Shows
The Obsessive DiaryIn conversation with Kit de WaalSubscribe to Kit de Waal : This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit eleanoranstruther.substack.com/subscribe
2025-09-171h 06
BookclubKit de WaalPresented by James Naughtie, BBC Radio 4's Bookclub, speaks to the award-winning writer Kit de Waal about her heart-rending debut novel, My Name Is Leon. Published in 2016 by Penguin it's the story of two brothers separated after one is adopted. The book, now taught on the curriculum in English schools, takes us back to 1980s Birmingham, and while brothers Leon and Jake share the same mother, Carol, their futures look very different. Jake is adopted, while Leon remains in foster care. The story follows Leon over the course of one difficult year in his life, and when he's given...
2025-08-0328 min
Author's Afterword125: Paul McVeigh (I Hear You)Charlie and Paul McVeigh (I Hear You) discuss Paul's time writing stories for the BBC, being an emotional writer, and a traumatic medical experience that has had a big effect on some of his work. Please note there are two incredibly mild swear words in this episode. General references: BBC Writers Room, now BBC Writers Paul's play is called Big Man Paul's blog post about tips from Heather Larmour Books mentioned by name or extensively: Kit de Waal: My Name Is Leon Kit de Waal (ed.): Common People
2025-07-2841 min
Therapy WorksLive from Stratford Literary Festival: Kit de Waal on Friendship, Fear & Finding FreedomIn this live episode of Hurt to Healing, Julia Samuel is joined by acclaimed author and advocate Kit de Waal for a powerful conversation about friendship, fear, and the patterns we inherit from childhood. With her signature blend of candour and compassion, Kit opens up about the painful unravelling of a close friendship and how it stirred echoes of her early life — growing up with a strict Jamaican Jehovah’s Witness father and a fiery Irish Catholic mother. She reflects on the emotional survival tactics that shaped her, the fierce loyalty of her siblings, and the way fear and secre...
2025-06-1150 min
The Women's PodcastKit de Waal on identity and belonging / Starving children of GazaThis week, we’re joined by the brilliant Kit de Waal novelist, memoirist, and fierce advocate for working-class voices in literature. In conversation with Roisin Ingle, de Waal discusses her powerful new novel The Best of Everything, set in 1970s and 1980s England, which follows the interwoven lives of a single mother, her son, and their neighbours as they navigate grief, love, and survival.Best known for her acclaimed debut My Name is Leon, de Waal also shares insights from her 2022 memoir Without Warning and Only Sometimes, where she recounts her unconventional upbringing as the daughter of a...
2025-05-221h 04
WritersMosaic - In conversationKit De Waal in conversation with Colin GrantColin Grant talks with the novelist, short story writer and essayist, Kit De Waal about her latest novel, The Best of Everything. Kit De Waal in conversation with Colin Grant is an original audio series by WritersMosaic Magazine from the Royal Literary Fund. Discover more new writing at WritersMosaic.org.uk
2025-05-0800 min
Namaste Motherf**kersBeautiful Thing with Kit de WaalIn this episode, Cally talks to best-selling author Kit de Waal about rejection, getting published, reading, writing, social mobility, religion, racism, self-esteem, identity, adoption, motherhood and relationships.Instagram: @kitdewaalKit’s books and moreGet tickets for Cally’s Tour More about Cally Order Cally's Book Produced by Mike Hanson for Pod People Productions Music by Jake Yapp Cover design by Jaijo Part...
2025-04-101h 03
Crisis What Crisis?Bonus Episode: Kit De Waal's Crisis CompassBestselling author Kit de Waal has built a career writing stories that capture the reality of life on the margins, but her own story is just as compelling. Growing up in 1970s Birmingham with an Irish Catholic-turned-Jehovah's Witness mother and a Caribbean father, Kit learned early on that survival meant adaptation. Kit's mother’s dire warnings of an impending apocalypse pushed her into rebellion, leading to a breakdown that ultimately brought her home and set her on a new path in social care, advocating for children in the care system before becoming a bestselling author.Here is Ki...
2025-04-0804 min
Bookshelfie: Women’s Prize PodcastBookshelfie: Kit de WaalAccomplished writer and this year’s Chair of Judges for the 2025 Women’s Prize for Fiction Kit de Waal talks to Vick about her memoir, the value of audiobooks and why we need to see more writing about women in mid life.
Kit de Waal has written novels for adults and young adults, short stories and her memoir Without Warning and Only Sometimes was published in 2022. Her debut novel My Name is Leon was an international bestseller; in 2022 it was adapted for television by the BBC and it is now on the GCSE curriculum. She is founder of the T...
2025-04-0157 min
Crisis What Crisis?Kit de Waal on rebellion, redemption and making crisis countBestselling author Kit de Waal has built a career writing stories that capture the reality of life on the margins, but her own story is just as compelling. Growing up in 1970s Birmingham with an Irish Catholic-turned-Jehovah's Witness mother and a Caribbean father, Kit learned early on that survival meant adaptation. Kit's mother’s dire warnings of an impending apocalypse pushed her into rebellion, leading to a breakdown that ultimately set her on a new path advocating for children in the care system before becoming a bestselling novelist.In this episode, Kit shares how she transformed personal cr...
2025-04-011h 09
explore words discover worldsS2 EP40: Kit De Waal In ConversationIn this episode, step into the vividly colourful and wildly contrasting world of bestselling author, Kit De Waal, as she shares her captivating memoir. Iman Amrani will lead you on a journey through De Waal’s childhood, growing up in a household that defied convention and expectation.
2024-05-151h 01
Pen to Print - Podcasts for Aspiring WritersAn interview with novelist Kit De Waal: Write On! Audio WeeklyThank you for listening to Write On! Audio, the podcast for writers everywhere brought to you by Pen to Print
Our interview this month is with British / Irish writer and broadcaster Kit De Waal. Born in Birmingham to an Irish mother and Caribbean father, she initially pursued a career in law working alongside foster carers and the social care sector before turning to writing and broadcasting. Her debut novel ‘My Name Is Leon’ was shortlisted for the Costa Book award. Her short fiction has been nominated for - and won - numerous prizes. Soon after the publi...
2024-04-2337 min
Medicine UnboxedMATTER - Kit De Waal - SKIN"One of the pods hangs low, right next to Leon’s face. Inside are five tiny black seeds, smaller than his little fingernail. He picks one out and holds it up to the sun."
Kit de Waal was born in Birmingham to an Irish mother, who was a childminder and foster carer and a Caribbean father. She worked for fifteen years in criminal and family law, was a magistrate for several years and sits on adoption panels. She used to advise Social Services on the care of foster children, and has written training manuals on adoption, foster care and judgecraft fo...
2024-04-0217 min
Point Of ViewPoint of View with Kit De Waal
🎙️ Listen to Anne O Neill talk to best selling author Kit De Waal about her scintillating life story , born in Birmingham in 1960 to an Irish mother and a Caribbean father Kit's remarkable trajectory from disenchanted youth to magistrate and mother and onwards to attaining literary success in her 50's with the publication of My Name is Leon,is an uplifting one told with Kit's northern sass and humour.
