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Gloucester Road Books hosts the acclaimed author and poet, Luke Kennard, who will be discussing his dazzling new novel, Black Bag, with award-winning poet, author and performer, Bristol's very own Stefan Mohamed.

Black Bag sees a penniless and out-of-work actor pick up a job working for Dr Blend, a university professor who is conducting a psychological experiment. How will Dr Blend’s students react to someone zipped into on oversized bag, sitting at the back of the lecture hall over a series of autumn term lectures? The role, eagerly accepted, soon has unexpected consequences. Another professor at the same university develops research questions of her own, in particular can you love someone secreted away inside a black bag? Meanwhile, the actor’s childhood friend and flatmate forms a vision for monetising this new situation.

Join Luke Kennard as he reveals all about this singularly wild, unrestrained and thought-provoking novel.

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"Such a smart and philosophical novel really has no business being this entertaining. Black Bag is hilarious, profound, tender and deranged." Anna Metcalfe

"Black Bag is a masterpiece from one of the best writers at work today. In his endlessly quotable prose, Kennard explores modern masculinity with compassion and brutal honesty, warmth and despair." Joe Dunthorne

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Luke Kennard is an award-winning poet and novelist; he also lectures in Creative Writing at the University of Birmingham. In 2014 he was named one of the ‘Next Generation Poets’ by the Poetry Book Society in their once-per-decade list. Hie poetry and fiction have won or been nominated for numerous prizes including the International Dylan Thomas Prize, the Forward Prize and the Desmond Elliott Prize.

Stefan Mohamed is an award-winning author, poet, performer and creative writing tutor based in Bristol. He is the author of five novels and four books of poetry, with a fifth forthcoming in 2026. He also DJs.

Entry requirements: 16+, any under 18s accompanied by 21+ adult 1:1 ratio — Read more — Read less