Andrew Motion, UK Poet Laureate 1999-2009

Stephen Sackur talks to newsmakers and personalities from across the globe.

The UK's newly retired poet laureate, Andrew Motion, held the post for ten years. His replacement, Carol Ann Duffy, is the country's first female poet laureate and joins a pantheon that includes Wordsworth, Tennyson and Betjeman. The post brings a yearly income of 5000 pounds and gallons of sherry, but in an age defined by digital technology, not deference, what on earth is the poet laureate for?