A report on the 50th anniversary of the Leeds West Indian Carnival.

At @hayfestival.bsky.social? Don't miss @colincraiggrant.bsky.social hosting We Were There Salon ‪@lanre-bakare.bsky.social Pauline Black OBE, and Malika Booker will be reflecting on the under-reported cultural impact of Black people who have lived outside of London with Daudi Matsiko bit.ly/4mP9RHN

Heading to @hayfestival.bsky.social? Don't miss Ekow Eshun @colincraiggrant.bsky.social, Bonnie Greer, Vanessa Kisuule on Weds 28 May as they discuss the legacy of Malcolm X with music from Tony Njoku bit.ly/3HaRjBb

'"The maxim I live by is if I let something out into the world I have to love it."' @kitdewaal.com speaks to @colincraiggrant.bsky.social #InConversation bit.ly/44XXD9h

'Malcolm X - By Any Means Necessary' @writersmosaic.bsky.social Edited by @colincraiggrant.bsky.social & featuring texts by Bonnie Greer, Vayu Naidu, Vanessa Kisuule, Ekow Eshun, Max Farrar, Ella Sinclair, Franklin Nelson, and myself. writersmosaic.org.uk/content/malc... #malcolmx #books

Each issue of Wasafiri has a special art feature on a trailblazing visual artist; in our latest, Wasafiri 121, scholar Phoebe Braithwaite interviews Turner Prize-nominated painter Claudette Johnson. They discuss figuration, Toni Morrison, and more... To read the full interview, order Wasafiri 121.

Discover how to transform your will-to-write into compelling fiction during this immersive and energising writing week. 📅Monday April 28th - Saturday May 3rd 2025 📍The Hurst, Shropshire ✅Book now: www.arvon.org/writing-cour... @sharonduggal.bsky.social

Join us if you can for a creative week in a magical Arvon setting nestled in the beautiful Shropshire countryside. Expect craft-enhancing tools, strategies, top tips & practical exercises to support your writing journey, plus bags of inspiration to keep you going along the way. Bursaries available.

Met one of my all time heroes last night! At @writersmosaic.bsky.social organised by #GabrielGbadamosi #GaryYounge #Legend Was in conversation with Bonnie Greer, Colin Grant, Vanessa Kisuule re: #MalcolmX Falle Nioke sang us 4 Mandinke songs in at least 5 languages @britishlibrary.bsky.social

For the centenary of Malcolm X’s birth, in collaboration with @britishlibrary.bsky.social and the Eccles Institute, we gathered writers and performers to explore Malcolm X's legacy as a resistance leader, missed it? You can watch again here bit.ly/4hxSRSP

Bella Denise shares her cultural highlights on #MyHitList: the band The Smile, Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart, Mike Leigh’s film Naked, Shane Meadow’s TV series This is England, and Steve McQueen's remembrance of the tragedy of the Grenfell Tower bit.ly/43Ye84r

In episode 32 of #WhatWeLeaveWeCarry, the series that tells the true-life stories of migration to the UK, Joanna Surowiec found that performing stand-up comedy led her to create a deeper understanding of British culture and a closer connection to people bit.ly/4kRd0FM

The #BrixtonBard remembered. Writer Alex Wheatle has died. We pay tribute to Alex with a remembrance of his appearance at the 2023 @ilkleylitfest with Susan Pitter and Colin Grant bit.ly/4iq2nIw

The actor, singer and writer Renu Arora talks to Sita Brahmachari about her creative life, her connection with Frida Kahlo, and the creation of The Burgundy Book #InConversation bit.ly/3Ylkffr

Shamshad Khan talks to John Siddique about her journey as a poet, as well as poetry as the art of silence
 and about the word and how it relates to the truth of our bodies. #InConversation bit.ly/3G9TzIh

In 2022 Hanif Kureishi, best known for his novel the Buddha of Suburbia, suffered a terrible accident which left him with paralysing spinal injuries. Chitra Ramaswamy talks to Ruvani Ranasinha and Mohammed Hanif about his extraordinary career bit.ly/4jqE3qa

Loved chairing and participating in this discussion of the great Hanif Kureishi with his official biographer @ruvaniranasinha.bsky.social and Mohammed Hanif for @writersmosaic.bsky.social introduced by @colincraiggrant.bsky.social listen here: open.spotify.com/episode/75lx...

A living archive for migration stories - @colincraiggrant.bsky.social speaks to journalist Ella Sinclair about complicating ‘the dominant picture that we have of Britain’ and challenging pervasive anti-immigration rhetoric for @runnymedetrust.bsky.social bit.ly/4co10YG

Enjoyed speaking about my biography of Hanif Kureishi with Mohammed Hanif and @chitgrrl.bsky.social @writersmosaic.bsky.social @colincraiggrant.bsky.social @manchesterup.bsky.social open.spotify.com/episode/75lx...

