Person to Person: Poet and teacher Matthew Geden talks about life, loves and new work

TELL us about yourself;

My name is Matthew Geden. I grew up in England but moved to Ireland back in 1990. I’m a poet and teacher of Creative Writing. My books include The Place Inside (Dedalus Press, 2012), Fruit (SurVision Books, 2020) and most recently The Cloud Architect (Doire Press, 2022). 

I have been Writer in Residence for Cork County Library and Arts Service since 2020.

Where were you born?

I was born in Leamington Spa in Warwickshire but I grew up in Coventry. When I was 16 we moved to Stratford-upon-Avon, the heart of Shakespeare country.

Where do you live?

Since 1990, I’ve been lucky enough to live in Kinsale. We arrived here by chance and never left. I love it here. It’s a friendly town and has long been home for numerous artists and writers so there’s always something happening.

Family?

My partner Caroline Smith is a teacher and textile artist. We have two grown-up children. Tom lives in Leiden in the Netherlands and is married to Molly with two children, Ben and Izzy. Becca is living in London with her boyfriend Josh, she’s just finishing an MA in Fashion Photography.

Best friend?

I have to say Caroline. Fortunately we have similar tastes in music and art. We also love to travel and have had some great trips over the years, including stumbling into the Willie Clancy Festival many years ago, accidentally attending a Mafia wedding in Sicily, and finding the best bar in Spain when on Ibiza.

Earliest childhood memory?

Not sure of my earliest memory but I do remember my first public reading. I had won an under 7s story competition and my parents hauled me up to read it at a children’s party. 

I was mortified!

Where was your most memorable holiday?

So many to choose from, but one of the most unusual was a running holiday in South Africa a couple of years ago. A small group of us flew into Cape Town and were then bussed up north to the Kalahari Desert. We then spent four or five days running various routes. We had to set off early so we were finished by the time it got too hot. 

The desert itself is beautiful but the highlight for me was all the wildlife encountered on the way. 

We saw zebras, wildebeest, ostriches, giraffes, baboons, springbok and much more. It was a safari on foot, amazing to see them in their natural environment.

Favourite TV programme?

I don’t watch much TV but I do love watching the big cycling races like the Tour de France and the Vuelta.

Favourite radio show?

Anything on LyricFM.

Favourite restaurant?

I don’t go to restaurants much unless we’re away. However, after a day at the beach we do sometimes go to The Speckled Door on the Old Head of Kinsale. Good food with spectacular views.

Last book you read?

I have just finished When We Cease To Understand the World by Benjamin Labatut. An extraordinary and thought-provoking novel. I’m still thinking about it and the implications of the stories told within it. It blurs the lines of fact and fiction whilst confronting some of the major issues of our times.

Best book you read?

I have a few favourites but the one that stays with me most is Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. Such a powerful story and it still is so relevant today. 

It’s incredible to think that she was only 18 when she started writing it.

Last album/CD/download you bought?

I recently discovered a record company called Analog Africa. They re-release music from Africa and South America, most of it originally recorded in the 1970s and 1980s. The music is amazing, so full of dance and energy. The last one I bought is called Peru Selvatico: Sonic Expedition Into The Peruvian Amazon 1972-1986.

Favourite song?

Too many to mention, but pretty much anything by Bob Dylan will do. He’s written most of the best songs of the last 50 years or so, I think.

One person you would like to see in concert?

I’ve managed to see most of my favourites but Tom Waits would be one I’d like to have seen.

Do you have a pet?

A cat called Gatsby and a dog called Freddy.

Morning person or night owl?

I used to be a morning person. My favourite running time would be before breakfast. I don’t know if it’s age or what but nowadays I need a coffee and an hour or two before I begin to feel vaguely human.

Your proudest moment?

Bringing up my children.

Spendthrift or saver?

Spendthrift.

Name one thing you would improve in your area in which you live?

Fewer cars. Kinsale needs a better traffic strategy, otherwise it’s perfect.

What makes you happy?

Time with friends and family. Also time out in nature either walking or running. 

West Cork has so many hidden gems and I’m still discovering or revisiting them. 

If the forecast is good then there’s nothing like packing up a picnic and heading west for the day.

How would you like to be remembered?

Not bothered.

What else are you up to at the moment?

I’m currently working on a new book of poems which won’t be out for some time as I’m a fairly slow writer.

In the meantime I have been translating some fabulous poems by the Cuban poet Yairen Jerez Columbie. My Spanish is fairly limited but I find the process of translation fascinating and so enriching.

Matthew Gedden will be at the West Cork Literary Festival on Wednesday, July 12 at 5pm in Bantry Library, reading alongside fellow poet, Maurice Devitt. Matthew’s latest collection, The Cloud Architect, was published in 2022. Full details on the West Cork Literary Festival is on www.westcorkliteraryfestival.ie or 027 527 88