2024-03-3137 min
A Good Kind of ScaryEP 52: Kit de Waal: It's never too late to tell your story.I am so excited to share today's discussion with award-winning writer Kit De Waal. Kit shares what it was like growing up in Birmingham with an Irish mother and an African-Caribbean father, and the process of rewriting her story in a memoir. We discuss the struggles of being from a working-class background when pursuing a career as a writer and how a key component to wellbeing is having someone believe in you and your ambitions. We chat about the multiple ways that stories can be told aside from writing and how snobbery to this is what prevents...
2024-01-3146 min
Tiny In All That AirChris Sewart and Phil PullenIn this episode we talk to Beverley based poet Chris Sewart in his second appearance on Tiny in All That Air, and Phil Pullen, trustee of the PLS, who regular listeners will be familiar with from a number of previous episodes. We talk about Chris's poetry and his upcoming performance as the 'warm up' for Roger McGough in Beverley next year (details below). We also discuss Phil's new project for the PLS You-Tube account documenting the Larkin Trail. We end the episode considering three poems from High Windows- The Explosion, Livings and Forget What Did- as we look ahead...
2023-11-171h 42
Mixed UpKit de Waal on how others' perception of her identity has no bearing on her realityThe one where you put the key in the door and you're home The theme for this year's Black History Month is Salute Your Sisters, and this week Emma and Nicole are joined by the highly celebrated Kit de Waal for Mixed Up Book Club. Kit's critically acclaimed novel, My Name is Leon, about a mixed-race, nine-year-old boy who ends up in care in the 1980s was recently adapted for screen. Her memoir, Without Warning and Only Sometimes is about growing up poor in between three worlds, Irish, Caribbean and British in 1960s Birmingham. Preorder...
2023-10-2551 min
ForthwriteKIT DE WAALJoin us for this brand new series of Writing Around The Kids Podcast, to kick us off we chat with the ever so wonderful Kit de Waal. Listen for her reading from My Name Is Leon and a valuable insight into what makes her tick as a writer.
Kit de Waal, born to an Irish mother and Caribbean father, was brought up among the Irish community of Birmingham in the ‘60s and ‘70s.
Her debut novel My Name Is Leon was an international bestseller, shortlisted for the Costa First Novel Award, longlisted for the Desmond Elliott Prize and won the Kerr...
2023-10-0630 min
North Cornwall Book FestivalKit De Waal - NCBF 2022Kit de Waal, author of the runaway bestseller, My Name is Leon, talks to legendary publisher Lennie Goodings about her funny-ouch memoir of her Jehovah’s Witness girlhood, Without Warning and Only Sometimes.
2023-07-1655 min
Viva Natural Health#175 Flöka App, Benefits of Tracking, Wearables & The Future Of Healthcare with Vanessa De WaalVanessa De Waal is the founder of Flöka - the all-in-one platform & app for women’s health. It integrates with tons of other apps & devices you might be using separately & brings all that info together so you can see clearly what maybe is/isn’t working.
Her intention is to accelerate the rate at which women heal themselves, sustainably - at the root. Whether it's through the Go-Deeper Podcast she hosts, or the technology she co-creates with her community, the intention is always to first and foremost help people. It started with her own chronic health issue...
2023-06-261h 01
the attention span03 - The Possibility of an EncounterWelcome to issue three of The Attention Span Newsletter by me, Canan “Ja’anan” Marasligil. I’m a writer, a literary translator, an artist and a curator of cultural programmes based in Amsterdam.Every other week, I take the time to reflect and offer a glimpse of how I see the world through the lens of culture, art, translation, poetry and literature. Each issue has a short essay, a nerdy look at translation, a page from one of my notebooks, a list of things to read, watch or listen to, and a highlight from my archives. This...
2023-06-0716 min
Private PassionsKit de WaalAuthor Kit de Waal was brought up in a working class family in the Moseley suburb of Birmingham in the 1960s and 70s. She talks to Michael Berkeley about how reading wasn’t part of her childhood; she didn’t discover a love of books until much later in life. Her bestselling first novel, My Name is Leon, written in her 40s, draws on her own childhood experiences and her early career as a legal worker in the foster care system, and she devoted some of the proceeds to setting up a scholarship for aspiring authors from working class back...
2023-06-0435 min
Yours Sincerely with Jess PhillipsKit De WaalCan you imagine growing up without celebrations?For author and screenwriter Kit De Waal this was the norm, after her mother decided to become a Jehovah's witness.In this episode, Kit and Jess chat about why they love receiving handwritten letters, their love for Birmingham and TV writer Sally Wainwright's portrayal of the working class on British television.Follow the podcast at @jessphillipspod to keep up with the latest episodes and share your letters of gratitude using the hashtag: #JessPhillipsPod.Trigger Warning: This contains discussions of substance...
2023-04-1340 min
BacklistedSo Long, See You Tomorrow by William Maxwell - rerunJohn introduces a rerun of an episode from November 2016, where Costa First Book nominee for My Name Is Leon, Kit de Waal joins John & Andy to discuss So Long, See You Tomorrow, the final novel by author and New Yorker literary editor William Maxwell.Rough Timings: 11'27 - You Took the Last Bus Home: The Poems of Brian Bilston17'43 - My Name Is Leon by Kit de Waal24'47 - So Long, See You Tomorrow by William Maxwell* To purchase any of the books mentioned in t...
2023-04-041h 06
The Writing LifeThe Martineau Lecture with Kit De WaalAs part of the annual Norfolk and Norwich Festival we run a series of events called City of Literature. A central part of our programme is the Harriett Martineau Lecture which celebrates the legacy of a remarkable, world-changing woman by inviting globally-renowned radical speakers to respond to her life and work.
In 2022, we were excited to welcome bestselling novelist, memoirist and literary activist Kit de Waal - presenting the lecture in the beautiful environs of the Spiegeltent. Kit gave a thought-provoking lecture covering a range of topics, including human rights, equality, hunger and, as she calls it, ‘co...
2023-03-2047 min
The Shift with Sam BakerKit de Waal on race, class – and her exceedingly cool hair! - THE SHIFT REVISITEDOver the Christmas period and into January I'm going to be replaying some of my quiet favourite episodes of 2022. This week is the brilliantly outspoken author Kit de Waal. This episode first aired in July.---Today’s guest is the award-winning writer, Kit De Waal. Until she was 21, Kit had never read a book voluntarily. But once she started there was no stopping her. Kit started writing in her mid-40s and published her award-winning debut, My Name Is Leon, at 56. Since then she has used her success to work tirelessly to promote the vo...
