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The Truth About Muhammad: Founder of the World’s Most Intolerant Religion
Muhammad: a frank look at his influential (and violent) life and teachings In The Truth about Muhammad, New York Times bestselling author and Islam expert Robert Spencer offers an honest and telling portrait of the founder of Islam-perhaps the first such portrait in half a century-unbounded by fear and political correctness, unflinching, and willing to face the hard facts about Muhammad’s life that continue to affect our world today. From Muhammad’s first “revelation” from Allah (which filled him with terror that he was demonpossessed) to his deathbed (from which he called down curses upon Jews and Christians), it’s all here-told with extensive documentation from the sources that Muslims themselves consider most reliable about Muhammad. Spencer details Muhammad’s development from a preacher of hellfire and damnation into a political and military leader who expanded his rule by force of arms, promising his warriors luridly physical delights in Paradise if they were killed in his cause. He explains how the Qur’an’s teaching on warfare against unbelievers developed-with constant war to establish the hegemony of Islamic law as the last stage. Spencer also gives the truth about Muhammad’s convenient “revelations” justifying his own licentiousness; his joy in the brutal murders of his enemies; and above all, his clear marching orders to his followers to convert non-Muslims to Islam-or force them to live as inferiors under Islamic rule. In The Truth about Muhammad, you’ll learn – The truth about Muhammad’s multiple marriages (including one to a nine-year-old) – How Muhammad set legal standards that make it virtually impossible to prove rape in Islamic countries – How Muhammad’s example justifies jihad and terrorism – The real “Satanic verses” incident (not the Salman Rushdie version) that remains a scandal to Muslims – How Muhammad’s faulty knowledge of Judaism and Christianity has influenced Islamic theology–and colored Muslim relations with Jews and Christians to this day. Recognizing the true nature of Islam, Spencer argues, is essential for judging the prospects for largescale Islamic reform, the effective prosecution of the War on Terror, the democracy project in Afghanistan and Iraq, and immigration and border control to protect the United States from terrorism. All of which makes it crucial for every citizen (and policymaker) who loves freedom to read and ponder The Truth about MuhammadRead more
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Oh Miriam!: Stories from an Extraordinary Life
‘Oh Miriam! risks the curse of the sequel, and pulls it off . . . A force of nature, a tour de farce. Bold, brave and bright, but also revealing, shocking and touching. Miriam is an icon, a cocksucker – and the star of her show’ ROBERT McCRUM, Independent
‘Our naughtiest national treasure . . . famously filthy, funny and phlegmatic . . . Oh Miriam! is Margolyes’s manifesto for a fulfilled life . . . She loves to tell it straight. And the older she gets, the straighter she tells it’ SIMON HATTENSTONE, Guardian
‘Irrepressible . . . A life-enhancing rollercoaster of a ride . . . this book is like Margolyes herself – outspoken, ebullient and unexpectedly wise’ EMMA LEE-POTTER, Daily Express
‘Snortingly funny . . . deliciously unbridled . . . There is something heroic in her unruliness. Let Miriam take the lead and enjoy the show’ RHIK SAMADDER, Observer
‘Insanely interesting, full of profanity and profundity, Oh Miriam!’s title comes from all the people who have ever exclaimed her name in every tone from horror to hilarity; and her unfiltered personality leaps off the page – honesty, kindness, generosity, sanity, erudition, outspokenness’ SUZANNE HARRINGTON, Irish Examiner
‘Endearingly eccentric’ WOMEN’S WEEKLY
From declaring my love to Vanessa Redgrave to being fed cockroaches by Steve Buscemi, from turnip-based comedy with Blackadder to being farted on by Arnold Schwarzenegger, from Graham Norton’s sofa to Alan Cumming’s camper van, my life has been (and continues to be) an uproarious adventure.
Oh Miriam! has been such a constant refrain in my life, said in all kinds of tones – laughs, surprised gasps and orgasmic sighs (I’m hoping for all of those from you as you read on!) – that it had to be the title of this book. And with a cast list that stretches from Churchill to DiCaprio, Dahl to Dietrich, Princess Margaret to Maggie Smith, I’ve so much more to tell you and so much more to say.
My chapters range from ‘How to Stay Married’ to ‘Don’t Let the Bastards Get You Down’. Discover how to break the thickest conversational ice; why swearing is actually good for you (though not on the Today programme); the unexpected things I learned at school and what my Spice Girl name would be. Not to mention my Tale of the Unexpected and my very own Vagina Monologue.
Buckle up and join me on another unforgettable adventure, but this time through my heart and head . . .
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£12.30£23.80Oh Miriam!: Stories from an Extraordinary Life
£12.30£23.80 -
The Red on Revolution: Be Ready for Anything
Buy The Red on Revolution: Be Ready for Anything First Edition by Mike Chadwick (ISBN: 9781801509077) from Amazon’s Book Store. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders.
