whittingham, Brian b.1950 Brian Whittingham was born and still lives in Charing Cross, Glasgow. After leaving school aged 15, he went to work on the Clyde shipyards, progressing to... Read more Whyte, Christopher b.1952 Since Christopher Whyte’s Gaelic poetry first appeared in the 1980s, he has been an influential and controversial figure in the world of Gaelic... Read more Whyte, Hamish b.1947 Hamish Whyte was born in Giffnock, Renfrewshire in 1947. He worked as a librarian in Glasgow for many years, and also as a bibliographer. He has edited... Read more Will, Colin b.1942 Colin Will has had five poetry collections published, the latest being The floorshow at the Mad Yak Café (Red Squirrel Scotland, 2010). He has... Read more Williams, JL JL Williams was born in New Jersey and studied at Wellesley College and on the MLitt in Creative Writing at the University of Glasgow. Her poetry has been... Read more Williamson, Christie Christie Williamson spent his formative years in Yell, the second biggest island in Shetland. His poems have appeared in magazines and anthologies across... Read more Williamson, Kevin Kevin Williamson is poet, author, publisher, activist and cosmologist. He is the founder and editor of the Rebel Inc Magazine and the Rebel Inc... Read more Wilson, Fiona Fiona Wilson grew up near Aberdeen and now lives in New York City. Her poems have appeared in Poetry Review, Northwords, Painted, spoken, Grand Street,... Read more Wilson, Jim C. b.1948 Jim C. Wilson was born in Edinburgh in 1948, and now lives in Gullane. He studied English at Edinburgh University, and taught for nine years at Telford... Read more Wilson, Rab b.1960 Rab Wilson was born in the Ayrshire village of New Cumnock in 1960. After an engineering apprenticeship with the National Coal Board he left the pits... Read more Wingate, Walter 1865 - 1918 Poet and schoolmaster, Walter Wingate was the author of 'The Sair Finger', the much-loved recitation piece about the wean with the skelf in his... Read more Y Young, Andrew 1885 - 1971 Andrew Young was born in Elgin and schooled in Edinburgh, beginning his career as a minister in the Church of Scotland and ending it in the Church of... Read more Young, Douglas 1913 - 1973 Douglas Young, poet and essayist, was a ‘colourful and memorable figure’ of the Scottish Renaissance. He studied at St Andrews and Oxford,... Read more
