I was born and raised in South London and live in South Yorkshire. I studied Philosophy at the University of Ulster and then worked for many years in local authority children’s services.
My second collection of longer-form poetry, The Last Corinthians, was published by Crooked Spire Press in June 2025, and my first collection, The Evening Entertainment, was published by Eyewear Publishing in 2017.
My poems have been published in (among others) 14, Bad Lilies, Butcher’s Dog, The Friday Poem, Ink Sweat & Tears, Magma, Morning Star, The North, Pennine Platform, Poetry Ireland Review, Poetry Salzburg Review, The Rialto and Wild Court. I regularly review poetry books (and have written essays) for The Friday Poem.
My haiku collections – The Regulars (2006) and The Lammas Lands (2015) – and co-written/edited (with John Barlow) anthology Wing Beats: British Birds in Haiku (2008) were all published by Snapshot Press, and my haiku have been widely anthologised.
I’ve also contributed to The Guardian’s ‘Country Diary’ column.
Bluesky: @matthewepaul.bsky.social
Instagram: @matthewpaulpoems
Matthew Paul: Poetry & Stuff 