Ahmed Masoud (born 1981) is a Palestinian and British writer, theatre maker, and academic based in London. He wrote plays including ''The Shroud Maker'' (2017), ''Camouflage'' (2020), ''Passports, Jinn, Mo Salah and Other Complicated Things'' (2023) and ''Application 39'' (2025) and the novels ''Vanished: The Mysterious Disappearance of Mustafa Ouda'' (2015) and ''Come What May'' (2022). He founded the Al Zaytouna dance company and PalArt Collective.

Early life

Masoud grew up in

Jabalia Refugee Camp Jabalia Camp () is a Palestinian refugee camp in the North Gaza Governorate of the Gaza Strip, north of Jabalia. It is the largest refugee camp in Palestine, with more than 100,000 inhabitants. The camp only covers an area of 1.4 km2 making i ...

. His paternal family were originally from the village of

Deir Sneid Dayr Sunayd () was a Palestinian Arab village in the Gaza Subdistrict, located northeast of Gaza. Situated at an elevation of along the southern coastal plain of Palestine, Deir Sunayd had a total land area of 6,081 dunams. Prior to its depop ...

, and his grandfather had owned a stone house and farms in

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

prior to the

Nakba The Nakba () is the ethnic cleansing; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; of Palestinian Arabs through their violent displacement and dispossession of land, property, and belongings, along with the destruction of their s ...

. With an interest in bands such as

Queen Queen most commonly refers to: * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a kingdom * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen (band), a British rock band Queen or QUEEN may also refer to: Monarchy * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Q ...

and writers like

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English novelist, journalist, short story writer and Social criticism, social critic. He created some of literature's best-known fictional characters, and is regarded by ...

, Masoud learned English at a young age and went on to study English literature at

Al-Azhar University The Al-Azhar University ( ; , , ) is a public university in Cairo, Egypt. Associated with Al-Azhar Al-Sharif in Islamic Cairo, it is Egypt's oldest degree-granting university and is known as one of the most prestigious universities for Islamic ...

. When aged 20, in 2002, he moved to London. He graduated with a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

(BA) and a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

(MA) in English literature from

London Metropolitan University London Metropolitan University, commonly known as London Met, is a public university, public research university in London, England. The University of North London and London Guildhall University merged in 2002 to create the university. The Un ...

. He went on to complete his PhD in comparative literature at

Goldsmiths, University of London Goldsmiths, University of London, formerly Goldsmiths College, University of London, is a constituent research university of the University of London. It was originally founded in 1891 as The Goldsmiths' Technical and Recreative Institute by ...

Career

In 2005, Masoud founded the

dabke ''Dabke'' ( also spelled ''dabka'', ''dabki'', ''dubki'', ''dabkeh'', plural ''dabkaat'') is a Levantine folk dance, particularly popular among Lebanese, Jordanian, Palestinian, and Syrian communities. Dabke combines circle dance and line da ...

dance company Al Zaytouna, partially to fund his studies, through which he directed an adaptation of

Ghassan Kanafani Ghassan Fayiz Kanafani (; 8 April 1936 – 8 July 1972) was a prominent Palestinian literature, Palestinian author and Palestinian militant, militant, considered to be a leading novelist of his generation and one of the Arab world's leading Pa ...

's ''Returning to Haifa'' (2006) and ''Unto the Breach'' (2012), inspired by

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's natio ...

's ''

Henry V Henry V may refer to: People * Henry V, Duke of Bavaria (died 1026) * Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor (1081/86–1125) * Henry V, Duke of Carinthia (died 1161) * Henry V, Count Palatine of the Rhine (–1227) * Henry V, Count of Luxembourg (1216–1281 ...

''. In 2008, Masoud published a chapter in ''Britain and the Muslim World: A historical perspective''. The following year, he collaborated with Justin Butcher on the play ''Go to Gaza, Drink the Sea'' at the

Theatro Technis Theatro Technis is an independent multi-cultural arts centre with a 120 -seat theatre located in the heart of London Borough of Camden. It contributes in general and specific ways to the cultural and social life of the people of Lond ...

. On a grant awarded by the

Arts Council An arts council is a government or private non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the arts; mainly by funding local artists, awarding prizes, and organizing arts events. They often operate at arms-length from the government to prevent pol ...

in 2014, Masoud wrote the play ''Walaa: Loyalty'' about the Syrian refugee crisis. The play, directed by Richard Shannon, premiered at the New Diorama Theatre. His following play ''The Shroud Maker'' with

Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says that it has more than ten million members a ...

