The 14th Tale

1988: at four-years-old, he short-circuited his home with a silver spoon and a Betamax video player.

1989: stopped a 700-strong student assembly with a tantrum.

1995: was chased through jungle growth by a crazed, frustrated French teacher called Monsieur Batcock...Misfit? Apparently – until a little family research reveals a pattern of mischief reaching as far back as a great grandfather, and so the story begins:

I'm from a long line of trouble makers, of ash skinned Africans, born with clenched fists and a natural thirst for battle only quenched by breast milk. They'd suckle as if the white silk sliding between gums were liquid peace treaties from mums. The 14th Tale is a beautiful mellifluous narrative that tells the hilarious exploits of a natural born mischief, growing from the clay streets of Nigeria to rooftops in Dublin and finally to London by award-winning writer and performer Inua Ellams.

“A sharp reminder of the power of language and rhythm" The Scotsman; "original, experimental, beautiful” —Culture Wars

“Inua Ellams captures our attention as soon as he opens his mouth” —The Times