Stu Hennigan in Conversation

Blackwell’s Manchester hosts an evening celebrating Keshed, the striking debut novel by writer, poet and musician Stu Hennigan. Returning to the shop, Hennigan is joined in conversation by Thom Cuell of Dodo Ink to explore a work already praised for its raw power and emotional intensity.

Set amid the ruins of a once-familiar home, Keshed traces the inner life of a man confronting loss, failure and the weight of the past. Dark, visceral and uncompromising, the novel examines class, belonging, fatherhood and the pressures of modern masculinity, while also offering a fierce love letter to the working-class North. Moving from the legacies of the 1980s to the present day, it captures both grinding hardship and moments of brutal tenderness.

Hennigan’s wider body of work spans fiction, poetry, criticism and music, and his writing is known for its distinctive voice and political edge. With Keshed, he brings that same fearlessness to long-form fiction, creating a novel that is challenging, compassionate and deeply affecting.

This conversation offers readers the chance to hear directly from the author about the making of the novel, its themes, and the social realities that shape its world.