Damian Barr

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Damian Barr

Goodreads Author


Born
in The United Kingdom
July 20

Website

Twitter

Genre

Influences
Alice Walker, Truman Capote, Janice Galloway, Tennessee Williams, Dian ...more

Member Since
April 2007

URL


I'm a writer and broadcaster. My books are 'The Two Roberts', 'You Will Be Safe Here' and 'Maggie & Me'.

'The Two Roberts' is my second novel. Meet Robert MacBryde and Robert Colquhoun: artists, lovers, outsiders. From 1930s Glasgow to wartime London and the Fifties, this is the fictional story of two truly wild lives.

They were charismatic art celebrities - collected by major institutions, photographed by Vogue, filmed by Ken Russell for the BBC. But they lived as hard as they worked, dying young and penniless yet on the verge of a comeback.

Tender, bold and deeply personal, 'The Two Roberts' is a timely love-letter to these queer Scottish pioneers, exploring what it means to discover your voice as an artist, to find love when it’s forbidde
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Popular Answered Questions

Damian Barr thanks for your question. I'll answer as best I can. Basically, i want to draw attention to the books I really, really like or maybe even love. Those …morethanks for your question. I'll answer as best I can. Basically, i want to draw attention to the books I really, really like or maybe even love. Those are the ones I give 4 or 5 stars to. Conversely, some books I haven't rated which I think are actual masterpieces because, tbh, I feel a bit unqualified to give a star rating to say Truman Capote. And some I don't rate because I don't rate them even though I've read them. And often I forget to rate at all. I hope that helps!(less)
Damian Barr Andy thanks for this question. I grew up in a house without books- the first books I owened were given to me by Social Services. In Maggie & Me I talk…moreAndy thanks for this question. I grew up in a house without books- the first books I owened were given to me by Social Services. In Maggie & Me I talk about the importance of libraries and stories to giving me relief and escape from poverty and violence. Working class readers and writers face increasingly big obstacles. Advances for writers are shrinking, libraries are closing and AI is advancing. Safety nets are being taken away, as you point out. So, yes, i feel very strongly that there is a real danger that the number of people who can 'afford' to write and fight to get published is shrinking and becoming richer and more uniform. This dearth of stories will impoverish us all. I would say the Society of Authors, the Royal Literary Fund and the various regional writing development groups, like New Writing North, continue to offer material support and help.(less)
Average rating: 4.07 · 4,652 ratings · 767 reviews · 10 distinct worksSimilar authors
You Will Be Safe Here

4.02 avg rating — 2,109 ratings — published 2019 — 19 editions
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Maggie & Me

4.12 avg rating — 1,802 ratings — published 2013 — 20 editions
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Common People: An Anthology...

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4.15 avg rating — 482 ratings — published 2019 — 3 editions
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The Two Roberts

4.27 avg rating — 129 ratings — published 2025 — 6 editions
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Imagine a Country: Ideas fo...

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3.87 avg rating — 130 ratings — published 2020 — 3 editions
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Speak My Language, and Othe...

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4.01 avg rating — 75 ratings — published 2015 — 5 editions
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Others: Writers on the powe...

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4.19 avg rating — 48 ratings — published 2019 — 2 editions
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Get It Together : Surviving...

3.46 avg rating — 37 ratings — published 2004 — 3 editions
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Out There: An Anthology of ...

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3.75 avg rating — 24 ratings — published 2014 — 2 editions
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Tout ira bien

0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings
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Damian’s Recent Updates

Damian and 4 other people liked Elainedav's review of The Two Roberts:
The Two Roberts by Damian Barr
"I'll be honest, I expected to like this book. I really admire Damian Barr, especially for the way he promotes other authors and public libraries through his work. And I have read and enjoyed his previous novel. But The Two Roberts is even better than" Read more of this review »
Damian and 5 other people liked Ross's review of The Two Roberts:
The Two Roberts by Damian Barr
"so unbelievably perfect. taut with an intense emotion and thrill of love and longing. such a genuine romantic relationship between two distinctive characters and artists. so moving! loveeeed. "
Damian and 10 other people liked Cathy's review of The Two Roberts:
The Two Roberts by Damian Barr
"I confess I’d never heard of the Scottish artists Robert ‘Bobby’ MacBryde and Robert Colquhoun before reading this book and I suspect I’m not alone. How exciting though for an author to come across two people whose lives and achievements have been al" Read more of this review »
Damian wants to read
The Death of the Heart by Elizabeth Bowen
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Audition by Katie Kitamura
Audition
by Katie Kitamura (Goodreads Author)
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A Place I've Never Been by David Leavitt
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Muckle Flugga by Michael Pedersen
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The Two Roberts by Damian Barr
" Your tour sounds amazing! thank you! "
Damian added a status update: Join me at Hatchards in London on Thurs for publication of The Two Roberts? Thanks for adding them to your shelf!
Damian wants to read
The Mare by Angharad Hampshire
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Quotes by Damian Barr  (?)
Quotes are added by the Goodreads community and are not verified by Goodreads. (Learn more)

“We are not all in the same boat. We are in the same storm. Some of us are on superyachts. Some of us have just the one oar.”
Damian Barr, Imagine a Country: Ideas for a Better Future

“Reading is an act of radical empathy: turning the page instead of turning away.”
Damian Barr, Maggie & Me

“Maggie, tou made it possible -but not probably for me to be the man I am now.”
Damian Barr, Maggie & Me

Topics Mentioning This Author

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The Mookse and th...: This topic has been closed to new comments. 2025 Booker Prize speculation 460 707 Jul 29, 2025 05:49AM  
“We are not all in the same boat. We are in the same storm. Some of us are on superyachts. Some of us have just the one oar.”
Damian Barr, Imagine a Country: Ideas for a Better Future

“You don't realise how much you're holding onto until you start to let go of it. I had had loads of therapy and thought I had come to terms with who I am, but there's something in the process of writing that unlocks other experiences, other emotions and you have to be prepared for that.”
Damian Barr, Maggie & Me

“Researching and writing my novel has taken me to some really dark places. It is when you are in these dark places that you can see: there is always hope, there is always love.”
Damian Barr, You Will Be Safe Here

“The second time I try to kill a man I'm fourteen. Killing a man seems a very grown-up thing to do - like writing in Biro.”
Damian Barr, Maggie & Me

“Mary the Canary lives in a cloud of perfume and colours. She's an auxiliary nurse by day and a country and western singer by night: bed pans and power ballass. She's so glamorous she makes Mrs Hart look plain. She is the other woman and I'm bring trained to hate her even though I've never met her.”
Damian Barr, Maggie & Me

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