As the night's host remarked at the end of the evening, "These things don't always work out but it was a good idea to put the two of you up here together".

Palahniuk and Welsh are authors from opposite sides of the Atlantic who share a bond of pitch-black humour and a predilection for taboo subjects. Both were intelligent and charming company.

Palahniuk (pictured) began by having cooked-beef-scented air fresheners given out to the audience, before reading a delightful excerpt from Haunted in which people are boiled alive.

Welsh, more physical in his delivery, then treated us to excerpts from his forthcoming The Bedroom Secrets Of The Master Chefs.

Their discussion began with Palahniuk graciously admitting to having ripped off Welsh's style when he started writing.

Subjects then ranged from the Press - Palahniuk gets a friend to cut out his reviews before he reads publications - to film adaptations of their work, with Welsh stating "you can't lose. If it's a success, you can claim it's the source material. If it's a failure, you can just say they f***ed it up."

Palahniuk once wrote that "a moment was the most you could ever expect from perfection". He and Welsh provided several.