Award-winning British-Jamaican author Candice Carty-Williams returns to one of the most celebrated characters in contemporary Black British fiction as she discusses her new novel, Queenie Is Working On It, at Cheltenham Literature Festival 2026.
Carty-Williams’ debut novel Queenie became a publishing phenomenon when it introduced readers to Queenie Jenkins, a young Jamaican British woman navigating love, work, friendship, family and identity in contemporary London.
The novel won Book of the Year at the British Book Awards in 2020, making Carty-Williams the first Black woman to receive the overall honour.
Now Queenie is older — but life has not necessarily become easier.
In Queenie Is Working On It, the much-loved character finds herself priced out of the housing market in the area where she grew up, navigating a complicated situationship and increasingly conscious of her biological clock.
She may be older, but she is still trying to work out what she wants from relationships, home, career and the next stage of her life.
Carty-Williams has become one of the defining voices of contemporary Black British fiction, placing complex Black characters at the centre of stories that are funny, messy, intimate and recognisably British.
Alongside her novels, she created the BBC television drama Champion, exploring music, sibling rivalry and Black British family life, and her work has helped broaden the representation of Black experiences across publishing and television.
For Black History Month audiences, this event provides an opportunity to hear directly from a writer whose success has played an important part in changing expectations around which Black British stories can achieve mainstream recognition.
Carty-Williams will discuss the return of Queenie, the inspiration behind the new novel and what has changed for both the character and her creator since the publication of the original book.
The conversation will be chaired by Olivia Jackson.
There will also be a book signing following the event.
Candice Carty-Williams: Queenie Is Working On It takes place at the Garden Theatre, Montpellier Gardens, Cheltenham, on Saturday 17th October 2026 from 12:00pm to 1:00pm.
Tickets are £16.
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