{{Short description|Scottish writer (born 1951)}} {{for multi|the Scottish rugby union player|Andrew Greig (rugby union)|the Scottish goalkeeper|Andy Greig}} {{Use dmy dates|date=February 2018}} {{Use British English|date=February 2018}} {{infobox writer |name=Andrew Greig |birth_date={{birth date and age|1951|9|23|df=y}} |occupation={{flatlist| *Poet *novelist *memoirist }} |nationality=British |awards=Eric Gregory Award (1972)<br>Scottish Book of the Year (2004) |spouse=Lesley Glaister |website={{URL|https://andrew-greig.weebly.com}} }} '''Andrew Greig''' (born 23 September 1951) is a Scottish poet and novelist whose work has been widely recognised. His work has spanned mountain climbing, the natural world, and historical fiction.
==Biography== Greig was born in Bannockburn, near Stirling, and grew up there and in Anstruther, Fife.<ref>Rush, Christopher, "Elephants in Anstruther: In Search of the Scottish Identity", in Lindsay, Maurice (ed.), ''The Scottish Review: Arts and Environment'' 31, August 1983, pp. 43 - 48, {{issn|0140-0894}}</ref> He first wanted to be a singer-songwriter, travelling to London in search of a record deal and also supporting John Martyn whom he knew through one of his school teachers.<ref name="splbio">{{cite web |title=Andrew Greig |url=https://www.scottishpoetrylibrary.org.uk/poet/andrew-greig/ |website=Scottish Poetry Library |access-date=19 August 2025}}</ref> While still a teenager, having already started writing poetry, he shared some of his writing with the poet Norman MacCaig and travelled from Fife to meet him in Edinburgh.<ref name="sm2010">{{cite news |title=Reeling in the years: Andrew Greig on Norman MacCaig |url=https://www.scotsman.com/arts-and-culture/books/reeling-in-the-years-andrew-greig-on-norman-maccaig-2471936 |access-date=19 August 2025 |work=The Scotsman |date=9 April 2010}}</ref> MacCaig's influence on Greig's career would persist until his death in 1996 and beyond:
{{bquote | I'd never call myself an intimate friend of MacCaig, but he was a role model, a mentor. I liked him, he really mattered to me, and as the years went on after his death, I increasingly missed him and thought about him.<ref name="sm2010" />}}
After school, Greig took various temporary jobs while also writing.<ref name="splbio" /> He then studied philosophy at the University of Edinburgh from 1971, graduating with an MA in 1975.<ref name="le"> {{cite encyclopedia |last=Macdonald |first=Kirsty |title=Andrew Greig |encyclopedia=The Literary Encyclopedia |publisher=The Literary Dictionary Company |location=London |date=18 November 2008 |url=https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=5703 |url-access=subscription |access-date= 19 August 2025}}</ref> After university he worked for a short time in advertising before deciding to concentrate on writing poetry.<ref name="splbio" />
Greig's writing led him to take up mountain climbing, but in 1987 he contracted ME/CFS, which brought that to an end. He continued writing during his illness and was recovered by 1997,<ref name="splbio" /> but in 1999 he was afflicted by a colloid cyst, from which he almost died.<ref name="sm2010" />
Greig is a former Glasgow University Writing Fellow and Scottish Arts Council Scottish/Canadian Exchange Fellow{{Citation needed|date=April 2011}}. He lives in Orkney and Edinburgh and has been married to author Lesley Glaister since 2000.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.umbrella2005.org.uk/speakers/LesleyGlaister.html |title=Lesley Glaister |website=www.umbrella2005.org.uk |access-date=22 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051026225603/http://www.umbrella2005.org.uk/speakers/LesleyGlaister.html |archive-date=26 October 2005 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="splbio" />
==Writing career== Greig published his first book of poetry, ''White Boats'', jointly with Catherine Czerkawska in 1973, while he was still a student. He had been awarded the Eric Gregory Award in the previous year.<ref name="le" /> His next volume, ''Men on Ice'', was published in 1977. That marked Greig's first reference to mountain climbing, although he had not then actually climbed a mountain.<ref name="splbio" />
In 1985, Greig published an account of the successful ascent of the Muztagh Tower in the Himalayas. ''Summit Fever: The Story of an Armchair Climber'' was shortlisted for the 1996 Boardman Tasker Prize for Mountain Literature.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.boardmantasker.com/site/other_years.htm#1996|title=Winning books, shortlisted books and other entries|publisher=Boardman Tasker Prize for Mountain Literature|accessdate=2011-04-23|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110516112607/http://www.boardmantasker.com/site/other_years.htm#1996|archivedate=16 May 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref>
