Chinua Achebe’s “Things Fall Apart” at 60 celebration

Chinua Achebe’s work Things Fall Apart at 60 was celebrated with readings by some of the most well-known African writers working today at the South Bank Centre in London, UK on April 15, 2018.

In 1958, Things Fall Apart by Nigeria author Chinua Achebe was published. The novel chronicled pre-colonial life in Nigeria and the arrival of the Europeans during the late nineteenth century. It is seen as the archetypal modern African novel in English, one of the first to receive global critical acclaim. The book with over 50 translations would go on to sell over 12 million copies and inspire generations of authors, artists and musicians, from Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie to Kendrick Lamar.

This year, events to celebrate the publication of this seminal book have and will be hosted across Africa and around the world. There was one such event at the Southbank Centre, London on April 15 with a reading performed by authors and Nollywood artists. The full list of the readers includes award winners of many of the prizes like the Booker, the Commonwealth, and the Windham Campbell. The full list of those who read included;

• Femi Elufowoju Jr – actor, performer and director
• Adesua Etomi – Award-winning Nollywood star
• Yomi Sode – Poet, performer and playwright
• Lucian Msamati – Film, television and stage actor
• Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi – Ugandan novelist and award-winning short story writer
• Chibundu Onuzo – Award-winning author of two books, The Spider King’s Daughter and Welcome to Lagos.
• Ellah Wakatama Allfrey – Editor, critic and broadcaster
• Ben Okri OBE – Man Booker Prize-winning novelist and poet
• Margaret Busby OBE – Publisher, editor, writer and broadcaster

Here are some images courtesy of the Southbank Centre. All images have been taken by India Roper-Evans.

You can read about this performance at our friends at Brittlepaper.com.