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 Saltire prizes. His second collection, The Book of Love (2000), was shortlisted for the T. S. Eliot Prize. Mischief Night: New & Selected Poems was published by Bloodaxe in 2004 and most recently Third Wish Wasted (2009) and Terrific Melancholy (2011). He is also the editor of Identity Parade: new British and Irish poets (Bloodaxe, 2010) and The Best British Poetry 2011 (Salt, 2011). He was awarded the Bess Hokin Prize by the Poetry Foundation in 2009.

He also works as a tutor for The Poetry School, and is a puzzle and popular reference writer.