==Awards and nominations==
{| class="wikitable" ! Year !! Title !! Award !! Category !! Result !! {{Abbr|Ref|Reference}}. |- ! 1972 | — | Eric Gregory Award | — | {{won}} | <ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.societyofauthors.org/eric-gregory-past-winners|title=Eric Gregory Past Winners|publisher=Society of Authors|accessdate=2011-04-23|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140327205725/http://societyofauthors.org/eric-gregory-past-winners|archive-date=27 March 2014|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}}</ref> |- ! 1992 | ''Electric Brae: A Modern Romance'' | McVitie's Prize for Scottish Writer of the Year | — | {{sho}} | <ref name="waterstones">{{cite web|url=http://www.waterstones.com/waterstonesweb/navigate.do?pPageID=200000600|title=Andrew Greig|publisher=Waterstone's|accessdate=2011-04-23}}</ref> |- ! rowspan=2 | 1996 | ''Summit Fever: The Story of an Armchair Climber'' | Boardman Tasker Prize for Mountain Literature | — | {{sho}} | <ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.boardmantasker.com/site/other_years.htm#1996|title=Winning books, shortlisted books and other entries|publisher=Boardman Tasker Prize for Mountain Literature|accessdate=2011-04-23|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110516112607/http://www.boardmantasker.com/site/other_years.htm#1996|archivedate=16 May 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref> |- | ''The Return of John MacNab'' | Romantic Novelists' Association Award | — | {{sho}} | <ref name="waterstones"/> |- ! 2004 | ''In Another Light'' | Scottish Book of the Year Award | — | {{won}} | <ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.booksfromscotland.com/Books/Award-Winning-Scottish-Books/Saltire-Society-Literary-Awards|title=Saltire Society Literary Awards - Winning Books|publisher=BooksFromScotland.com|accessdate=2011-04-23}}</ref> |- ! 2014 | ''Fair Helen'' | rowspan=2 | Walter Scott Prize | — | {{sho}} | <ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bordersbookfestival.org/walter-scott-prize/item/256-walter-scott-prize-2014-short-list |title=Walter Scott Prize Shortlist 2014 |publisher=Walter Scott Prize |date=4 April 2014 |accessdate=27 May 2014 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140415074007/http://www.bordersbookfestival.org/walter-scott-prize/item/256-walter-scott-prize-2014-short-list |archivedate=15 April 2014 }}</ref> |- ! 2022 | ''Rose Nicolson'' | — | {{sho}} | <ref name="wsp22">{{cite web |title=Shortlist spotlight – Andrew Greig |url=https://www.walterscottprize.co.uk/shortlist-spotlight-andrew-greig/ |website=The Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction |access-date=19 August 2025 |date=18 May 2022}}</ref> |}
==Published work== ===Poetry=== * {{cite book |last1=Greig |first1=Andrew |last2=Czerkawska |first2=Catherine |author-link2=Catherine Czerkawska |date=1973 |title=White Boats |location=Edinburgh |publisher=Garret Arts}} * {{cite book |last1=Greig |first1=Andrew |author-mask=2 |date=1977 |title=Men on Ice |location=Edinburgh |publisher=Canongate Publishing |isbn=0903937174}} * {{cite book |last1=Greig |first1=Andrew |author-mask=2 |date=1982 |title=Surviving Passages |location=Edinburgh |publisher=Canongate |isbn=0862410258}} * {{cite book |last1=Greig |first1=Andrew |last2=Jamie |first2=Kathleen |author-link2=Kathleen Jamie |date=1986 |title=A Flame in your Heart |location=Newcastle upon Tyne |publisher=Bloodaxe Books |isbn=1852240172}} * {{cite book |last1=Greig |first1=Andrew |author-mask=2 |date=1990 |title=The Order of the Day |location=Newcastle upon Tyne |publisher=Bloodaxe |isbn=1852241020}} * {{cite book |last1=Greig |first1=Andrew |author-mask=2 |date=1994 |title=Western Swing |location=Newcastle upon Tyne |publisher=Bloodaxe |isbn=185224268X}} * {{cite book |last1=Greig |first1=Andrew |author-mask=2 |date=2001 |title=Into You |location=Newcastle upon Tyne |publisher=Bloodaxe |isbn=1852245557}} * {{cite book |last1=Greig |first1=Andrew |author-mask=2 |date=2006 |title=This Life, This Life: New & Selected Poems 1970 - 2006 |location=Newcastle upon Tyne |publisher=Bloodaxe |isbn=978-1852247133}} * {{cite book |last1=Greig |first1=Andrew |author-mask=2 |date=2011 |title=Getting Higher: The Complete Mountain Poems |location=Edinburgh |publisher=Polygon |isbn=978-1846971921}} * {{cite book |last1=Greig |first1=Andrew |author-mask=2 |date=2011 |title=As Though We Were Flying |location=Tarset |publisher=Bloodaxe |isbn=978-1852249168}} * {{cite book |last1=Greig |first1=Andrew |author-mask=2 |date=2013 |title=Found at Sea |location=Edinburgh |publisher=Polygon |isbn=9781846972690}} * {{cite book |last1=Butlin |first1=Ron |author-link1=Ron Butlin |last2=Greig |first2=Andrew |last3=Lochhead |first3=Liz |author-link3=Liz Lochhead |last4=McCabe |first4=Brian |author-link4=Brian McCabe (author) |title=Horns & Wings & Stabiliser Things: The Lost Poets |date=2020 |location=Edinburgh |publisher=Polygon |isbn=978-1846975554}}
