Right here in Hebden Bridge is one of the most admired independent publishers in the country. This year Bluemoose Books celebrates its 20th anniversary, and its remarkable journey from Calder Valley start-up to international literary success. Founded in 2006 by Kevin and Hetha Duffy, Bluemoose grew from a simple but powerful idea. As they once put it: “We’re a family of readers and writers passionate about the written word and stories. Stories are transformative, and as publishers we delight in finding great new talent.”

The name itself reflects their local roots and playful spirit — inspired by the Blue Pig pub near Hardcastle Crags and the legendary saxophonist Bull Moose Johnson.

Over the past two decades, Bluemoose Books has become an award-winning independent publisher with an international reputation. This small but extraordinarily talented team — publishing just ten books a year — won North of England Small Press of the Year in both 2023 and 2025, a remarkable achievement.
Their original vision has carried their books far beyond the Calder Valley. Today Bluemoose titles are read around the world – from places such as Moscow, Sofia and Budapest to the United States, Australia, India, Colombia, Greenland, Iceland and Bosnia-Herzegovina.

Their list of prize-winning books is impressive. Many local readers will know one of their greatest successes: The Gallows Pole by Benjamin Myers, which won the £25,000 Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction in 2018, the world’s leading award in the genre. The novel was later adapted by Shane Meadows into a three-part BBC Two drama series broadcast in May 2023.

At this special event, Kevin Duffy will be in conversation with Mark Wright of The Book Case, who introduced so brilliantly Matt Cain to our audience in February 2026.

If you love books, enjoy hearing the inside story of publishing, and want to celebrate a remarkable local success that has made its mark across the world, this is an event not to be missed.

‘Hebden to Hollywood’, that’s how Kevin Duffy describes the story of Bluemoose Books. A ‘rags to riches’ story with a twist.

Bluemoose Books was established in 2006 in Hebden Bridge by Kevin and Hetha Duffy who remortgaged their home to promote writers the big publishing companies shunned because they were considered too much of a risk or wouldn’t make them a big enough profit.

In front of a full house at Hebden Bridge Town Hall, Kevin, in conversation with Mark Wright, regaled us with one funny story after another of how Bluemoose came into being and how success has grown out of trust and loyalty from brilliant British and Irish writers.

His story began in the mid 1980s when Kevin ‘got on his bike’ and headed south finding a job as a sales rep with one of the major publishing houses. He liked the job and spending time with eager booksellers; however, he was bemused by other members of the publishing industry most of whom, Kevin believes, hail from the aristocracy. He recalled one ‘champagne event’ when he was accosted by someone for being late. He explained that he had to come to the event by bus and his assailant, without batting an eyelid, suggested he borrow some ‘family money’ and move closer to the city. This was one of many encounters Kevin shared with the audience to demonstrate how exclusive and distant members of the book industry can be from writers who come from different backgrounds to them.

Kevin’s stories came fast and funny which he used to fill in the gaps between leaving London and arriving in Hebden Bridge where Bluemoose began in 2006.

One such story was when he won The Sunday Express writing competition in 1998. He had entered the competition six times using his own name plus five pseudonyms. The problem was he couldn’t remember the pseudonym he used. Long story short, his winning entry didn’t get published and so Hetha suggested they self-publish by remortgaging their family home.

Kevin’s family is at the heart of the Bluemoose story: the family home in Hebden remains the company’s domain; Kevin uses his keen eye to identify the potential for a good story. This is then passed on to Hetha and her mother, Lynn, who act as two out of the three editors for the company. Their ability to identify good writing is the basis of their success and it is a formula which sees this small publisher grow from strength to strength.

In the past twenty years, Bluemoose writers have won or been shortlisted for 31 literary prizes, and their books have been translated into 15 languages and sold around the world.

Two of their better known writers are Ben Myers (The Gallows Pole) and Rónán Hession (Leonard and Hungry Paul). Both books have been adapted for television, with Leonard and Hungry Paul narrated by Hollywood star Julia Roberts.

Kevin is modest about the success of Bluemoose and credits his family plus the loyalty and trust they receive from the writers they support. This is where the riches – and the richness – of this story blossoms.

Bluemoose are proud to be an independent publisher based in the north of England and particularly because they publish stories from the margins often overlooked by the big publishing houses.

Bluemoose’s main criterion is simple: good writing.

The evening ended with resounding applause. Kevin expressed his gratitude for being invited as our guest speaker but really the thanks is from us and the audience for such an entertaining evening and for helping HB Lit & Sci’s new season off to a great start.

‘Hebden to Hollywood’ by Kevin Duffy will be launched on 12 November 2026. It tells the story of twenty years in independent publishing and can also be read as a guide to how, or how not, to start a publishing company. It’s also a story of how one small publishing company from Hebden Bridge outplayed the big publishing houses and demonstrates that, even today, David can take on Goliath and win.

We wish Kevin and Bluemoose every success. His book will be available in The Book Case in Hebden Bridge alongside all the other Bluemoose publications.

HB Lit & Sci’s next event will be on Saturday 31st October 2026 at Hebden Bridge Town Hall at 7.30pm.

The speaker is Professor Caterina Doglioni: Ghosts in the cosmos: hunting for dark matter.

See our website for tickets and details. Tickets are also on sale at the Town Hall.