Having won an Eric Gregory Award for his poetry in 1975 and published collections in the mid-1980’s, Alasdair Paterson returned to writing after a 20 year gap with on the governing of empires, published by Shearsman in 2010. Making up for lost time, he has since produced another four books or pamphlets. He is retired after a career directing the work of academic libraries in Britain and Ireland and travelling extensively, particularly in Russia and other parts of the former Soviet Union. Born in Edinburgh, he now lives in Exeter, where he presents the Uncut Poets readings and chairs the Exeter Poetry Festival.