Andrew was born near Barnsley, South Yorkshire.  He studied at University of Lancaster and University College London. Andrew is Senior Lecturer in Creative Writing at Manchester Metropolitan University. His debut collection, Physical, was published by Jonathan Cape in 2015, for which he won The Guardian First Book Award, the first collection of poetry to ever do so. Physical also won the Somerset Maugham Award and Fenton Aldeburgh First Collection Prize. His second collection, playtime, was published by Jonathan Cape in 2018, and won the inaugural Polari Prize. His third collection, Pandemonium, published by Jonathan Cope in 201 was a ‘Books of 2021’ pick in The Guardian, Financial Times and Irish Culture, as well as Poetry Book of the Month for The Observer.

Andrew also co-edited 100 Queer Poems with Mary Jean Chan in 2022, the first major anthology of its kind, 100 Queer Poems has been described as “a diverse and gratifying new anthology of LGBTQ+ verse… this is an abundantly rich and rewarding collection, capturing how queer poets and their work speak to one another across generations” (Attitude Magazine). To celebrate the publication of 100 Queer Poems we created the Speak Its Name collection, which you can click here to explore.