Benjamin Zephaniah, novelist and poet known as 'the people's laureate' who performed to a reggae backbeat – obituary
Benjamin Zephaniah, who has died of a brain tumour aged 65, was a writer and dub poet, often intoning his words over a reggae backbeat; he went from the streets of Handsworth to become a treasured figure on the UK’s literary scene, described as “the people’s laureate” and celebrated for his works on race. His mission, he said, was “to take poetry everywhere” and he described his technique as “dub ranting”, adding: “I do it because there is no justice.”