In this three-part feature, we take a look at different ways of writing the city and how cities are brought into view through journalism and fiction. Recorded live at the Off the Shelf festival in Sheffield in 2026, we talk with three writers - Gabriella Bennett, Saima Mir and Sufiyaan Salam about home, belonging, identity and wider questions of representational justice. Across the talks, key themes include how different forms of writing approximate the 'truth', how journalism and fiction give us space and time to understand cities beyond academia and what the connections are between writing the city and the right to the city.

The introduction and wrap up are included in Part 1.

In Part Three Beth interviews Sufiyaan Salam about his book Wimmy Road Boyz. Focusing on one night and one road - a.k.a the Curry Mile - Salam’s novel brings Manchester into view through “heavy pasts and heavier futures”. The conversation moves through parodying Oasis’ Wonderwall, killing Shakespeare, British ‘nights out’, and Reclaim the Night marches, to explore themes of urban anonymity, masculine friendship, rage, and Mancunian bravado.

Listen to Parts One and Two here:

Gabriella Bennett, "How to Build A City"

Saima Mir, "Deliverance"

Guest:

Sufiyaan Salam is a writer and former animator from Blackburn. He co-wrote the short film MAGID / ZAFAR, which won the BIFA award in 2025 and was shortlisted for a BAFTA for Best Short Film. Wimmy Road Boyz is his first novel.

Find our more/references:

‘The Curry Mile’ (Wilmslow Road, Manchester) - Rusholme Archive

Urban Institute report - Manchester, The Centripetal City: The Lessons of Property-Led Regeneration For Core Cities and Their Proximal Towns.

Reclaim the Night - Manchester Evening News 2019

‘Understanding the Racist Riots of 2024 and what should be done’ - Race Equality Foundation.

Joint Enterprise Not Guilty by Association

Discussing Tanzil Shafique's City of Desire on Urban Radar Episode 24

Hosts:

Tom Goodfellow is Professor of Urban Development in the Global Development Institute, and CEO of the African Cities Research Consortium, University of Manchester. His research focuses on the political economy of urban development and change in Africa, particularly the politics of urban land and transportation, conflicts around infrastructure and housing, and urban institutional change. (linkedin.com/in/tom-goodfellow-0b418441)

Beth Perry is Professor of Urban Epistemics and Director of the Urban Institute at the University of Sheffield. Her research focuses on the relationships between urban expertise, governance and justice, underpinned by a commitment to co-producing collective intelligence across multiple scales to address complex urban challenges. She has worked in cities in Africa, Europe and the UK. (linkedin.com/in/itsbethperry)

Email feedback to: urbanradarpod@gmail.com

You can also follow us on instagram: @urbanradarpodcast

Thanks to the Universities of Sheffield and Manchester for providing time, resources and equipment to support this podcast. And to Sam Burgum, for post-production editing and promotion.

In this three-part feature, we take a look at different ways of writing the city and how cities are brought into view through journalism and fiction. Recorded live at the Off the Shelf festival in Sheffield in 2026, we talk with three writers - Gabriella Bennett, Saima Mir and Sufiyaan Salam about home, belonging, identity and wider questions of representational justice. Across the talks, key themes include how different forms of writing approximate the 'truth', how journalism and fiction give us space and time to understand cities beyond academia and what the connections are between writing the city and the right to the city.

The introduction and wrap up are included in Part 1.

In Part Two Beth interviews Saima Mir about her book Deliverance which is the third in the Khan trilogy. More than a crime novel, Mir brings the city into view as a silent protagonist shaping urban destinies, from global empires and industrial decline to shadow economies and sweet shops. The conversation turns to the ‘truth’ that can be found in fictional accounts of the city, helping us to unpick how we navigate intersecting urban lenses of femininity, race, motherhood, and being a northerner.

Listen to Parts One and Three here:

Gabriella Bennett, "How to Build A City"

Sufiyaan Salam, "Wimmy Road Boyz"

Guest:

Saima Mir is an award-winning journalist and bestselling author. She has written for The Guardian, The Times, The Independent and The Daily Telegraph, and worked for the BBC. Her work appeared in the anthology, It’s Not About the Burqa in 2019 and received over 250,000 hits online in two days. She is the author of the Times Bestseller, The Khan, and its sequels Vengeance and Deliverance. Saima grew up in Bradford and now lives in London. Mir is also the editor of The Book of Bradford whose stories demonstrate the resilience of Yorkshire’s third largest city, the former ‘wool capital of the world’ which has overcome challenges and evolved into a proudly modern city, famed for its rich diversity and vibrant cultural landscape.