2023-01-1757 min
Colli'r PlotSgen I'm Syniad... am 'doligTrafod llyfrau da ni wedi bod yn darllen a beth sydd ar ein rhestr ar gyfer Siôn Corn.Dyma restr ddarllen o'r cyfrolau a drafodwyd yn y bennod:Rhedeg i Parys - Llwyd OwenO Glust i Glust - Llwyd OwenHouse Arrest - Alan Bennett Sgen i'm syniad - Gwenllian EllisSblash! - Branwen Davies. Without warning and only sometimes- Kit de WaalSix Foot Six - Kit de WaalLlyfr Bach y Tŷ Bach - gol. Bethan GwanasRhwng Cwsg ac Effro - Irma Chilton
2022-12-1557 min
Oh My Lit!Tea time with TanuIn this episode, we focus on our co host Tanuja Shelar's journey into publishing from India, her reading recommendations and her take on 'moving on with life'.This episode's book recommendations:My Name is Leon by Kit De WaalCommon People by Kit De WaalBecoming by Michelle ObamaBorn a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood by Trevor NoahKololo Hill by Neema ShahAt Night All Blood is Black by David DropHalf a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi AdichieThis is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar, Max Gladstone
2022-11-0147 min
Two Lit ChicksConversation with Kit De WaalKit de Waal, born to an Irish mother and Caribbean father, was brought up among the Irish community of Birmingham in the 60s and 70s. Her debut novel My Name Is Leon was an international bestseller, shortlisted for the Costa First Novel Award, longlisted for the Desmond Elliott Prize and won the Kerry Group Irish Novel of the Year Award for 2017. In 2022 it was adapted for television by the BBC. Her second novel, The Trick to Time, was long-listed for the Women's Prize and her young adult novel Becoming Dinah was shortlisted for t...
2022-10-1753 min
How To Own The RoomKit de Waal, WriterHow do you find your authentic voice? Viv Groskop talks to the writer, Kit de Waal, who found success later in life with her book My Name is Leon. Kit tells Viv how she reconciled the different parts of her Birmingham childhood, born to an Irish mother and African-Caribbean father, in her recent memoir - Without Warning and Only Sometimes: Scenes from an Unpredictable Childhood. Not expecting to even make it into adulthood, Kit says that every day has been a bonus. Although she was brought up in the 'oppressive and joyless' Jehovah Witness religion, she tells Viv how...
2022-09-3034 min
Second Captains SaturdayKit de WaalWith two episodes to go in this series of Second Captains Saturday, novelist Kit de Waal will be looking to dethrone Fiona Shaw, who currently sits atop the Greatest Non-Sportsperson Sportsperson leaderboard. She joins Eoin and Murph to talk about her amazing life story, one which began among the Irish immigrant community in 1960s Birmingham.
2022-09-0350 min
Just The Tonic with Katie DerhamJust The Tonic - Music is for CelebrationsIn this episode, Katie chats to Kit de Waal about her fabulous new memoir, Without Warning and Only Sometimes. It's an honest and funny account of her childhood, growing up in Birmingham with her four brothers and sisters, her Irish mother who brought her children up as Jehovah's Witnesses, and her father from St Kitts in the Caribbean. Kit didn't start writing until she was in her 50s and has some excellent tips for getting started. Laurie Stanton was a boy soprano in his hometown of Port Talbot in Wales. He took up singing again af...
2022-08-2535 minJust The Tonic with Katie DerhamJust The Tonic - Music is for CelebrationsIn this episode, Katie chats to Kit de Waal about her fabulous new memoir, Without Warning and Only Sometimes. It's an honest and funny account of her childhood, growing up in Birmingham with her four brothers and sisters, her Irish mother who brought her children up as Jehovah's Witnesses, and her father from St Kitts in the Caribbean. Kit didn't start writing until she was in her 50s and has some excellent tips for getting started. Laurie Stanton was a boy soprano in his hometown of Port Talbot in Wales. He took up singing again af...
2022-08-2535 min
Damian Barr's Literary SalonKit de Waal WORLD PREMIERE, at the Literary SalonEnjoy the world's first reading and interview with award-winning author Kit about her brand new book 'Without Warning And Only Sometimes', published this week!Kit is the award-winning and bestselling author of 'My Name Is Leon' and edited the pioneering collection 'Common People'. 'Without Warning & Only Sometimes: Scenes from an Unpredictable Childhood' is her story of growing up in a household of opposites and extremes. Her haphazard mother was a devout Jehovah’s Witness who believed the world would end in 1975. Her father was the opposite. Kit was caught between three worlds: Irish, Caribbean and British in 1960s...
2022-08-1943 minThe Literary SalonKit de Waal WORLD PREMIERE, at the Literary SalonEnjoy the world's first reading and interview with award-winning author Kit about her brand new book 'Without Warning And Only Sometimes', published this week!Kit is the award-winning and bestselling author of 'My Name Is Leon' and edited the pioneering collection 'Common People'. 'Without Warning & Only Sometimes: Scenes from an Unpredictable Childhood' is her story of growing up in a household of opposites and extremes. Her haphazard mother was a devout Jehovah’s Witness who believed the world would end in 1975. Her father was the opposite. Kit was caught between three worlds: Irish, Caribbean and British in 1960s...
2022-08-1943 min
Fuel Your Mind With The Riveting Full Audiobook Now, Story Seekers!Without Warning and Only Sometimes by Kit de WaalPlease visithttps://thebookvoice.com/podcasts/2/audible/172169to listen full audiobooks.
Title: Without Warning and Only Sometimes
Author: Kit de Waal
Narrator: Kit de Waal
Format: mp3
Length: 8 hrs and 5 mins
Release date: 08-18-22
Ratings: 5 out of 5 stars, 1 rating
Genres: Teenagers
Publisher's Summary:
Kit de Waal grew up in a household of opposites and extremes. Her haphazard mother rarely cooked, forbade Christmas and birthdays, worked as a cleaner, nurse and childminder sometimes all at once and believed the world would end in 1975. Meanwhile, her father stuffed barrels full of goodies for his relatives in the Caribbean, cooked elaborate meals on...
2022-08-188h 05
The Shift with Sam BakerKit de Waal on race, class, privilege – and her exceedingly cool hair!Today’s guest is the award-winning writer, Kit De Waal. Until she was 21, Kit had never read a book voluntarily. But once she started there was no stopping her. Kit started writing in her mid-40s and published her award-winning debut, My Name Is Leon, at 56. Since then she has used her success to work tirelessly to promote the voices of working class writers. Using some of her advance to set up the Kit de Waal Creative Writing Fellowship (aka the Fat Chance scholarship!) and editing Common People, an anthology of working class writing.Now she’s turn...
2022-08-0957 min
How To Fail With Elizabeth DayS14, BONUS EPISODE! How To Fail: Kit de WaalOur extra-special bonus guest today is the author Kit de Waal. Her debut 2016 novel, My Name Is Leon, told the story of a mixed-race nine-year-old boy and his quest to reunite his family after being taken into care. It won the Irish Book of the Year Award and has recently been adapted for TV starring Lenny Henry. Her second novel, The Trick to Time was longlisted for the 2018 Women’s Prize. A short story collection followed, and now de Waal has turned her gaze onto her own life. Her memoir, Without Warning and Only Sometimes, is out next month and te...
2022-07-1359 min
PrincessKit De Waal on Sarah Forbes BonettaAuthor Kit De Waal and TV presenter and journalist Zeinab Badawi explore the extraordinary story of Sarah Forbes Bonetta. The 6 year old West African girl, orphaned by King Dahomey and taken to his court, where a British Naval Captain bargained to take her back to England. There she was presented as a gift to Queen Victoria and entered high society, where she was called "the African princess".Produced by Audio Always
Producer: Ailsa Rochester
Editor: Jo Meek
Sound: Tom Rowbotham
2022-07-0431 min
The Better ManThe Better Man Podcast with Kit De Waal PT2 #44Kit worked for fifteen years in criminal and family law, was a magistrate for several years and sits on adoption panels. She used to advise Social Services on the care of foster children, and has written training manuals on adoption, foster care and judgecraft for members of the judiciary.
