Ajay Close explores the real people and events behind her novel 'What Doesn't Kill Us'.

A killer stalks the streets. Every man is a suspect, every woman is at risk. But in a house on Cleopatra Street, women are fighting back. Join Ajay Close to hear about the real people and events behind her award-winning novel, What Doesn’t Kill Us. Based on the Yorkshire Ripper murders, this gripping tale of murder, resistance, unexpected friendships and divided loyalties asks how much has really changed since the dark days of the 1970s?

Ajay Close is a novelist and dramatist. Her first novel, Official and Doubtful, was longlisted for the Orange Prize. It was followed by Forspoken; Trust; A Petrol Scented Spring (longlisted for the Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction and about the Scottish suffragettes); The Daughter of Lady Macbeth and What We Did in the Dark, the story of Catherine Carswell, whose biography of Robert Burns aroused controversy. Her latest novel, What Doesn’t Kill Us – a fictional reworking of real events in the 1970s – was named Fiction Book of the Year in Scotland’s National Book Awards.

The Keekin Gless, a play about Scots poet William Soutar, premiered at Perth Theatre. The Sma Room Seance, a musical play based on Soutar’s life and work, toured Scotland and was revived at the Edinburgh Fringe. Cat and Mouse, about the Scottish suffragettes, premiered at Goodlyburn Theatre, Perth. Ajay’s first career was in journalism, where she won many awards.

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Refunds will only be given in the event of cancellation by organisers.

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