Find our more/references:

From Oldham to Bradford: the violence of the violated, Institute for Race Relations - on the Race Riots 2001

Discussing Tanzil Shafique's City of Desire on Urban Radar Episode 24

Hosts:

Tom Goodfellow is Professor of Urban Development in the Global Development Institute, and CEO of the African Cities Research Consortium, University of Manchester. His research focuses on the political economy of urban development and change in Africa, particularly the politics of urban land and transportation, conflicts around infrastructure and housing, and urban institutional change. (linkedin.com/in/tom-goodfellow-0b418441)

Beth Perry is Professor of Urban Epistemics and Director of the Urban Institute at the University of Sheffield. Her research focuses on the relationships between urban expertise, governance and justice, underpinned by a commitment to co-producing collective intelligence across multiple scales to address complex urban challenges. She has worked in cities in Africa, Europe and the UK. (linkedin.com/in/itsbethperry)

Email feedback to: urbanradarpod@gmail.com

You can also follow us on instagram: @urbanradarpodcast

Thanks to the Universities of Sheffield and Manchester for providing time, resources and equipment to support this podcast. And to Sam Burgum, for post-production editing and promotion.

In this three-part feature, we take a look at different ways of writing the city and how cities are brought into view through journalism and fiction. Recorded live at the Off the Shelf festival in Sheffield in 2026, we talk with three writers - Gabriella Bennett, Saima Mir and Sufiyaan Salam about home, belonging, identity and wider questions of representational justice. Across the talks, key themes include how different forms of writing approximate the 'truth', how journalism and fiction give us space and time to understand cities beyond academia and what the connections are between writing the city and the right to the city.

In Part One, Beth and Tom interview journalist and author Gabriella Bennett about her new book How to Build a City: Journeys into the Urban Future, part long-form journalism, part travel-log exploring how cities are confronting the big issues of our time. Bennett takes us from growing-up in Glenrothes, to Ukraine, the North Pole, and even Mars. The conversation reconsiders ‘home’ as something which is constantly evolving, which is not fixed but can be designed ‘in’ and ‘out’ through architecture and planning, and is shaped by war, climate crisis, and societal injustices.

Listen to Parts Two and Three here:

Saima Mir, "Deliverance"

Sufiyaan Salam, "Wimmy Road Boyz"

Guest:

Gabriella Bennett is a Scottish based journalist who specialises in housing and architecture. She writes two weekly columns for The Times and The Sunday Times and her work has appeared in numerous national papers. Her first book, The Art of Coorie, was a Waterstones Bestseller.

Find our more/references:

David Harding, a town artist

Discussing Edi Rama and Albanian 'starchitects' on Urban Radar Episode 35

Discussing Tanzil Shafique's City of Desire on Urban Radar Episode 24

Discussing Kiruna's church move on Urban Radar Episode 11

Discussing rebuilding efforts in Ukraine whilst war is ongoing on Urban Radar Episode 9

Hosts:

Tom Goodfellow is Professor of Urban Development in the Global Development Institute, and CEO of the African Cities Research Consortium, University of Manchester. His research focuses on the political economy of urban development and change in Africa, particularly the politics of urban land and transportation, conflicts around infrastructure and housing, and urban institutional change. (linkedin.com/in/tom-goodfellow-0b418441)

Beth Perry is Professor of Urban Epistemics and Director of the Urban Institute at the University of Sheffield. Her research focuses on the relationships between urban expertise, governance and justice, underpinned by a commitment to co-producing collective intelligence across multiple scales to address complex urban challenges. She has worked in cities in Africa, Europe and the UK. (linkedin.com/in/itsbethperry)

Email feedback to: urbanradarpod@gmail.com

You can also follow us on instagram: @urbanradarpodcast

Thanks to the Universities of Sheffield and Manchester for providing time, resources and equipment to support this podcast. And to Sam Burgum, for post-production editing and promotion.