Shadow World - Anatomy of a Cancellation: 5. The Rewrite
Download Anatomy of a Cancellation: 5. The Rewrite
A sensitivity reader Helen Gould speaks publicly for the first time, revealing the emotional and professional complexities of revising a book already in print.
Katie Razzall interrogates the role of sensitivity readers, and asks: who gets to decide what’s acceptable in literature—and what happens when those boundaries shift?
In Shadow World: Anatomy of a Cancellation, the BBC’s Culture Editor Katie Razzall revisits a story that rocked the UK’s publishing industry in 2021. It led to what some saw as the unjustified cancellation of a prize-winning writer and teacher - but to others, was a long overdue reckoning for the world of publishing. It grew into a culture war about race, class, and who has the right to say what.
Anatomy of a Cancellation explores a range of different perspectives to consider how people now view one of the most controversial literary rows in recent memory.
Presenter: Katie Razzall
Producer: Charlotte McDonald
Additional production: Octavia Woodward
Production co-ordinators: Sophie Hill and Katie Morrison
Sound design and mix: James Beard
Story editing: Meara Sharma
Series producer: Matt Willis
Senior news editor: Clare Fordham
Commissioning executive: Tracy Williams
Commissioning editor: Dan Clarke
It was a BBC Long Form Audio production for Radio 4.
Published on Friday, 7th November 2025.
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