Great to see @hayfestival.bsky.social programme now live, if you scroll down you can find us in the past re-imagined: @ekoweshun.bsky.social, @colincraiggrant.bsky.social, Bonnie Greer and Vanessa Kisuule will explore the global legacy of Malcolm X as a resistance leader, story here bit.ly/41HOe24

For the centenary of his birth, in a collab with @britishlibrary.bsky.social, we gathered writers Bonnie Greer, Gary Younge, Vanessa Kisuule, Fallé Nioke & @colincraiggrant.bsky.social to explore the global legacy of Malcolm X as a resistance leader bit.ly/4hxSRSP - video highlights coming soon

“If my parents’ generation...did not attend to their children’s emotional needs, neither did they attend to, or interrogate, their own emotional needs.” — @colincraiggrant.bsky.social on the Windrush generation of Caribbeans in England

Colin Grant (@colincraiggrant.bsky.social) on the BBC series Mr Loverman and the lives of the Windrush generation

A treat for you - The prologue from Negro with a Hat (read by me), a celebration of an extraordinary man whose death was prematurely announced and whose obituaries killed him. writersmosaic.org.uk/content/marc...

Garvey’s incarceration was a travesty which, as intended by Hoover, destroyed the UNIA.  ✍️ Colin Grant

At last! Marcus Garvey is pardoned. My take in the @thespectator1828.bsky.social on removing the stigma from Marcus Garvey's name. I hoped Obama would have done so but he bottled it. This week Joe Biden did the right thing! www.spectator.co.uk/article/joe-...

Oh it's PLR day. The day when writers in UK get a little something meaningful for their books being borrowed by #library readers. Thank you everyone who has borrowed a #book of mine this year Most borrowed book...

Incredibly happy! I was selected, amongst six writers, for a two-week retreat in Italy; May 2025, with Writers Mosaic/The Royal Literary Fund, in partnership with the Hawthornden Foundation!

This was a great event - loved hearing from @jaseokundaye.bsky.social and Colin Grant. Thank you Jason for reminding us about what Baldwin had to say about Palestine. For those interested in how Baldwin's opinions about the state of Israel evolved, check out this pod: www.npr.org/2024/08/28/1...

An artist you should know m.youtube.com/watch?v=fmpf...

The new issue of Military History Matters is out today including a feature by me on William Robinson Clarke, Britain’s first Black combat pilot.

New job for Royal Literary Fund and WritersMosaic starts tomorrow. If you are a professional writer in the North of UK. Watch this space. I must acclimate to a new role and make it mine, but I'll be bringing the goodies and the opportunities.

Naturally, all the meditation and sacred work continue as usual. This new expression feels tailor-made for me to support literature and writers in ways that truly matter. Stay tuned for insights, behind-the-scenes glimpses, and updates as this unfolds. With gratitude and ink, John

I’ll need time to acclimate and make this role my own, but I’ll be bringing the goodies and opportunities: Lit Fests, Publishers, Bookshops, Art Venues, do reach out.

A New Chapter Begins Today, I’m stepping into a newly created role with the royalliteraryfund and writersmosaic as their Project Coordinator for the north of the UK. If you’re a professional writer based in the North —watch this space!

Latest from me on @carylphillips.bsky.social powerful new novel www.theguardian.com/books/2025/j...

My review in the @thetls.bsky.social of Nickel Boys, an excellent film www.the-tls.co.uk/arts/film/ni...

Interview with #nikkigiovanni conducted earlier this year by @colincraiggrant.bsky.social for WritersMosaic / Royal Literary Fund writersmosaic.org.uk/content/nikk... #poetry #books

My appreciation of 'Talawa' Nikki Giovanni www.theguardian.com/books/2024/d...

The second Italian WritersMosaic writing retreat. And there will be more to come. Check out WritersMosaic for news of other upcoming retreats writersmosaic.org.uk/content/clem...

Amazing to be part of the very first @standrewsbookfest.bsky.social talking about Homelands and my dear friend Henry Wuga with his daughter and my father in the room. Special.

Extraordinarily empathic writing by Ekow Eshun. For me, to turn the final page and close the book, is to be enveloped by a resonant, companionable silence. www.theguardian.com/books/2024/n...

Today! Please do come if you happen to be around in London. It's a brand new book festival...

On Health Check @bbcworldservice this week the health crisis in Sudan, the ticks that might carry disease hitching lifts on migrating birds and can hot chocolate really improve your vascular health? www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...

WritersMosaic now has a podcast series, What we leave we carry for it oral history of migration series open.spotify.com/show/6656sbH...

My @theguardian.com TV review of Rage Against the Regime: Iran. www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio...

Fab @chitgrrl.bsky.social is appearing at St Andrews Book. Festival on Saturday. It's going to be superb. Grab a ticket while you can www.ticketsource.co.uk/standrewsboo...