Head and shoulders photo of a male poet with short grey hair and grizzly beard growth. He is grinning.Richard Meier was born in Surrey and lived in North London.  Latterly, he taught English as a second language to adults. Back in 2010, Helena Nelson, HappenStance editor, offered to publish a pamphlet of his poems, which would have been his first publication.  However, this didn't happen.  Why not?

It was for the best of reasons. In January 2011, he won the inaugural Picador Poetry Prize. Two years later, Picador brought out Misadventure, shortlisted for the Fenton Aldeburgh Prize. 

Richard's second collection, Search Party (2019), was also published by Picador. This wasn't long before the first Covid lockdown, after which many things changed.  For a long time there were no poetry events, except on line.  The book received small public notice. 

Recent years set up further challenges, including marriage breakdown, loss of a publisher and early in 2025, a diagnosis of lung cancer.  Richard had no intention of succumbing to this illness.

In December 2025, however, he ran out of options. It wasn't part of his plan, but he had to go.

His voice persists in these poems. They are careful, well-made, musical and durable.  What he has to say involves pain, yes -- but also joy.  His style is to make much of little and to find beauty in plain speaking.  At times, most unfashionably, he writes from the heart.

The Guardian published a brief obituary. 

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