POET John Milton, who penned the epic Paradise Lost among other renowned works, has been hailed as among this country's greatest talents. How ironic it is then, that as we approach 400 years since his birth, Milton is becoming "increasingly unread" by the public.

That's the view of current Poet Laureate Andrew Motion, who arrives at the Chalfont St Giles and Jordans Literary Festival in a fortnight. This year's event celebrates the life of Milton, who came to Chalfont St Giles for a brief period to escape the Great Plague.

Andrew, who has won many awards for his work and was appointed Poet Laureate in 1999, rates Milton "alongside Shakespeare and Wordsworth."

The 55-year-old, who currently lives in north London, explains: "Milton's work really is quite hard to match. Just reading his poetry aloud is enough to grind people to a halt.

"But there's no doubt that he is quite hard to access. Certainly university teachers and academics find him easier to deal with than the everyman.

"I think what's important to recognise is that not all poetry is immediately accessible, you might just have to work at the poems a bit. But once you do, you can see just how rich they truly are.

He adds: "Today's society sees Milton as elitist because of this, but in reality he was quite a profound democratic and a liberal."

Making poetry accessible to everyone has always been a top priority for Andrew, who ends his term as Poet Laureate next year. He explains: "It matters very much to me that poetry is available to everyone. I've noticed that youngsters at primary school level rarely have a problem with poetry, but as they get older it seems irrelevant to them.

"That always distresses me, but I think it's very much to do with the way poetry is taught.

"In my mind there's no real difference with a teenager going home and learning all the lyrics to the latest Arctic Monkeys song. If they enjoy that, then they would enjoy poetry. There's a lot of work yet to be done to change people's attitudes."

He adds: "It's not that I think poetry is for everyone, but people should have the chance to at least decide for themselves."

Andrew tells me it was actually his own school experience, at Radley College in Oxfordshire, where his interest in poetry first developed.

"My background was that there were no books at all," says Andrew. "My father rarely read, while my mother read a little, so there was certainly no expectation that I would, and I probably wouldn't have but for my brilliant English teacher, Peter Way.

"He came into the classroom one day and told us to open our books at a poem by Thomas Hardy. We read Look Into My Glass, and I felt the words go through me like a spear.

"I think whatever happened to me that day has stayed with me all these years.

"What appealed most to me about Hardy's words were that they very simple, but strong and profound.

"I wanted my own poetry to be just like that. Something that looks like water, but tastes like gin."

Since becoming Poet Laureate, Andrew has marked special state events with a poem, including an elegy for the Queen Mother. He has also written poems reflecting issues of public concern, including the Paddington rail disaster and a protest at the invasion of Iraq.

But it is for his Poetry Archive, which he established on the web three years ago, that Andrew says he is most proud.

"Last month alone 120,000 people looked at more than one million pages - that's incredible," enthuses Andrew. "When I look back at my time as Poet Laureate, I'll be most pleased I have left that archive for everyone to enjoy."

Andrew Motion - An evening with the Poet Laureate arrives on Thursday, May 15, 7.30pm, at Chalfont St Giles Parish Church. Tickets: 01494 873966

WHO WAS JOHN MILTON?

English poet, prose polemicist, staunch republican and civil servant John Milton was born on December 9, 1608 in London to John, a successful scrivener, and Sarah Jeffrey.

In 1629, when Milton was 21 years old, he wrote a short poem, "On the morning of Christ's Nativity," which is his first memorable work and still widely read today at Christmas.

Milton was married three times throughout his life. He had four children with his first wife, Mary Powell, but she left him soon after, prompting him to write his famous essays on divorce. His second wife, Katherine Woodcock, died in 1658 and for her memory Milton devoted the sonnet, To His Late Wife. In the 1660's, Milton married Elizabeth Minshull, a much younger woman.

He was a staunch republican and supported the trial and execution of Charles I. During the Commonwealth, Milton was appointed Latin Secretary to the Council of State and also wrote poems praising Oliver Cromwell, Thomas Fairfax and Henry Vane. After the Restoration, his works were burnt in public and he went into hiding In 1665 Milton moved to a cottage in Chalfont St Giles to escape the Plague. The building is the only known residence belonging to Milton that still stands.

Milton spent less than a year at the cottage, but while there he completed his best known work, Paradise Lost, as well as developed Paradise Regained.

John Milton died aged 73, of gout, on November 8, 1674.