The Strangers: Five Extraordinary Black Men and the Worlds That Made Them

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Richly imagined, radical and revisionist - a portrait of Black masculinity, through the lives and voices of five remarkable Black men Ira Aldridge- trailblazing Shakespearean actor, playwright, abolitionist, acclaimed and feted across nineteenth century Europe. Matthew Henson- the first man ever to reach the North Pole, after eighteen years of successive attempts. Frantz Fanon- revolutionary psychologist and political philosopher, a forefather of modern post-colonial theory. Malcolm X- firebrand leader in the American civil rights movement, an icon in the fight for racial justice. Justin Fashanu- gifted sportsman and notorious showman, the first professional footballer in the world to come out publicly as gay. What do these five men, separated by centuries and continents, have in common The Strangers tells their stories one by one- as pioneers who made history in their fields, and as sensitive, often solitary individuals moving through a hostile world. And it locates them within the vibrant, restless, richly detailed landscape of Black art, culture, history and politics over the past several centuries.

Author Bio

Ekow Eshun is a British-Ghanaian writer, editor, curator, broadcaster, and author of the memoir Black Gold of the Sun, which was nominated for the Orwell Prize for its exploration of race and identity. He writes for publications including the New York Times, Financial Times and Guardian, and has created documentaries for BBC4 and BBC Radio 4. Eshun was the first Black editor of a major magazine in the UK and the first Black director of a major arts organisation. He has curated exhibitions internationally, including 2023's critically acclaimed, landmark project In the Black Fantastic at the Hayward Gallery and the British Film Institute, and The Time is Always Now, a major study of contemporary Black portraiture, at London's National Portrait Gallery (2024). He is currently Chairman of the Fourth Plinth committee, overseeing London's most significant public art programme, and Creative Director of the Calvert 22 Foundation.