Roy Foster

Books by Roy Foster

Roy Foster, Emeritus Professor of Irish History at Oxford, is a well-known
cultural commentator and critic. His many prizewinning books include Modern
Ireland 1600-1972, Paddy and Mr Punch, The Irish Story: telling tales and making
it up in Ireland, the two-volume authorised biography of W.B.Yeats, Vivid Faces:
the revolutionary generation in Ireland 1890-1923 and On Seamus Heaney. A
Fellow of the British Academy, an Honorary Member of the Royal Irish Academy,
and the holder of several honorary degrees, he received the President’s
Distinguished Service Award in 2021 and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the
An Post Irish Book Awards in 2023.

Interviews with Roy Foster

The Best Historical Biography: The 2025 Elizabeth Longford Prize, recommended by Roy Foster

A good historical biography should help us redefine and rethink what makes a person historically significant, says Roy Foster, chair of the judging panel of the Elizabeth Longford Prize. He talks us through the brilliant books that made the 2025 shortlist, including the lives of various monarchs who left their mark on European history, a portrait of an early modern spymaster, and a biography of Frantz Fanon, the anti-colonial writer.  

Interviews where books by Roy Foster were recommended

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