About Michael Donaghy
Michael Donaghy (May 24, 1954 – September 16, 2004) was a poet and musician from New York City. In 1985, he relocated to just off Green Lanes in Harringay, north London, to be with his partner and fellow musician, Maddy Paxman, whom he married in 2003. He became a member of the London poetry workshop, which was started by Belfast poet Robert Greacen and later led by Matthew Sweeney. This group included notable poets like Vicki Feaver, Ruth Padel, Jo Shapcott, Maurice Riordan, Eva Salzman, and Don Paterson. Quickly making a name for himself in the poetry world, he released his first full collection, Shibboleth, in 1988, with the title poem winning second place in the 1987 National Poetry Competition. He published Errata in 1993 and Conjure in 2000. His work earned him several accolades, including the Geoffrey Faber and Cholmondeley awards, as well as the Whitbread and Forward prizes. In 2003, he collaborated with Cyborg scientist Kevin Warwick to write Grimoire. He also played in various Irish music groups and was part of the early lineup of Lammas, a jazz/traditional crossover band led by Tim Garland and poet Don Paterson. He served as a creative writing tutor for the Arvon Foundation and the Poetry Society, and later conducted an extension course for City University London, in addition to teaching poetry classes at Birkbeck College, London, which gives an annual prize in his honor. He contributed to and reviewed for Poetry Review, Poetry, The New Yorker, and The Times Literary Supplement. His poetry, which has influenced a younger generation of poets, is recognized for its metaphysical elegance and playfulness, along with his adept use of form.Browse all poems and texts published on Michael Donaghy
Gradually I became aware that professing English because I loved poems was like practicing vivisection because I loved dogs.
