Known for poetry collections such as Those Were Your Father's and My Dog is a Carrot, Hegley is also famous for his work as a comedian and spoken-word artist. In addition, he hosted poetry-themed television and radio programs titled, respectively, Word of Mouth and Hearing with Hegley. After earning a bachelor's degree from the University of Bradford, he made his first appearance at London's famous Comedy Store. He published his debut poetry collection, Visions of the Bone Idol, in 1984.
