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Theo Dorgan

"The blend of street-warrior and muse poet is extraordinarily appealing"

- John Montague

Theo Dorgan was born into a large, working-class family on Cork's northside in 1953 and began publishing poems as an undergraduate at University College Cork, where he studied under John Montague. He later taught in the college while simulataneously managing the literature programme of the Triskel Arts Centre. He is a former director of Poetry Ireland/Eigse Eireann and has also worked extensively as a broadcaster of literary programmes on both radio and television. He was presenter of Poetry Now on RTE Radio 1 and later presented RTE's TV books programme, Imprint

His most recent poetry collection is Greek (Dublin, Dedalus Press, 2010). His other collections include The Ordinary House of Love; Rosa Mundi and Sappho's Daughter. In 2008, Dedalus Press published What This Earth Cost Us, reprinting Dorgan's first two collections with some amendments. He has also published a selected poems in Italian La Case ai Margini del Mundo and a Spanish translation of Sappho's Daughter, La Hija de Safo.

His translations (with Ana Jelnikar) of the Slovenian poet, Barbara Korun's work, have been published in the volume Songs of Earth and Light.

Theo Dorgan has been an editor of many presitigious literary projects, among them The Great Book of Ireland (1991 with Gene Lambert), a single volume on vellum containing the work of 149 poets, 120 artists and nine composers. Others include Watching the River Flow, a century in Irish poetry (1999 with Noel Duffy) and The Great Book of Gaelic (2002with Malcolm Maclean).

In prose, Theo's account of a translatlantic crossing under sail, Sailing for Home appeared in 2004. In the same year, his libretto Jason and the Argonauts, to music by Howard Goodall was commissioned by and premiered at The Royal Albert Hall, London. In 2010, a second prose work, again an account of a sea journey was published by New Island as Time On The Ocean, A Voyage from Cape Horn to Cape Town.

Among his awards are the Listowel Prize for Poetry, 1992 and the O'Shaughnessy Prize for Irish Poetry, 2010. He has served on the Arts Council and is a member of Aosdana. He now lives in Dublin.

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