Her writing has received numerous awards including the Bridport Flash Fiction Prize 2014 and 2015 and the SI Leeds Literary Reader's Choice Prize 2014 and the Kerry Group Irish Novel of the Year.
MY NAME IS LEON, her first novel was published in 2016 and shortlisted for the Costa Book...
2022-06-201h 24
Where Did It All Go Right?S5E3 - Kit de Waal - NovelistAli Jones is talking to our best-loved creatives about how they caught their breaks. This week Ali chats to writer Kit de Waal, whose bestselling novel My Name Is Leon is behind the recent BBC feature film of the same name.
Kit tells Ali how she always hated reading as a kid, never entertained being a writer until she was in her mid-forties (after a career as a magistrate), and why she thinks it's important for everyone to find that thing that makes us feel alive - whether it's singing or flower arranging.
This WDIAGR e...
2022-06-1536 min
Justice, DisruptedKit de WaalIn this episode Byron speaks to writer and former magistrate, Kit de Waal. They talk about how Kit's upbringing influenced her choices; her experience of working within the justice system and why compassion is always the answer. In each episode of 'Justice, Disrupted' Byron Vincent will be speaking to people from varied walks of life; some may have come into direct contact with the justice system, others may have achieved something great in the face of adversity.Each person will share their ideas of what a socially just society looks like and motivate l...
2022-05-031h 02
Relatively41 | Kit De Waal & Dean O'Loughlin Author Kit De Waal and little brother Dean O'Loughlin are 2 of 5 siblings, who grew up in Birmingham in the 60s and 70s. Their Irish mother and Kittitian father were ill-equipped to provide the care their charismatic and clever children needed, and life was 'predictably unpredictable'. Despite the hunger and the cold which characterised their childhood, the siblings nevertheless have happy memories too, and banded together like 'Vietnam vets', bonded by the unique experiences they shared. Now Kit and Dean work as screenwriters together, drawing on their incredible knowledge of classic film, inherited from their father, whose love of cinema...
2022-05-0334 min
Birmingham Lit Fest Presents….Season 2: Lisa Blower and Emma PurshouseMay 2021’s online live event brought together two writers whose books are rooted in the Midlands, Emma Purshouse and Lisa Blower. In conversation with author Kit de Waal, they discuss their latest novels Dogged and Pondweed, making space for more working-class writers and characters in contemporary fiction and capturing a variety of Midlands dialects on the page. You can download our podcast episodes from all the places you would normally get your podcasts every Thursday and follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @bhamlitfest. All of our festival events can be found on our website www.birminghamliteraturefestival.or...
2021-12-0241 min
Burning Books IrelandKit de WaalNovelist and short-story writer Kit de Waal talks to Ruth McKee about The Bible, Donal Ryan, Penguin classics, the sea and much more as she reveals what books she would save if her house was burning, and which text she studied at school she’d leave in there to burn…
Kit de Waal’s debut novel My Name is Leon was shortlisted for the Costa First Novel Award and her second, The Trick To Time was longlisted for the Women’s Prize For Fiction. She’s the author of the young adult book Becoming Dinah and is the editor of Common...
2021-09-2437 min
Burning Books Ireland7: Kit de WaalNovelist and short-story writer Kit de Waal talks to Ruth McKee about The Bible, Donal Ryan, Penguin classics, the sea and much more as she reveals what books she would save if her house was burning, and which text she studied at school she’d leave in there to burn…Kit de Waal’s debut novel My Name is Leon was shortlisted for the Costa First Novel Award and her second, The Trick To Time was longlisted for the Women’s Prize For Fiction. She’s the author of the young adult book Becoming Dinah and is the editor...
2021-09-2437 minBurning Books IrelandTrailer - Kit de WaalNovelist and short-story writer Kit de Waal talks to Books Ireland editor Ruth McKee about Donal Ryan, Penguin classics, revenge, the sea and much more for the next episode of Burning Books, released on Friday 24th September on all podcast platforms.
2021-09-2100 min
Burning Books IrelandTrailer - Kit de WaalNovelist and short-story writer Kit de Waal talks to Books Ireland editor Ruth McKee about Donal Ryan, Penguin classics, revenge, the sea and much more for the next episode of Burning Books, released on Friday 24th September on all podcast platforms. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit booksireland.substack.com
2021-09-2100 min
Junior Cycle TalksArts in Junior Cycle in Conversation with Kit de WaalBestselling author Kit de Waal tells us about her favourite classic novels, her writing process and why she loves audio books.
Episode Web Page: www.artsinjuniorcycle.ie/podcast/kit-de-waal
www.kitdewaal.com
2021-09-2125 min
The Better ManThe Better Man Podcast with Kit de Waal #14I talk with Kit de Waal, who is a British/Irish writer. Her debut novel, My Name Is Leon, was published by Penguin Books in June 2016
2021-09-011h 00
Debden Park PodcastMadam Longman - 'Which Floor?', Loretta Ramkissoon, published in 'Common People', Kit de WaalIn this essay, Loretta Ramkissoon explores what life is like in a London tower block and the dynamics of communities of neighbours who aren't friends, but who do look out for each other.'Which Floor?' is one of several essays published in the anthology 'Common People', published by Kit de Waal, showcasing the experiences of working class writers.Buy the book:Bookshop: https://uk.bookshop.org/books/common-people-an-anthology-of-working-class-writers/9781783527458Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Common-People-Anthology-Working-Class-Writers/dp/1783527455/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=common+people&qid=1620908776&sr=8-1
2021-05-1421 min
You Heard it Here FirstVery Funny WomenThis episode, things get a little dark and twisted with Boy Parts by Eliza Clark, which draws us into the inner workings of a Northern fetish photographer. Then for something more sweet and tender with My Name is Leon by Kit de Waal.Two Audible editors share why they’re laughing out loud to French and Saunders: Titting About and Quite by Claudia Winkleman. Plus, we find out what it takes to escape a cult with a clip from Megan Phelps Roper. Here’s the full list of reviews/recommendations:Through the L...
2021-03-3029 min
The World As It Should BeKit de WaalMultiple-award-winning author Kit de Waal was born in Birmingham to an Irish mother who was a childminder and foster carer and a Caribbean father.She worked for fifteen years in criminal and family law, was a magistrate for several years and sits on adoption panels. She used to advise Social Services on the care of foster children, and has written training manuals on adoption, foster care and judgecraft for members of the judiciary.Her first novel My Name Is Leon was published in 2016 and shortlisted for the Costa Book Award. Kit spent her first advance...
2021-02-1241 min
Brown Baby PodcastSeason 1 Episode 5: Kit de Waal And Seeing YourselfWelcome to the Brown Baby podcast! This week, we talk to award-winning writer Kit de Waal about growing up mixed race in the Midlands in the 60s, raising mixed race kids, adopting kids, the power of seeing yourself, and writing. An illuminating look at the creative genius of an exceptional writer.Kit is the author of My Name Is Leon, The Trick To Time, Becoming Dinah and the recent short story collection, Supporting Cast. She also edited the anthology Common People. Nikesh is a writer and editor, the author of 'Brown Baby'. Buy a copy of...
