Authors
Amadou and Mariam
Amadou Bagayoko and Mariam Doumbia met at an institute for young blind people in Bamako, Mali, and fell in love both musically and romantically. Following several years of performing and releasing cassettes in the their native West Africa, they went on to become stars of the international stage with a string of best selling albums.
Michael Nath
Michael Nath was brought up in South Wales and Lincolnshire. He is a lecturer in English at the University of Westminster. His major teaching and research interests are in Modernism, as well as in Shakespearean Drama. He has published widely on Wyndham Lewis, in various book collections and journals.
La Rochelle is his first novel. His stories also feature in Wonderwall, Ideas Above our Station, Bonne Route and The Route Book at Bedtime.
Paul Laverty
Paul Laverty has written the screenplays for several full length feature films directed by Ken Loach: including Sweet Sixteen (2002) – winner of Best Original Screenplay at Cannes, The Wind That Shakes the Barley (2006) – winner of the Palme d’Or at Cannes and It’s A Free World (2007) – winner of Best Original Screenplay at Venice Film Festival.
Ramón Chao
Ramón Chao (born 1935 in Vilalba, Lugo) is a Galician writer who emigrated to France in 1956. He was chief editor for the Latin American service of Radio France Internationale, and wrote for for Le Monde and Le Monde diplomatique. In 1984 he created the Prix Juan Rulfo award for new Spanish language writers. He is the father of singer Manu Chao and radio maker Antoine Chao.
Ian Clayton
Ian Clayton is a jobbing writer, story teller and broadcaster. He loves books, films and music. He is a traveller, a collector, a gatherer and is passionate about finding the voice of the common people. He still lives in the town where he was born and lists his hobbies as tap-room conversation and gentle subversion. Amongst other things he is a recognised authority on the life and works of Billie Holiday, has a fondness for the comedy songs of George Formby and aspires to play blues harmonica like Jimmy Reed.
Ken Loach
Ken Loach was born in 1936 in Nuneaton. He attended King Edward VI Grammar School and went on to study law at St. Peter’s Hall, Oxford. After a brief spell in the theatre, Loach was recruited by the BBC in 1963 as a television director. This launched a long career directing films for television and the cinema, from Cathy Come Home and Kes in the sixties to Land And Freedom, Sweet Sixteen and The Wind That Shakes The Barley, Looking For Eric and Route Irish in recent years.
M Y Alam
M Y Alam is the author of two novels, Annie Potts is Dead and Kilo, has had several short stories published and is the editor of Made in Bradford. He is a researcher and teacher at the University of Bradford working in the Department of Social Sciences and Humanities.
Mark Gwynne Jones
Mark Gwynne Jones is a poet who works in film, on stage, in print and with music. During his travels Mark has sold poetry to the CIA, won The National Trust Poetry Competition and thrice won the Buxton Festival Fringe. He currently tours with The Psychicbread providing an unforgettable show of music and poetry.
Anne Caldwell
Anne is the editor of Some Girls’ Mothers, which also features her story ‘Visit to the Psychotherapist’. Her first poetry collection Slug Language was published in 2008 by Happenstance.
Anthony Cropper
Anthony Cropper is the author of the short story collection Nature’s Magician and has published two novels, Jack and Sal and Weatherman. He has co-edited three collections of short stories, Next Stop Hope, Naked City and Wonderwall. In 2005 his play, I’ll Tell You About Love, won the BBC Alfred Bradley Award for Radio Drama.