Nihal Arthanayake is a multi-award winning broadcaster, podcaster, author and DJ. In a 23-year career at the BBC, he went from being  a specialist music DJ, as well as a daytime entertainment presenter, to a broadcaster widely regarded to be one of the greatest conversationalists of his generation. Throughout his long and varied career he has held in-depth conversations with Salman Rushdie, Jordan B Peterson, Senator Bernie Sanders, Sally Field, Greta Thunberg and Sir Billy Connolly plus hundreds of other luminaries from the worlds of music, film, TV, theatre, politics, literature and sport. As well as having been a trustee of the British Council, Southbank Centre and King Charles’ British Asian Trust, he is now a trustee of Factory International in Manchester and an Ambassador for the Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity.

In 2022 Nihal’s debut book, Let’s Talk: How To Have Better Conversations, was published to wide acclaim and was lauded as a Waterstones Paperback of the Year in 2023. Described by Matt Haig as “A brilliant book on the art of conversation” and “A compulsory book for these divided times” by Sathnam Sanghera, it cemented Nihal Arthanayake’s place as an expert in the fields of conversation, communication and connection. As well as being a passionate supporter of Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, Nihal also decided to face his fears and dip his toes into the world of stand-up comedy in 2025. For Galle Literary Festival 2026, he will be hosting, debating and DJing.

Top Titles

• Let’s Talk: How To Have Better Conversations (2022)