22 Facts About Roger McGough

1.

Roger Joseph McGough is an English poet, performance poet, broadcaster, children's author and playwright.

2.

Roger McGough is an honorary fellow of Liverpool John Moores University, fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and President of the Poetry Society.

3.

McGough was born in Litherland, Lancashire, on the outskirts of Liverpool, to Roger Francis, a docker, and Mary McGough.

4.

Roger McGough's ancestry is Irish and he was raised in the Roman Catholic faith.

5.

Roger McGough was a pupil at St Mary's College in Crosby with Laurie Taylor, future sociologist and criminologist, before going on to study French and Geography at the University of Hull.

6.

Roger McGough lived in one of the university residences, Needler Hall, for three years from 1955 and served as hall librarian.

7.

Several years later Roger McGough corresponded with Larkin about poetry, sending him some of his own poems as he still lacked the confidence to approach the man directly.

8.

Roger McGough added that he believed that McGough walked an impressionistic tightrope which, though exhilarating, meant that on occasion he fell off.

9.

Roger McGough discovered a long forgotten pair of Paul McCartney's blue mohair trousers in his attic; the trousers had been given to him, via McCartney's brother Mike, in the early 1960s.

10.

Roger McGough has been nicknamed "the patron saint of poetry" by Carol Ann Duffy.

11.

The poetry of Roger McGough has been the subject of academic study.

12.

Roger McGough was responsible for much of the humorous dialogue in the Beatles' animated film Yellow Submarine, although he did not receive an on-screen credit.

13.

On 2 March 1978, Roger McGough appeared in All You Need Is Cash, a mockumentary detailing the career of a Beatles-like group called the Rutles.

14.

Roger McGough contributed poetry to and narrated a programme in 1991 for Channel 4 called Equinox: The Elements about the elements.

15.

Roger McGough made a guest appearance on quiz panel show QI in 2006.

16.

Three plays written by the 17th-century French playwright Moliere have been translated by Roger McGough and directed by Gemma Bodinetz.

17.

Roger McGough has done some voiceover work narrating The Very Hungry Caterpillar and Other Stories by Eric Carle, and TV advertisements for the supermarket chain Waitrose.

18.

Roger McGough won a Cholmondeley Award in 1998, and was appointed an Officer in 1997, and later, in 2004, Commander of the Order of the British Empire.

19.

Roger McGough was made a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in 2004.

20.

Roger McGough was Fellow of Poetry at Loughborough University, Honorary Fellow at John Moores University, and Honorary Professor at Thames Valley University.

21.

In 1970, Roger McGough married Thelma Monaghan, and they had two children; they divorced in 1980.

22.

Roger McGough married Hilary Clough in December 1986, with whom he has two children.