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2 July 2023

Mat Osman Q&A: “The arts are turning into a desert”

The Suede bassist and novelist on Sherlock Holmes, the music of Kate Bush and life on the road.

By New Statesman

Illustration by Kristian Hammerstad

Mat Osman was born in Hertfordshire in 1967. Best known as the bassist in the rock band Suede, he is also a novelist and the composer of theme music for TV programmes such as 8 Out of 10 Cats.

Me and my brother, Richard, looking on to the cul-de-sac from an upstairs window of our house in Haywards Heath. It was Christmas morning and we couldn’t open presents until our grandparents arrived.

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