Brian W Lavery spent 25 years in various senior roles in journalism before undertaking a first-class joint honours degree (English and Creative Writing) and a doctorate in creative writing at Hull.

His prose includes the books The Luckiest Thirteen (2017) and The Headscarf Revolutionaries (2015). The Headscarf Revolutionaries was also featured in the BBC4 documentary, Hull's Headscarf Heroes (2018) and has been highlighted in two Radio 4 documentaries and two programmes on the BBC World Service. In 2022 a blue plaque was unveiled at St. Barnabas Court to honour the Headscarf Revolutionaries. Brian has also featured on BBC Radio Four's Four Thought series. In August 2020 Dr Lavery received the City of Kingston upon Hull Lord Mayor's Civic Crown Award for preserving Hull's heritage.

He lectures in creative writing and journalism at the University of Leeds Lifelong Learning Centre and is writer-in-residence at Hull Kingston Rovers rugby league club's charitable trust, where he runs free community writing classes.