In The World Unmade Frank Ormsby explores the poetic diversity of Northern Ireland, with a particular focus on the poetry of the Troubles. He draws on his own experience as editor of a literary magazine and a number of anthologies. He also explores the structuring of his next collection, The Tumbling Paddy, which extends the range of his most recent poems.

He retains a sharp eye for the absurdities and fragilities of history, as well as its impact on the present. The Ireland Chair of Poetry was established in 1998 following the award of the Nobel Prize of Literature to Seamus Heaney and is supported by Queen’s University Belfast, Trinity College Dublin, University College Dublin, the Arts Council of Northern Ireland and the Arts Council 1/An Chomhairle Ealaion. Other poets in the series include Eilean Ni Chuilleanain, John Montague, Paul Durcan, Nuala Ni Dhomhnaill, Michael Longley, Harry Clifton and Paula Meehan.