Last Sunday I interviewed Edward Enninful about his memoir, A VISIBLE MAN, at Manchester Literature Festival @mcrlitfest. The memoir is fantastic and shows us what it took for him to become the most important person in fashion - Editor of British Vogue & European Editorial Director of Vogue - and in both roles revolutionising the representation of women. He was the best and loveliest interviewee - so warm, down-to-earth, straight-talking, funny and charismatic. The Royal Northern College of Music auditorium was packed and the audience hung on to his every word. It was a wonderful evening with a wonderful man. Here's an extract from my intro on the night, explaining why he has been such a force for good in our culture - not only with Vogue since 2017, but the ripple effect in other mags and in our culture generally. "Beauty, self-esteem, being seen, feeling validated are intrinsic to who we are as people. Young black and brown girls can now see themselves in magazines – not only visually, but culturally - and those of us who grew up before this time, who were damaged by a racist society’s evaluation of our appearance, our selves, our beings, know how important this is, how seismic, how psychically enriching – to be valued. #vogue also uses its platform, in the magazine and online, to include previously marginalised voices with something to say and issues to address – whether due to class, sexuality, gender-identity, cultural background, politics – it gives voice to those who have historically been unheard by the mainstream. At the same time, in his hands, Vogue remains inclusive of the more traditional institutions – it expertly juggles the old and established with the radical and the new, without one alienating the other, and thus bridging divides. This, all of this, is why Edward is a leader, a trailblazer and one of the most important and influential cultural figures in our society. A Visible Man, traces his journey from a childhood in Ghana to his arrival at Vogue and beyond. So who is he, and how on earth did he - a Ghanaian immigrant, a black man, a queer man, a working class man – achieve such heights, & on his own terms." @britishvogue