2021-02-1039 minBirmingham Lit Fest Presents….Elisa Shua Dusapin and Aneesa Abbas Higgins in Conversation with Dr Sandra van LenteIn this podcast, we’re joined by novelist Elisa Shua Dusapin, whose debut novel Winter in Sokcho was translated and published in the UK this year. In conversation with Dr Sandra van Lente and joined by her translator Aneesa Abbas Higgins, they discuss shared identities, isolation and the relationship between writing and translation.The Birmingham Lit Fest Presents... podcast brings writers and readers together to discuss some of 2020’s best books. Each Thursday across the next few months we’ll be releasing new episodes of the podcast, including wonderful discussionsabout writing, poetry, big ideas and social...
2020-12-1724 minBirmingham Lit Fest Presents….Mandy Ross and Abda Khan in Conversation with Roz GoddardToday’s episode brings together 3 Midlands women, authors Mandy Ross, Abda Khan and Roz Goddard, in conversation about the importance of literature in creating connections and fostering empathy. As members of interfaith organisation Nisa Nashim, Mandy and Abda run a monthly book club that brings together Muslim and Jewish women. In conversation with Roz Goddard, they talk about the intersections of faith and feminism and the power of literature to provide space for exchange and connection.The Birmingham Lit Fest Presents... podcast brings writers and readers together to discuss some of 2020’s best books. Each Thursday across the...
2020-12-1038 minBirmingham Lit Fest Presents….Elle McNicoll in conversation with Dr Melanie Ramdarshan BoldIn today’s podcast, we welcome debut author Elle McNicoll in conversation with Dr Melanie Ramdarshan Bold about her first novel A Kind of Spark. Join Elle and Melanie as they discuss the importance of representing neurodiversity in children’sfiction, inclusive publishing and recognising buried histories.The Birmingham Lit Fest Presents... podcast brings writers and readers together to discuss some of 2020’s best books. Each Thursday across the next few months we’ll be releasing new episodes of the podcast, including wonderful discussionsabout writing, poetry, big ideas and social issues. Join us each week for...
2020-12-0332 minBirmingham Lit Fest Presents….Cold War Steve in Conversation with Kit de WaalThis week’s guest is Birmingham’s own artist and political commentator Cold War Steve. In this week’s episode, Steve talks to writer Kit de Waal about the ways his work tells the story of Birmingham and the Midlands, the power of art callout fascism and art as therapy.The Birmingham Lit Fest Presents... podcast brings writers and readers together to discuss some of 2020’s best books. Each Thursday across the next few months we’ll be releasing new episodes of the podcast, including wonderful discussionsabout writing, poetry, big ideas and social issues. Jo...
2020-11-2631 minBirmingham Lit Fest Presents….Sarah Moss and Megan Hunter in Conversation with Olivia ChapmanIn this week’s episode, authors Sarah Moss and Megan Hunter join Writing West Midlands’ own Olivia Chapman to discuss their latest novels Summerwater and The Harpy. In this podcast, they discuss writing about relationships, creating unnerving fiction and the expectation placed on writers to make sense of the time we are living in.The Birmingham Lit Fest Presents... podcast brings writers and readers together to discuss some of 2020’s best books. Each Thursday across the next few months we’ll be releasing new episodes of the podcast, including wonderful discussionsabout writing, poetry, big ideas and soci...
2020-11-1935 minBirmingham Lit Fest Presents….Lynn Enright and Natalie Fiennes in Conversation with Shantel EdwardsThis week’s episode brings together journalists Natalie Fiennes and Lynn Enright to discuss their books, Behind ClosedDoors: Sex Education Transformed and Vagina: A Re-education. In conversation with Birmingham Literature Festival director Shantel Edwards, they talk about the politicisation of women’s bodies and sexual desire, the importance of sex education and the impact of the porn industry on our attitudes towards sex and our own bodies.The Birmingham Lit Fest Presents... podcast brings writers and readers together to discuss some of 2020’s best books. Each Thursday across the next few months we’ll be releasin...
2020-11-1236 min
Stig Abell's Guide to ReadingSeason 1, Episode 3 - Modern Literary Fiction with Kit de WaalWelcome to Stig Abell’s Guide to Reading. In this episode Stig talks to Kit de Waal, bestselling author of MY NAME IS LEON, about Modern Literary Fiction. Chatting about Donal Ryan’s STRANGE FLOWERS and OFFSHORE by Penelope Fitzgerald, they discuss everything from what ‘literary fiction’ really means, to how important life experience is when becoming a novelist. The podcast is an accompaniment to Stig's book THINGS I LEARNED ON THE 6.28: A GUIDE TO DAILY READING, published by John Murray on 12th November 2020.
2020-11-1235 minBirmingham Lit Fest Presents….Sam Baker in Conversation with Kate SpicerIn today’s episode, journalist and author Sam Baker talks to fellow writer Kate Spicer about her latest book The Shift. Join Sam and Kate as they discuss the cultural silence around menopause, the invisibility of women past child-bearing age and thefreedom, power and confidence of life after menopause.The Birmingham Lit Fest Presents... podcast brings writers and readers together to discuss some of 2020’s best books. Each Thursday across the next few months we’ll be releasing new episodes of the podcast, including wonderful discussionsabout writing, poetry, big ideas and social issues. Join u...
2020-11-0941 minBirmingham Lit Fest Presents….Kit de Waal in Conversation with Paul McVeighIn this week’s episode author Kit de Waal talks to fellow writer and novelist Paul McVeigh about Supporting Cast, her first short story collection that focuses on the lives and loves of ordinary people including some familiar characters from herearlier novels. They talk about writing character driven fiction, amplifying the voices of working class writers and dealing with rejection, alongside 2 readings from the book.The Birmingham Lit Fest Presents... podcast brings writers and readers together to discuss some of 2020’s best books. Each Thursday across the next few months we’ll be releasing new episod...
2020-11-0538 min
Book ShamblesKit De WaalOn so many previous episodes of Book Shambles guests have talked about how much they love the writing of Kit de Waal and so on this week’s episode Robin and Josie are joined by Kit herself to talk about her new book Supporting Cast. Well, that was the plan but they barely great round to it and spend most of the time talking about classic films, Trevor Howard, struggling at school and then, eventually, her wonderful new book. By the way, if you’re listening to this episode and wonder where Josie is at the start, she was running a bi...
2020-10-2949 minBirmingham Lit Fest Presents….Louise O’Neill in Conversation with Amy Webb and Tanita PatelToday’s episode is brought to you by the READ ON project, a scheme supported by the European Union’s Creative Europe fund. The READ ON project gets young people reading, writing, and interviewing authors, both in their own country and across Europe. In this week’s podcast, two of our young presenters, Amy Webb and Tanita Patel, interviewed bestselling author Louise O’Neill about her latest book After the Silence, discussing the cultural preoccupation with true crime and stories about young women, feminism and the urgency of the climate crisis.The Birmingham Lit Fest Presents... podcast brings w...