===Non-fiction and memoir=== * {{cite book |last1=Greig |first1=Andrew |author-mask=2 |title=Summit Fever: The Story of an Armchair Climber |date=1985 |location=London |publisher=Hutchinson |isbn=0091620600}} * {{cite book |last1=Greig |first1=Andrew |author-mask=2 |title=Kingdoms of Experience: Everest, the Unclimbed Ridge |date=1986 |location=London |publisher=Hutchinson |isbn=009165890X}} * {{cite book |last1=Greig |first1=Andrew |author-mask=2 |title=Preferred Lies: A Journey to the Heart of Scottish Golf |date=2006 |location=London |publisher=Weidenfeld & Nicolson |isbn=978-0297848356}} * {{cite book |last1=Greig |first1=Andrew |author-mask=2 |title=At the Loch of the Green Corrie |date=2010 |location=London |publisher=Quercus |isbn=978-1847249968}} * {{cite book |last1=Heron |first1=Mike |last2=Greig |first2=Andrew |title=You Know What You Could Be: Tuning into the 1960s |date=2017 |location=London |publisher=Quercus |isbn=978-1784293000}}
===Fiction=== * {{cite book |last1=Greig |first1=Andrew |author-mask=2 |title=Electric Brae: A Modern Romance |date=1992 |location=Edinburgh |publisher=Canongate |isbn=0862414040}} * {{cite book |last1=Greig |first1=Andrew |author-mask=2 |title=The Return of John MacNab |date=1996 |location=London |publisher=Headline Review |isbn=0747217041}} * {{cite book |last1=Greig |first1=Andrew |author-mask=2 |title=When They Lay Bare |date=1999 |location=London |publisher=Faber and Faber |isbn=057119687X}} * {{cite book |last1=Greig |first1=Andrew |author-mask=2 |title=That Summer |date=2000 |location=London |publisher=Faber and Faber |isbn=0571204236}} (Published in some markets as ''The Clouds Above: A Novel of Love and War''.) * {{cite book |last1=Greig |first1=Andrew |author-mask=2 |title=In Another Light |date=2004 |location=London |publisher=Weidenfeld & Nicolson |isbn=029784878X}} * {{cite book |last1=Greig |first1=Andrew |author-mask=2 |title=Romanno Bridge |date=2008 |location=London |publisher=Quercus |isbn=978-1847243157}} * {{cite book |last1=Greig |first1=Andrew |author-mask=2 |title=Fair Helen |date=2013 |location=London |publisher=Quercus |isbn=9780857381910}} * {{cite book |last1=Greig |first1=Andrew |author-mask=2 |title=Rose Nicolson |date=2021 |location=London |publisher=Quercus |isbn=9781784292980}}
===Articles=== * {{citation |last1=Greig |first1=Andrew |author-mask=2 |contribution=A White Elephant in Anstruther |title=The Scottish Review: Arts and Environment 32|editor-last=Lindsay |editor-first=Maurice |editor-link=Maurice Lindsay (broadcaster) |date=November 1983}}
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== * [http://www.andrew-greig.weebly.com Andrew Greig's website] * [https://web.archive.org/web/20061017035823/http://www.contemporarywriters.com/authors/?p=auth02D9L380712627427 BAC entry] * [https://web.archive.org/web/20110309013818/http://www.quercusbooks.co.uk/blog/interview-andrew-greig/ Interview with Andrew Greig (2 Dec 2010)]
==Further reading== * {{Citation |last=Rush |first=Christopher |author-link=Christopher Rush (writer) |contribution=Elephants in Anstruther: In Search of the Scottish Identity |editor-last=Lindsay |editor-first=Maurice |title=The Scottish Review: Arts and Environment 31 |date=August 1983 |pages=43–48}} * {{Citation |last=Scott |first=Alexander |author-link=Alexander Scott (20th-century poet) |contribution=Pink Elephants in Anstruther: Scottish Identity |editor-last=Lindsay |editor-first=Maurice |title=The Scottish Review: Arts and Environment 33 |date=February 1984 |pages=3–8}} * {{Citation |last=Corbett |first=John |contribution=The Stalking Cure: John Buchan, Andrew Greig and John Macnab |title=Scot Lit |volume=30 |date=2004 |publisher=Association for Scottish Literary Studies |issn=0957-5499}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Greig, Andrew}} Category:1951 births Category:Living people Category:Scottish writers Category:People associated with Orkney Category:People from Anstruther Category:Alumni of the University of Edinburgh