Benjamin Zephaniah

Benjamin Obadiah Iqbal Zephaniah (born 15 April 1958, Coleshill, Birmingham, England) is a British Rastafarian writer and dub poet. He is a well-known figure in contemporary English literature, and was included in The Times list of Britain’s top 50 post-war writers in 2008. Zephaniah has said that his mission is to fight the dead image of poetry in academia, and to ‘take (it) everywhere’ to people who do not read books.

He writes that his poetry emerged from the rhythms of Jamaica and ‘street politics’.

Zephaniah has published several books and records over the years including Pen Rhythm, Rasta, and Face.

He has received eight honorary doctorates and is also an honorary patron of The Vegan Society, the anti-racist organisation Newham Monitoring Project, and Tower Hamlets Summer University.

Zephaniah lived for many years in East London but since 2008 has divided his time between Beijing and a village near Spalding, Lincolnshire. He is a self-described passionate vegan.

William Forsythe