, a satirical play about the titular woman named Hajja Souad, went on a tour of the UK. Also in 2015, Masoud's debut novel ''Vanished: The Mysterious Disappearance of Mustafa Ouda'' was published via Rimal Books. The novel was shortlisted for a 2015 Palestine Book Award, awarded by ''

Middle East Monitor The Middle East Monitor (MEMO) is a not-for-profit press monitoring organisation and lobbying group that emerged in mid 2009. MEMO is largely focused on the Israeli–Palestinian conflict but writes about other issues in the Middle East, as wel ...

''. To mark the 50th anniversary of Israel's military occupation of Gaza, Masoud reunited with Amnesty International for his dark comedy play ''Camouflage'', which was put on in May 2017. ''The Shroud Maker'' was once again staged in 2017 at the

Royal Academy of Dramatic Art The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, also known by its abbreviation RADA (), is a drama school in London, England, which provides vocational conservatoire training for theatre, film, television, and radio. It is based in Bloomsbury, Central London ...

(RADA) followed by a UK tour in 2018. It was also shown at Liverpool's Arab Arts Festival and workshopped in Manchester. Masoud has been a lecturer at the

University of the Arts London The University of the Arts London is a public collegiate university in London, England, United Kingdom. It specialises in arts, design, fashion, and the performing arts. The university is a federation of six arts colleges: Camberwell College of ...

, as well as head of international partnership development at

Oxford Brookes University Oxford Brookes University (OBU; formerly known as Oxford Polytechnic) is a public university, public university in Oxford, England. It is a new university, having received university status through the Further and Higher Education Act 1992. Th ...

for nine years and, as of 2019, head of

Regent's University London Regent's University London (formerly Regent's College) is a private university located in London, England. It is part of Galileo Global Education, Europe’s largest higher education provider. Regent's University London was established in 1984 ...

's international partnerships office. He joined the

University of Plymouth The University of Plymouth is a public research university based predominantly in Plymouth, England, where the main campus is located, but the university has campuses and affiliated colleges across South West England. With students, it is the ...

's Displacement Studies Research Network. He was selected to be the writer in residence at the 2019 Bristol Palestine Film Festival. In 2022, Masoud published his second novel ''Come What May''. He also founded the PalArt Collective and Festival initiative. Masoud collaborated with slam poet

Farah Chamma Farah Chamma (Arabic: :ar:فرح شمّا, فرح شمّا; born 6 April, 1994) is a Palestinians, Palestinian spoken-word poet currently based in the United Arab Emirates. Chamma speaks six languages including Arabic, English, and French. She st ...

on the experimental show ''Passports, Mo Salah, Jinn and Other Complicated Things''. Masoud's play ''The Shroud Maker'' returned to the stage for the 2024

Edinburgh Fringe Festival The Edinburgh Festival Fringe (also referred to as the Edinburgh Fringe, the Fringe or the Edinburgh Fringe Festival) is the world's largest performance arts festival, which in 2024 spanned 25 days, sold more than 2.6 million tickets and featur ...

. Masoud then adapted his 2018 short story ''Application 39'' for the stage, which premiered at the

in May 2025; the futuristic satire imagines a scenario in which Gaza accidentally wins a bid to host the 2048 Summer Olympic Games.

Personal life

In 2023, the IDF destroyed the Jabalia cemetery where Masoud's father was buried. In 2024, Masoud's brother Khalid lost his leg and eventually succumbed to his injuries, leaving behind his young children. In May 2024, Masoud called on Parliament to offer a visa route for families of British nationals stuck in Gaza similar to the route offered to Ukrainian families. He expressed concern for his sister Hind and her baby. In 2025, Masoud lost his sister-in-law and nephew.

Bibliography

Novels

* ''Vanished: The Mysterious Disappearance of Mustafa Ouda'' (2015) * ''Come What May'' (2022)

Plays

* ''Go to Gaza, Drink the Sea'' (2009) * ''Walaa: Loyalty'' (2014) * ''The Shroud Maker'' (2017) * ''Application 39'' (2025)

Short stories and essays

* "Race & Identity in Early Palestinian Literature of Resistance" in ''Britain and the Muslim World: Historical Perspectives'' (2010) (edited by Gerald McLean) * "Application 39" in ''Palestine + 100'' (2019)

Audio

* ''Escape from Gaza'' (2011) for

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. The station replaced the BBC Home Service on 30 September 1967 and broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes from the BBC's headquarters at Broadcasti ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Masoud, Ahmed Living people 1981 births Academics of the University of the Arts London Academics of the University of Plymouth Alumni of Al-Azhar University – Gaza Alumni of Goldsmiths, University of London Alumni of London Metropolitan University Naturalised citizens of the United Kingdom Palestinian dramatists and playwrights Palestinian emigrants to the United Kingdom Palestinian novelists People associated with Oxford Brookes University People associated with Regent's University London People from Holloway, London People from Jabalia Camp Writers from Gaza City