2020-10-2940 minBirmingham Lit Fest Presents….Candice Brathwaite in conversation with Dorothy KoomsonIn this week’s episode we welcome Candice Brathwaite, author of the bestselling book, I Am Not Your Baby Mother. In conversation with fellow bestselling author Dorothy Koomson, they discuss the urgent need to redefine motherhood, the silencing of black women’s pain and the experience of publishing a book in the midst of a global pandemic and the resurgence of Black Lives Matter protests across the world.The Birmingham Lit Fest Presents... podcast brings writers and readers together to discuss some of 2020’s best books. Each Thursday across the next few months we’ll be releasing new epis...
2020-10-2247 minBirmingham Lit Fest Presents….Gaylene Gould interviews Paul MendezIn this week’s episode, artist and cultural critic Gaylene Gould interviews debut author Paul Mendez about his novel Rainbow Milk. Join Paul and Gaylene for a fascinating discussion about the rich history of black British writing, representingthe Black Country accent on the page and the intersections of identity, alongside a wonderful reading from the novel.The Birmingham Lit Fest Presents... podcast brings writers and readers together to discuss some of 2020’s best books. Each Thursday across the next few months we’ll be releasing new episodes of the podcast, including wonderful discussionsabo...
2020-10-1553 minBirmingham Lit Fest Presents….Romalyn Ante and Rupinder Kaur in Conversation with Liz BerryThis week's episode brings Liz Berry, Romalyn Ante and Rupinder Kaur together, three powerhouse poets from the Midlands.Featuring a series of wonderful readings of the poems from their collections Rooh and Antiemetic for Homesickness, Rupinder and Romalyn join Liz for a discussion of their work, the importance of poetry during a pandemic and the power of poetry to connect us.The Birmingham Lit Fest Presents... podcast brings writers and readers together to discuss some of 2020’s best books. Each Thursday across the next few months we’ll be releasing new episodes of the podcast, including wond...
2020-10-0842 minBirmingham Lit Fest Presents….Stuart Maconie and Pete Paphides in Conversation with Jo BellThis week’s episode brings together 2 of the UK’s most established broadcasters and journalists, Stuart Maconie and PetePaphides to discuss their latest books, The Nanny State Made Me and Broken Greek. In conversation with writer and poet Jo Bell, they discuss the personal and cultural importance of music, their deep connection to the Midlands and what it is like to have a life so different to that of your parents.The Birmingham Lit Fest Presents... podcast brings writers and readers together to discuss some of 2020’s best books. Each Thursday across the next few months...
2020-10-0253 minBirmingham Lit Fest Presents….Trailer - Author Kit de Waal introduces Birmingham Lit Fest presents….Author and guest curator Kit de Waal introduces Birmingham Litfest presents... The very first Birmingham Literature Festival podcast. The Birmingham Literature Festival podcast brings writers and readers together to discuss some of 2020’s best books. Each Thursday across the next few months we’ll be releasing new episodes of the podcast, including wonderful discussionsabout writing, poetry, big ideas and social issues. Join us each week for exciting and inspiring conversations with new, and familiar, writers from the Midlands and beyond.Take a look at the rest of this year's digital programme on our webs...
2020-09-2801 min
The Sunday Salon with Alice-Azania JarvisIsolationcast #21: Kit de Waal on literary snobbery and why coming to writing late made her a better authorMy guest this week is someone I have wanted to interview for absolutely ages. Ever since her debut novel My Name is Leon was published in 2016, Kit de Waal has been one of the most thoughtful and interesting voices in the industry. Having crowdfunded and edited an anthology of working class memoir, Common People, she has spoken frequently of the need for the publishing world to become more diverse. In response to the pandemic, she co-founded The Big Book Weekend, a virtual festival in May.
Now she has published a collection of short stories, Supporting Cast, which revisits...
2020-08-1635 min
Download High-Quality Full Audiobooks in Fiction, DramaSupporting Cast by Kit De WaalPlease visit https://thebookvoice.com/podcasts/1/audiobook/416260 to listen full audiobooks. Title: Supporting Cast Author: Kit De Waal Narrator: Damian Gildea, Simone Kirby, Daisy Badger, Clifford Samuel, Vivienne Acheampong, Sam Woolf, Kristin Atherton Format: Unabridged Audiobook Length: 3 hours 34 minutes Release date: July 30, 2020 Genres: Drama Publisher's Summary: Brought to you by Penguin. As she walks out of her marriage, a woman remembers the day her husband rescued a boy from drowning. A blind man on his wedding day celebrates the pursuit of love. And a young man leaves prison with only one desire - to see his son again. Kit de...
2020-07-3005 min
In Writing with Hattie CrisellKit de Waal, novelistKit de Waal, whose books include My Name Is Leon, The Trick to Time and the new short story collection Supporting Cast, joins me this week from her home in the West Midlands. Kit started writing in her mid-forties, and remembers being stunned by how hard it was. In our chat she reflects honestly on that time, the stories that worked, the novels that didn’t, and how getting too interested in her characters tripped her up. She also spills the beans on her plotting spreadsheet, her knack for tackling heartbreaking subjects with lightness and warmth, and how she cr...
2020-07-1042 min
New Writing NorthCommon People: Breaking the Class Ceiling in UK PublishingLeading writers Stuart Maconie, Kit de Waal, Tony Walsh and Lisa McInerney consider what it means to be a working-class writer working in the publishing industry today
“It’s the last great unspoken prejudice in British life, and that runs through everywhere – particularly some of the areas of the media I work in, like publishing and broadcasting” Stuart Maconie
---
The Common People anthology brought together 16 leading working-class writers with 17 new unpublished working-class writers to create a picture of working-class life in Britain today.
As part of the opportunity, the 17 new writers were also offered a 12-month professional development programme to suppo...
2020-05-0728 min
Medicine UnboxedKit de Waal - Medicine Unboxed VOICESKit de Waal has received numerous awards for her writing including the Bridport Flash Fiction Prize 2014 and 2015, the SI Leeds Literary Reader's Choice Prize 2014 and the Kerry Group Irish Novel of the Year. Her first novel, 'My Name is Leon', was published in 2016 and shortlisted for the Costa Book Award. In this episode of Medicine Unboxed VOICES, Kit speaks with Sam Guglani about My Name is Leon and about childhood pain, loss, humanity and compassion, about 'embracing the grey' of right and wrong and about the role of literature and knowledge.
Executive producers: Sam Guglani, Peter Thomas
Music: Butterfly Song b...
2020-02-1037 min
2019 Edinburgh International Book FestivalKit de Waal talks to Damian Barr at the Edinburgh International Book FestivalThe publishing world is finally waking up to the barriers that have prevented working class voices from being heard in books. Kit de Waal grew up in Birmingham’s Irish community and she has successfully broken into the mainstream with two highly acclaimed novels. At the Edinburgh International Book Festival 2019 she talks to Damian Barr about Common People, her book of essays by working class writers, featuring coruscating pieces by authors including Barr himself.
