Christopher Reid
Encyclopedia
Christopher Reid is a Hong Kong
-born British
poet
, essayist, cartoonist
, and writer. He has been nominated twice for the Whitbread Awards in 1996 and in 1997. A contemporary of Martin Amis
, he was educated at Exeter College, Oxford
. He is one of the exponents of Martian poetry
which employs unusual metaphors to render everyday experiences and objects unfamiliar. He has worked as poetry editor at Faber and Faber
and Professor of Creative Writing
at the University of Hull
. In January 2010 he was awarded the 2009 Costa Book Award for A Scattering, written as a tribute to his late wife, the actress Lucinda Gane
. The work won in the poetry category, and overall Best Book of the Year, becoming the first poet to take the overall prize since Seamus Heaney
in 1999.
His poem "A Pub Band" is featured in the 2004 anthology Wild Reckoning, which was inspired by Rachel Carson's Silent Spring
.
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
-born British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
, essayist, cartoonist
Cartoonist
A cartoonist is a person who specializes in drawing cartoons. This work is usually humorous, mainly created for entertainment, political commentary or advertising...
, and writer. He has been nominated twice for the Whitbread Awards in 1996 and in 1997. A contemporary of Martin Amis
Martin Amis
Martin Louis Amis is a British novelist, the author of many novels including Money and London Fields . He is currently Professor of Creative Writing at the Centre for New Writing at the University of Manchester, but will step down at the end of the 2010/11 academic year...
, he was educated at Exeter College, Oxford
Exeter College, Oxford
Exeter College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England and the fourth oldest college of the University. The main entrance is on the east side of Turl Street...
. He is one of the exponents of Martian poetry
Martian poetry
Martian poetry was a minor movement in British poetry in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Poets most closely associated with it are Craig Raine and Christopher Reid. The term Martianism has also been applied more widely to include fiction as well as to poetry. The word martianism is,...
which employs unusual metaphors to render everyday experiences and objects unfamiliar. He has worked as poetry editor at Faber and Faber
Faber and Faber
Faber and Faber Limited, often abbreviated to Faber, is an independent publishing house in the UK, notable in particular for publishing a great deal of poetry and for its former editor T. S. Eliot. Faber has a rich tradition of publishing a wide range of fiction, non fiction, drama, film and music...
and Professor of Creative Writing
Creative writing
Creative writing is considered to be any writing, fiction, poetry, or non-fiction, that goes outside the bounds of normal professional, journalistic, academic, and technical forms of literature. Works which fall into this category include novels, epics, short stories, and poems...
at the University of Hull
University of Hull
The University of Hull, known informally as Hull University, is an English university, founded in 1927, located in Hull, a city in the East Riding of Yorkshire...
. In January 2010 he was awarded the 2009 Costa Book Award for A Scattering, written as a tribute to his late wife, the actress Lucinda Gane
Lucinda Gane
Lucinda Gane was a British actress, perhaps best-known for her role as science teacher Miss Terri Mooney in the children's television serial Grange Hill; a role she played from 1980-1983....
. The work won in the poetry category, and overall Best Book of the Year, becoming the first poet to take the overall prize since Seamus Heaney
Seamus Heaney
Seamus Heaney is an Irish poet, writer and lecturer. He lives in Dublin. Heaney has received the Nobel Prize in Literature , the Golden Wreath of Poetry , T. S. Eliot Prize and two Whitbread prizes...
in 1999.
Books
- Arcadia (1979) (1980 Somerset Maugham AwardSomerset Maugham AwardThe Somerset Maugham Award is a British literary prize given each May by the Society of Authors. It is awarded to whom they judge to be the best writer or writers under the age of thirty-five of a book published in the past year. The prize was instituted in 1947 by William Somerset Maugham and thus...
, Hawthornden PrizeHawthornden PrizeThe Hawthornden Prize is a British literary award that was established in 1919 by Alice Warrender. Authors are awarded on the quality of their "imaginative literature" which can be written in either poetry or prose...
) - Pea Soup (1982)
- Katerina Brac (1985)
- In The Echoey Tunnel (1991)
- Universes (1994)
- Expanded Universes (1996)
- Two Dogs on a Pub Roof (1996)
- Mermaids Explained (2001)
- For and After (2003)
- Mr Mouth (2005)
- A Scattering (2009) (2009 Costa Book Awards2009 Costa Book AwardsThe shortlists were announced on 25 November 2009. The winners in each category were announced on4 January 2009 on the Front Row programme.-Children's Book:Winner:*Patrick Ness, The Ask and the AnswerShortlist:*Siobhan Dowd, Solace of the Road...
- winner, Best Book of the Year) - The Song of Lunch (2009)
- A Box of Tricks for Anna Zyx (2009)
- Selected Poems (2011)
As editor
- The Poetry Book Society AnthologyAnthologyAn anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler. It may be a collection of poems, short stories, plays, songs, or excerpts...
1989-1990 (1989) - Sounds Good: 101 Poems to be Heard (1990)
- The May Anthology of Oxford and Cambridge Poetry 1997 (1997)
- Not to Speak of the Dog: 101 Short Stories in Verse (2000)
- Selected Letters of Ted HughesTed HughesEdward James Hughes OM , more commonly known as Ted Hughes, was an English poet and children's writer. Critics routinely rank him as one of the best poets of his generation. Hughes was British Poet Laureate from 1984 until his death.Hughes was married to American poet Sylvia Plath, from 1956 until...
(2007)
His poem "A Pub Band" is featured in the 2004 anthology Wild Reckoning, which was inspired by Rachel Carson's Silent Spring
Silent Spring
Silent Spring is a book written by Rachel Carson and published by Houghton Mifflin on 27 September 1962. The book is widely credited with helping launch the environmental movement....
.
See also
- Martian poetryMartian poetryMartian poetry was a minor movement in British poetry in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Poets most closely associated with it are Craig Raine and Christopher Reid. The term Martianism has also been applied more widely to include fiction as well as to poetry. The word martianism is,...
- Craig RaineCraig RaineCraig Raine is an English poet and critic born in Bishop Auckland, County Durham, England. Along with Christopher Reid, he is the best-known exponent of Martian poetry.-Life:...
- The Song of LunchThe Song of LunchThe Song of Lunch is a 2010 television adaptation of Christopher Reid's poem of the same name., 30 June 2010 It was directed by Niall MacCormick and stars Alan Rickman and Emma Thompson...
(TV adaptation of his poem)