Vanessa Kisuule on the leasures and perils of fandom

Blackwell’s Bookshop host Vanessa Kisuule to celebrate her new book, Neverland — a candid exploration of the highs and lows of fandom. Vanessa will discuss her work in conversation with Gabby Humphreys, delving into her personal journey as a longtime Michael Jackson fan and the complex emotions tied to idolising public figures.

Neverland offers an honest, vibrant look at how we reconcile admiration with accountability, questioning whether we can separate the art from the artist. Kisuule examines why musicians and celebrities hold such significance in our lives and how pop culture both mirrors and amplifies troubling aspects of human nature. Referencing cultural icons like R. Kelly and Britney Spears, she probes the challenges of hero worship in the face of public controversy. In her witty, poetic style, Kisuule offers insight into how this moral dilemma affects our relationships, family dynamics, and views on social justice.

Vanessa Kisuule is a Bristol-based writer and performer with work featured on BBC iPlayer, Radio 1, and Woman’s Hour, as well as in The Guardian, NME, and Lonely Planet. As a former Bristol City Poet, her poem Hollow, written about the toppling of Edward Colston’s statue, went viral, gaining over 600,000 views on Twitter in three days.