Gerrit Jan Komrij (30 March 1944 – 5 July 2012[1]) was a Dutch poet, novelist, translator, critic, polemic journalist and playwright.

He acquired a reputation for his prose in the late 1970s, writing acerbic essays and columns often critical of writers, television programs, and politicians.

In 1968 his first volume of poetry was published, Maagdenburgse halve bollen en andere gedichten, and in 1969 he became editor of the Bert Bakker-founded literary magazine Maatstaf.[4].

In the 1970s and 1980s, Komrij and his partner Charles Hofman befriended a number of Dutch authors including Boudewijn Büch, with whom he maintained a lengthy correspondence.

[8] Komrij wrote librettos to two operas: Symposium by Peter Schat (1994), and Melodias Estranhas by Antonio Chagas Rosa (2000).

Besides being a critic of poetry and culture in general, Komrij wrote several semi-autobiographical works, including Verwoest Arcadië ('Arcadia Demolished', 1980) and Demonen ('Demons', 2003).