History has rarely been kind to the working class. Nor has the arts. Too often, those of us who make it into the creative industry and sustain careers do so despite our background and the class ceiling, not because of it.

Professor Carl Chinn grew up in working-class Birmingham, surrounded by family, hearing stories that would prove his inspiration to become a successful historian. His work covers the history of Birmingham, the original peaky blinder gangs, and the urban working class and he earned the honour of MBE while still facing prejudice and skepticism because of his roots.

We discuss the sharpened imposter syndrome felt by many working-class people, the ongoing battle for an egalitarian, democratic society that values the energy of the working class, and the role of community spaces in healing the terminal despondency tangible among working people.

Sponsored as ever by https://illustrationx.com who have a superb new quarterly illustration trends report here: https://www.illustrationx.com/uk/news/5992/trendx_-_april_2024

and the Ukrainian Institute https://ui.org.ua

https://www.linkedin.com/in/prof-carl-chinn-mbe-7577441b4?original_referer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Egoogle%2Ecom%2F&originalSubdomain=uk

https://www.birminghambooks.co.uk/carl_chinn

Hosted by Ben Tallon https://bentallon.com

https://bentallonwriter.com/shop for The Creative Condition book

https://www.linkedin.com/in/ben-tallon-a822a725/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s28rwnz18j4