Ciaran Carson, BA (died 6 October 2019, aged 70)
Full obituary available online at The Guardian.
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Ciaran Carson was born 9 October 1948 to father William, a postman and mother, Mary who worked in the local mill. His father had a love of everything Irish and the five children grew up speaking Irish as their first language. Following his schooling at St Mary’s Christian Brothers’ grammar school, Ciaran went on to study English at Queen’s, graduating in 1971.
Inheriting his father’s love of Irish Ciaran went on to work at the Arts Council of Northern Ireland, with responsibility for traditional music and culture. He published 15 volumes of poetry and wrote a number of books about “The Troubles”. He received many recognitions for his work including the TS Eliot prize and the Irish Times Irish literature prize.
In 2004 he became the first director of the Seamus Heaney Centre for Poetry at Queen’s, a post he held until his retirement in 2016.
He is survived by wife Deirdre and their children, Manus, Gerard and Mary.
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