2019-10-1100 min
Edinburgh International Book FestivalKit de Waal with Damian Barr at the Edinburgh International Book Festival
The publishing world is finally waking up to the barriers that have prevented working class voices from being heard in books. Kit de Waal grew up in Birmingham’s Irish community and she has successfully broken into the mainstream with two highly acclaimed novels. In this event recorded live at the 2019 Edinburgh International Book Festival she talks to Damian Barr about Common People, her book of essays by working class writers, featuring coruscating pieces by authors including Barr himself.
2019-09-3000 min
Standard Issue PodcastSIM Ep 269 Chops 117: Becoming Dinah with Kit de WaalAuthor Kit de Waal chats to our Jen about her about her new novel, Becoming Dinah, which is part of the Bellatrix series for feminist young adult and teen readers. They chatted about re-imagining the classics, finding your inner 14-year-old, and the forthcoming Primadonna book festival (Aug 30-Sept 1, https://www.primadonnafestival.com/), of which she's one of the co-founders.Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/standardissuespodcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2019-08-2527 min
Ask PenguinKit De Waal with Katy BrandKit De Waal, author of the critically acclaimed bestseller ‘My Name is Leon’ joins Katy in the studio. Kit talks about her latest book ‘The Trick to Time’ and brings objects that have inspired her including a track by Scott Matthews and a photo of Forlorn Point in Ireland.#PenguinPodcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
2019-08-0131 min
Power-Up With The Immersive Full Audiobook Experience!Becoming Dinah by Kit de WaalPlease visithttps://thebookvoice.com/podcasts/2/audible/239272to listen full audiobooks.
Title: Becoming Dinah
Author: Kit de Waal
Narrator: Saffron Coomber
Format: mp3
Length: 6 hrs and 27 mins
Release date: 07-11-19
Ratings: 5 out of 5 stars, 1 rating
Genres: Homelessness, Runaways & Poverty
Publisher's Summary:
Dinah's whole world is upside down, dead things and angry men and cuts all over her head that are beginning to sting.... Seventeen-year-old Dinah needs to leave her home, the weird commune where she grew up. She needs a whole new identity, starting with how she looks, starting with shaving off her hair, her 'crowning glory'. She has to...
2019-07-116h 27
The Book ClubKit de Waal: Common PeopleIn this week’s books podcast Kit de Waal is here to talk about her new anthology of working-class memoir, Common People. First a guest on this podcast a couple of years ago talking about her Desmond-Elliott-shortlisted debut My Name Is Leon, Kit explains why she thought an anthology of working-class writing was necessary, about if and how the pendulum has swung since previous booms in working-class writing, what still needs to change in publishing, and how, as an editor, she avoided falling victim to Four Yorkshiremen Of The Apocalypse Syndrome.Presented by Sam Leith. Bec...
2019-06-1930 min
Book Off!Kit de Waal and Ned Beauman (The golden age of cinema)Authors Kit de Waal (My Name Is Leon/The Trick To Time) and Ned Beauman (Boxer, Beetle/Glow) join Joe Haddow for another Book Off!Kazuo Ishiguro's classic "The Remains Of The Day" is put up against "The Conspiracy Against The Human Race; A Contrivance Of Horror" by Thomas Ligotti.As well as going head to head in a literary fight for glory, they discuss growing up around books, previous careers...and the golden age of cinema. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
2019-02-0140 min
Podcast From The PastGRAINNE MAGUIRE & KIT DE WAAL - Your Problems Can't Find You In The PastJoining Tom Jackson to discuss the postcards from their pasts are comedian and comedy write GRAINNE MAGUIRE (Question Time, What Has The News Ever Done For Me?) and novelist KIT DE WAAL (My Name Is Leon, The Trick To Time). In this episode the postcards take us on a trip to New York to drink martinis with Angela Lansbury, naked rock-climbing in Derbyshire, and we learn what it is to live with the prospect of an imminent apocalypse. Plus the doe-eyed alsatians of Brighton and memories of moon-landings in Bournemouth and royal weddings in Northampton. Wish you were here?
2019-01-2242 min
WriteStuffKit de WaalKit de Waal’s latest novel; The Trick to Time tells two love stories, both involving Mona, a woman who has suffered a lot and who comes up with a way of using dolls to provide healing to women who have suffered the loss of a child. We talk about this in this interview as well as her great first novel; My Name is Leon, in which she drew a lot from her professional life in describing the experience of a child in a foster care system. Kit is also an advocate for protest, which comes up in thisdiscussion in the cont...
2018-10-0125 min
The Irish Times Books PodcastKit de Waal - The Trick to TimeThe Trick to Time by Kit de Waal is May’s Irish Times Book Club choice. Longlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction even before it was published in late March, it is a tragic Birmingham Irish love story set against the backdrop of the IRA bombings that devastated the city in 1974.
Kit spoke to Martin Doyle at the International Literature Festival Dublin last week.
2018-05-3100 min
Irish Times BooksKit de Waal - The Trick to TimeThe Trick to Time by Kit de Waal is May’s Irish Times Book Club choice. Longlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction even before it was published in late March, it is a tragic Birmingham Irish love story set against the backdrop of the IRA bombings that devastated the city in 1974.
Kit spoke to Martin Doyle at the International Literature Festival Dublin last week.
2018-05-3158 min
Suite (212)Race, racism and the arts in BritainIn the April 2018 edition of Suite (212), returning host Juliet Jacques talks to artist, musician and filmmaker Larry Achiampong and dancer/performer Alexandrina Hemsley (of Project O) about race, racism and the arts.
(Cover image: 'Self-Portrait Exaggerating My Negroid Features' by Adrian Piper, 1981)
WORKS REFERENCED:
LARRY ACHIAMPONG & DAVID BLANDY: Biters - http://www.larryachiampong.co.uk/list-of-artworks/biters
LARRY ACHIAMPONG & DAVID BLANDY: Finding Fanon, parts I-III - https://vimeo.com/138951543
LARRY ACHIAMPONG: Relic Traveller - http://larryachiampong.co.uk/list-of-artworks/voyage-of-the-relic-traveller
ALEXANDRINA HEMSLEY: Feminist Shakedown - http://feministshakedown.tumblr.com/
ALEXANDRINA HEMSLEY & SEKE CHIMUTENGWENDE: Black Holes - www.blackholes.co.uk
...
2018-04-161h 00
Download Incredible Full Audiobooks in Fiction, DramaThe Trick to Time by Kit De WaalPlease visit https://thebookvoice.com/podcasts/1/audiobook/332648 to listen full audiobooks. Title: The Trick to Time Author: Kit De Waal Narrator: Fiona Shaw Format: Unabridged Audiobook Length: 9 hours 1 minute Release date: March 29, 2018 Ratings: Ratings of Book: 4 of Total 1 Ratings of Narrator: 5 of Total 1 Genres: Drama Publisher's Summary: Penguin presents the audiobook edition of The Trick to Time by Kit de Waal, read by Fiona Shaw. Mona is a young Irish girl in the big city, with the thrill of a new job and a room of her own in a busy boarding house. On her first night out in 1970s...
2018-03-2903 min
The Secret Library Podcast#96 :: Starting a Writing Career after 40 | Kit De WaalKit De Waal didn't start writing until she was 40. I love a hot debut novel from a bright young thing as much as the next person, but there is something I love even more about a late-to-writing career trajectory. Now that I'm on the other side of 40, I feel particularly fired up whenever I read books by those who didn't start as writers the moment they finished school. If you feel like it's too late for you to write what you want to, it's not. If you feel like you aren't like the authors you see on the shelves, d...
