Launch of

BLOOD ON THE NASH AMBASSADOR

Investigations in American Culture

by Eric Mottram

Eric Mottram (1924-1995) was a hugely influential British teacher, critic, editor and poet. He taught English and American literature at King’s College London for many years, as well as in visiting lectureships all over the world. He co-founded the Institute of United States Studies in London and was a pioneer of the discipline that became cultural studies. He was a pivotal figure in the British Poetry Revival during the 1970s, and introduced the Beat Generation writers to British and European readerships.  

Blood on the Nash Ambassador, a collection of eight wide-ranging essays on aspects of American culture, was first published in 1988 but has been out of print for many years. It explores guns, cars, racism, politics and paranoia in startling ways, unparallelled before or since. It is even more relevant today.

In collaboration with King’s College London, Grand Iota today launches a new edition of the book, with an introduction by Michael Hrebeniak assessing Mottram’s achievement in the context of today’s USA. Copies will be available for sale at a special launch price, and there will also be an exhibition of items from the Eric Mottram collection (King’s College London Archives).

Wednesday 11 September

Address: Kings College London, Archives Reading Room (S3.02), Strand Building, Strand, London, WC2R 2LS.

Doors open at 5.30

Speakers:

Welcome by Lis Hannon (University Librarian and Director, Libraries & Collections, King’s College London)

Introduction by Ken Edwards (Reality Street/Grand Iota)

The relevance of Blood on the Nash Ambassador today by Michael Hrebeniak