20/10/2026
We were saddened to hear renowned Scottish poet, Douglas Dunn, has died at the age of 83. Mentored by the poet Philip Larkin, who both encouraged his writing and employed him as a librarian, Dunn would go on to win the Whitbread Prize and the Queen's Medal for Poetry and was appointed an OBE in 2003.
His fellow poet and St Andrews colleague Don Paterson described him as "the finest Scottish poet of the post-war period. Dougie was also someone we knew and loved as a dear friend, mentor and teacher, and he will be deeply missed."
'Love Poem', by Douglas Dunn
I live in you, you live in me;
We are two gardens haunted by each other.
Sometimes I cannot find you there,
There is only the swing creaking, that you have just left,
Or your favourite book beside the sundial.
Many poets have posted their initial thoughts on his passing on social media with tributes, recollections, as well as reposting their favourite poems.
