Hannah Begbie inspired by raising a son with cystic fibros

Former comedy agent Hannah Begbie has become a novelist, and has sold her first book to HarperFiction.

Mother is described as a ‘dark’ debut about a woman, Cath, who discovers her newborn daughter has a deadly illness. It is inspired by her own experiences of having a son with cystic fibrosis.

Begbie quit as an agent in 2015 to join the board of The Cystic Fibrosis Trust. Before that, the comedians she represented  included Tim Key, Adam Riches and Andrew Maxwell.

She said: ‘The idea for the story began with the painful experience of having my newborn son diagnosed with cystic fibrosis. However, as I developed the story into fiction, the scope of the novel broadened to explore themes of identity and motherhood, adultery, grief and redemption achieved at a high price.’

In the book, Cath attends a parental support group where she meets a father in a similar situation, the "dangerously attractive’ Richard who promises a cure for their children.

Martha Ashby, editorial director at HarperFiction, told trade website The Bookseller: ‘Hannah’s writing grabbed me by the throat from the very first page and in her brutal examination of the roles that women play, her novel is at the same time both raw with emotion and deeply thought-provoking.’

Mother will be published next August, and can be ordered here.

Published: 17 Oct 2017