2018-03-2948 min
Listen to Best Full Audiobooks in Fiction, Contemporary WomenThe Trick to Time by Kit De WaalPlease visit https://thebookvoice.com/podcasts/1/audiobook/332648 to listen full audiobooks. Title: The Trick to Time Author: Kit De Waal Narrator: Fiona Shaw Format: Unabridged Audiobook Length: 9 hours 1 minute Release date: March 29, 2018 Ratings: Ratings of Book: 4 of Total 1 Ratings of Narrator: 5 of Total 1 Genres: Contemporary Women Publisher's Summary: Penguin presents the audiobook edition of The Trick to Time by Kit de Waal, read by Fiona Shaw. Mona is a young Irish girl in the big city, with the thrill of a new job and a room of her own in a busy boarding house. On her first night out in 1970...
2018-03-2903 min
A Good ReadKit de Waal and Nina StibbeWriters Nina Stibbe and Kit de Waal join Harriett Gilbert to discuss their favourite books by Kazuo Ishiguro, Lorrie Moore and Carson McCullers.The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro
Publisher: FaberSelf Help by Lorrie Moore
Publisher: FaberGolden Eye by Carson McCullers
Publisher: PenguinFirst broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in March 2018.
2018-03-1327 min
Seriously...Where Are All the Working Class Writers?"The more we reinforce the stereotypes of who writes and who reads, the more the notion of exclusivity is reinforced. It takes balls to gatecrash a party."Kit de Waal, published her first novel, My Name is Leon, in 2016 at the age of 55. She has already put her money where her mouth is - using part of the advance she received from Penguin to set up a creative writing scholarship in an attempt to improve working class representation in the arts.Kit knows that - as a writer from a working class background - the...
2017-11-2429 min
Literary FrictionLiterary Friction - Know Your Place with Kit de Waal + Nathan Connolly + Abondance MatandaAfter Brexit - the supposed ‘will of the people’ - everyone is talking about the working class. And yet the actual voice of the working class is rarely heard, especially in literature. This month, we have a very special edition of Literary Friction based around a new collection of essays on the working class by the working class called Know Your Place, published by the brilliant gang at Dead Ink Books. We talked to three authors featured in the collection about their essays and the urgent need to publish more diverse voices: award-winning novelist Kit de Waal; the editor and publ...
2017-10-0454 min
The Riff Raff Podcast: Writers community | Debut authors | Getting publishedThe Riff Raff: Episode 3 - Kit de WaalAmy Baker and Rosy Edwards chat to Desmond Elliott Prize nominee and author of highly acclaimed, 'My Name is Leon', Kit de Waal. We chat tips for getting published, whether education is essential and how important it is to believe in your writing.
2017-06-1826 min
End of All Things podcastBeing true with Kit de WaalIn part 2 of TEOAT's two part Christmas special, Rob talks to Costa First Novel Award nominee, Kit de Waal about working class stories (a favourite of this podcast), adoption, a fascination with the minutiae of life, the 80s, and of course, her rather incredible novel, My Name is Leon. The conversation took place before her keynote speech for the Graduate Writers day put on by Comma Press.
2016-12-0956 min
BacklistedSo Long, See You Tomorrow by William MaxwellCosta First Book nominee for My Name Is Leon, Kit de Waal joins John & Andy to discuss So Long, See You Tomorrow, the final novel by author and New Yorker literary editor William Maxwell.Timings: (may differ due to adverts)7'42 - You Took the Last Bus Home: The Poems of Brian Bilston13'57 - My Name Is Leon by Kit de Waal21'14 - So Long, See You Tomorrow by William Maxwell* To purchase any of the books mentioned in this episode...
2016-11-281h 02
The EssayNovelist Kit de Waal reflects on the architecture of the prison where she worked.Novelist Kit de Waal reflects on the architecture of Winson Green Prison, in Birmingham, where she worked. This week's Essays are part of the 70th birthday celebrations of the Third Programme: the network discussed architecture from its earliest days, covering both new initiatives and historic buildings, most notably in talks by Nikolaus Pevsner. Producer Clare Walker.
2016-10-1513 min
Access Must-Have Full Audiobooks in Fiction, DramaMy Name Is Leon by Kit De WaalPlease visit https://thebookvoice.com/podcasts/1/audiobook/269320 to listen full audiobooks. Title: My Name Is Leon Author: Kit De Waal Narrator: Madeleine Maby Format: Unabridged Audiobook Length: 7 hours 51 minutes Release date: July 26, 2016 Ratings: Ratings of Book: 5 of Total 1 Genres: Drama Publisher's Summary: “Taut, emotionally intense, and wholly believable, this beautiful and uplifting debut” (Kirkus Reviews) about a young black boy’s quest to reunite with his beloved white half-brother after they are separated in foster care is a sparkling novel perfect for fans of The Language of Flowers. Leon loves chocolate bars, Saturday morning cartoons, and his beautiful, golden-haired baby brothe...
2016-07-2605 min
Access Must-Have Full Audiobooks in Fiction, DramaMy Name Is Leon: Now a Major BBC Two Film by Kit De WaalPlease visit https://thebookvoice.com/podcasts/1/audiobook/265429 to listen full audiobooks. Title: My Name Is Leon: Now a Major BBC Two Film Author: Kit De Waal Narrator: Lenny Henry Format: Unabridged Audiobook Length: 7 hours 51 minutes Release date: June 2, 2016 Ratings: Ratings of Book: 4.6 of Total 5 Ratings of Narrator: 4.5 of Total 2 Genres: Drama Publisher's Summary: Brought to you by Penguin. A TIMES and INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER WINNER OF THE IRISH NOVEL PRIZE SHORTLISTED FOR THE COSTA FIRST NOVEL AWARD & THE DESMOND ELLIOT PRIZE Now a major BBC film starring Sir Lenny Henry, Malachi Kirby, Monica Dolan, Olivia Williams and Christopher Eccleston. It's 1981, a...
2016-06-0205 min
Access Must-Have Full Audiobooks in Fiction, Contemporary WomenMy Name Is Leon: Now a Major BBC Two Film by Kit De WaalPlease visit https://thebookvoice.com/podcasts/1/audiobook/265429 to listen full audiobooks. Title: My Name Is Leon: Now a Major BBC Two Film Author: Kit De Waal Narrator: Lenny Henry Format: Unabridged Audiobook Length: 7 hours 51 minutes Release date: June 2, 2016 Ratings: Ratings of Book: 4.6 of Total 5 Ratings of Narrator: 4.5 of Total 2 Genres: Contemporary Women Publisher's Summary: Brought to you by Penguin. A TIMES and INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER WINNER OF THE IRISH NOVEL PRIZE SHORTLISTED FOR THE COSTA FIRST NOVEL AWARD & THE DESMOND ELLIOT PRIZE Now a major BBC film starring Sir Lenny Henry, Malachi Kirby, Monica Dolan, Olivia Williams and Christopher Eccleston. It's 1981...
2016-06-0205 min