An Evening with John Niven

Monday 17th June | 7PM | HQ Urban Kitchen | £10/£15

Join us for An Evening with John Niven!

We are thrilled to welcome the acclaimed author, John Niven, for the papberback launch of his Sunday Times bestselling memoir, O Brother.

John Niven’s little brother Gary was fearless, popular, stubborn, handsome, hilarious and sometimes terrifying. In 2010, after years of chaotic struggle against the world, he took his own life at the age of 42. Hoping for the best while often witnessing the worst, John, his younger sister Linda and their mother, Jeanette, saw the darkest fears they had for Gary played out in drug deals, Pr*son and bankruptcy.

While his life spiralled downward and the love the Nivens shared was tested to its limit, John drifted into his own trouble in the music industry, a world where excess was often a marker of success. Tracking the lives of two brothers in changing times – from illicit cans of lager in 70s sitting rooms to ecstasy in 90s raves – O Brother is a tender, affecting and often uproariously funny story. It is about the bonds of family and how we try to keep the finest of those we lose alive.

It is about black sheep and what it takes to break the ties that bind. Fundamentally it is about how families survive suicide, ‘that last cry, from the saddest outpost.’

About John Niven

John Niven was born in Scotland and worked as an A&R man in the British music industry for ten years before the publication of his debut bestseller “K*ll Your Friends”, described as ‘the best British novel since Trainspotting’ by Word magazine. The book was subsequently made into a feature film starring Nick Hoult and James Corden. He has since written eight more novels including Straight White Male and The Second Coming.

John also works as script doctor in Los Angeles.

Arguably, John has a unique view of the worlds of music, film and publishing resulting in an endless supply of unprintable stories about those industries.

His latest book, the memoir ‘O Brother’, was an instant Sunday Times bestseller, selected as a Guardian best memoir of 2023. and was shortlisted for the prestigious Gordon Burn prize for 2024.

About the event

John will be in conversation with Professor Ann John - Ann holds a personal chair in Public Health and Psychiatry. She is a clinical epidemiologist with a background in public health and general practice. Her research focuses on suicide and self-harm prevention and children and young peoples’ mental health.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

HQ Urban Kitchen, 37 Orchard Street, Swansea, United Kingdom