Brixton library will host a celebration of the life of Alex Wheatle, the Brixton Bard, in February. When he passed in March 2025, the literary world lost one of its leading lights. Alex Wheatle was an award-winning novelist who wrote for both young adult and adult audiences. His early years in a care home and later time in prison, as a result of his involvement in the Brixton Uprising of 1981, never dimmed his creativity or drive and he went on to become one of Britain’s most celebrated writers, receiving an MBE for services to literature.