In the centre of a 1960s hospital ward sits a curtained-off bed, guarded by a policeman. In it lies a murderer, hidden from view and likely to die before he can be hanged for his crime. In the closed, regimented society of the ward, his invisible presence fractures and rebuilds the way the other patients see the world.

In the face of someone who has shattered all social covenants, life can no longer continue according to the rules. Upturning conventions from morality to masculinity to class to prejudice, The Foot of Clive is a masterclass on humanity from the Booker Prize-winning author of G.