Damian Barr's Literary Salon
Damian Barr's Literary Salon ran live events, podcasts and social joy from 2008-2023! We tempted the world’s finest writers to the world's loveliest venues to read from their latest greatest works and share their own stories. And our podcast was packed with a fresh Book of the Week - every week! Every month we celebrated a different Indie Bookshop. We helped readers find their new favourite book! Our events and podcasts showcased established names alongside emerging talents. Yaa Gyasi, Armistead Maupin, Tracey Thorn, John Waters, David Mitchell and Sathnam Sanghera are just some of the writers who've graced the Salon since we started at Shoreditch House in 2008. All sharing new stories just for you. It’s where David Nicholls launched One Day and Caitlin Moran unveiled her Moranifesto. Patrick Gale shared A Place Called Winter as a work in progress and Maggie O’Farrell gave us a glimpse of Hamnet when it didn’t even have a title. AM Homes, Garth Greenwell and Taiye Selasi all made their UK debut with us. Thanks to the British Council we popped up in Moscow, Istanbul, Sydney, Auckland, Sao Paolo, San Francisco, Toronto and Kuala Lumpur. Polly Samson and David Gilmour swung by our Salon with Jonathan Lee at the Ace Hotel in NYC. Partners included the National Trust, Hendrick’s Gin, Soho House, The Booker Prize and the BBC National Short Story Award. The Salon was available as in-flight entertainment on British Airways and in the US via LitHub. In 2023, after fifteen fabulous years, we decided to say The End. And see what's next!
