Wildfire Books Publishing Director, Alex Clarke, has acquired World Rights from Rick Hughes at Off The Kerb for a novel by leading Scottish comedian, Kevin Bridges, which will publish in August this year. THE BLACK DOG is Kevin’s second book and his first work of fiction.
Having started performing stand-up in 2004 shortly after his seventeenth birthday, Kevin Bridges has ascended the ranks and is now regarded as one of the UK's top comedians. He has made numerous television appearances on shows such as Live at the Apollo, The Jonathon Ross Show, Graham Norton Show and fronted his own BBC One series Kevin Bridges - What's the Story and the stand-up special Kevin Bridges: Live At The Referendum. He has won multiple awards and performed four critically acclaimed, box office record-breaking tours. His most recent tour included a staggering nineteen-night run in his hometown of Glasgow's twelve thousand capacity Hydro arena. Kevin has also released four chart-topping DVD's and his 2014 autobiography, We Need to Talk about Kevin Bridges, was a Sunday Times bestseller. Kevin will return to the stage in 2022 with his latest stand-up show which will coincide with the release of his debut novel.
Alex Clarke says: “Kevin just has a natural talent for writing. The genius we see in his perceptive, observational comedy has flowed seamlessly into the process of creating this unique and moving novel. THE BLACK DOG is heart-warming, thought-provoking and beautifully told. I can’t wait for people to start reading.”
Kevin Bridges says: “Yes, I have written a novel, an achievement that I owe to being a technophobe lacking in the patience required to perform comedy over Zoom or to start a podcast during the lockdowns. One day, during our sentence, I decided to spend a few hours to see what was in my head and in my soul and found that I began writing for hours and then the same thing the next day. After forcing myself to repeat this routine every day for months a book started to appear and the whole process became very enjoyable, cathartic and fulfilling. I hope this comes across in THE BLACK DOG and I hope you enjoy reading something that I’m very proud of, even if only for the fact that having started doing stand up straight from high school, writing it was my first ever proper day job…”
Rick Hughes says: “I’m very pleased to be releasing Kevin’s debut novel with Wildfire and working with Alex Clarke again. Alex spotted early on that not only did Kevin have a unique gift for comedy, but also for storytelling. Kevin has produced something really special with THE BLACK DOG and I am looking forward to the public getting their hands on it.”
