Tom Overton discusses his new book John Berger: From Life, the first literary biography of the legendary novelist and art critic.

Tom Overton will be in conversation about his new book, John Berger: From Life. This pioneering biography explores the life and work of one of the great cultural figures of the last century. As David Shrigley puts it, 'John Berger is perhaps the only writer on art I feel it is essential to read. Tom Overton has written a brilliant account of his life.'

Tom will be joined by Caleb Klaces, author and lecturer at the York Centre for Writing, York St John University, to talk about the art of literary biography, and how he navigated Berger's life, over the fifteen years he spent writing the book. There will also be time for audience questions.

After cataloguing John Berger’s archive at the British Library, Tom Overton spent fifteen years following its traces from Moscow to Texas, from the Alps to Istanbul. He worked with Berger on editing Portraits: John Berger on Artists and Landscapes: John Berger on Art, with Matthew Harle on The Underground Sea: John Berger on Miners and the Miners’ Strike, and with Katya Berger on a forthcoming edition of Berger’s letters. He’s written for The Guardian, New Statesman, Frieze and London Review of Books and Paris Review blogs, works as the Archive Curator of the Barbican Centre, and lives in Sheffield.

Caleb Klaces is the author, most recently, of the novel Mr Outside, which won the 2026 Hawthornden Prize and was shortlisted for the Encore Award for Best Second Novel. He teaches creative writing at York Centre for Writing, York St John University.

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