Inua Ellams is many things – he’s a poet, playwright, a creator of community, graphic artist and designer. He’s moved, entertained and challenged audiences around the world, on stages from Queen Elizabeth Hall and the Sydney Opera House to the Glastonbury Festival. Inua is an ambassador for the Ministry of Stories, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and has published various prize-winning books of poetry. His most recent book is ‘The Half-God of Rainfall’ that ‘The Guardian’ described as ‘a playful, epic contemporary retooling of Greek mythology…a story of feuding gods and journeys to the edge of the universe’. As with his poetry, his plays have been critically acclaimed. ‘The Barber Shop Chronicles’ for example, sold out two runs at The National Theatre and was recently one of the special selection of works live streamed and made accessible for a period during the pandemic. Inua is also the founder of Midnight Run, a nocturnal urban excursion. He’s undertaken several commissions, for places like the Tate Modern, Soho Theatre and the BBC and he also runs a R.A.P. Party for poets to read work inspired by hip-hop.

Inua’s new book of poetry is called ‘The Actual’, and as Bernardine Evaristo said 'This is what poetry looks like when you have nothing to lose, when you speak from the heart, when you have spent years honing your craft so that you can be free. This is what poetry looks like when you are a word sorcerer, a linguistic swordsman, a metaphor-dazzler, a passionate creator of poetry as fire, as lament, as beauty, as reflection, as argument, as home. I was blown away by this book'.

www.inuaellams.com

Listen to the audio documentary: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m000m5lt