£12.20£14.20The Red on Revolution: Be Ready for Anything
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Untapped Potential: Born in Scotland, Found in the Royal Signals
“Untapped Potential follows George’s career in the army, from the age of 16 when he joined the Army Apprentices College, of which he became the Junior Regimental Sergeant Major, to the moment, 27 years later, that he reluctantly decided to leave.
The story, told with great frankness, relates the good times and the less good times, the ups and downs, the sad events as well as the happy ones; but the characteristic sense of humour is never far below the surface – indeed, seldom below it at all!
It is also an account that graphically illustrates what it was like to serve in the British Army at the time.”
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Kings and Queens of Britain, Illustrated History of: A visual encyclopedia of every king and queen of Britain, from Saxon times through the Tudors and Stuarts to today
In this beautifully illustrated and updated edition, just prior to the recent passing of Queen Elizabeth II, Charles Phillips charts the complete history of the royal families of Britain. Beginning in the earliest times with the legend of King Arthur, Eric Bloodaxe and the real-life history of Macbeth, he describes the lives and legends of the kings and queens of Britain, their consorts and children, and the pretenders, usurpers and regents who played a role in the making of the United Kingdom. Fact boxes highlight the essential events of each reign, as well as maps, charts and family trees. Over 500 fine art paintings, sculptures, engravings, artefacts, photographs, maps and illustrations reveal the heritage and pageantry of royal Britain. A valuable reference book for any historian, this guide will fascinate every reader interested in one of the longest-running monarchies in the world.Read more
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This is My Sea: The Number 1 Irish Bestseller
‘Prose written with the pen of a poet’ – Desmond Morris, author of The Naked Ape‘Full of wisdom and poetry and epic emotion, This is My Sea explores grief, memory and loss through vivid words and striking imagery. It echoes lost summers and the beauty of life, like a shell held to the ear’ – Ed O’Loughlin, author of The Last Good Funeral of the Year
Over the course of seven difficult years Miriam Mulcahy lost her mother, father and sister, each grief threatening to drown her. But instead of going under she discovered the lessons of the sea, letting the water teach her how to get through anything in life: one breath builds on another, another stroke, another kick and you will get home.
THIS IS MY SEA takes our greatest fear, death, and wraps it up in language so fine and beautiful that the reader is carried along and comforted by how completely lost Miriam was and how she found solace in all the things that sustained her: books, music, art, friends, love, swimming, and of course the sea.
For fans of The Salt Path by Raynor Winn and I Found my Tribe by Ruth Fitzmaurice.
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£12.20£14.20This is My Sea: The Number 1 Irish Bestseller
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Quantum Computing for Everyone (Mit Press)
An accessible introduction to an exciting new area in computation, explaining such topics as qubits, entanglement, and quantum teleportation for the general reader.Quantum computing is a beautiful fusion of quantum physics and computer science, incorporating some of the most stunning ideas from twentieth-century physics into an entirely new way of thinking about computation. In this book, Chris Bernhardt offers an introduction to quantum computing that is accessible to anyone who is comfortable with high school mathematics. He explains qubits, entanglement, quantum teleportation, quantum algorithms, and other quantum-related topics as clearly as possible for the general reader. Bernhardt, a mathematician himself, simplifies the mathematics as much as he can and provides elementary examples that illustrate both how the math works and what it means.
Bernhardt introduces the basic unit of quantum computing, the qubit, and explains how the qubit can be measured; discusses entanglement–which, he says, is easier to describe mathematically than verbally–and what it means when two qubits are entangled (citing Einstein’s characterization of what happens when the measurement of one entangled qubit affects the second as “spooky action at a distance”); and introduces quantum cryptography. He recaps standard topics in classical computing–bits, gates, and logic–and describes Edward Fredkin’s ingenious billiard ball computer. He defines quantum gates, considers the speed of quantum algorithms, and describes the building of quantum computers. By the end of the book, readers understand that quantum computing and classical computing are not two distinct disciplines, and that quantum computing is the fundamental form of computing. The basic unit of computation is the qubit, not the bit.
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£12.20£13.80Quantum Computing for Everyone (Mit Press)
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Carps: The Rugby World Cup’s Father: The Biography of John Kendall-Carpenter
John Kendall-Carpenter was a truly extraordinary man. He captained the England rugby team in the early 1950s, when he was widely regarded as one of the cleverest and most tactically astute players in the world. At the same time he launched out on a career in education which saw him not only hold the headmastership of three well-known public schools but also play a prominent role in the Headmasters’ Conference in its negotiations with the Labour Government in the 1970s to ensure the continued independence of that sector. In addition, the first Rugby World Cup simply would never have happened without him. President of the Rugby Union in 1980, he was then elected as England’s representative on the International Rugby Board where his role was to defend the amateur code which was coming under increasing pressure from professionalism. His conversion to the cause of international rugby and the commercial potential of the Word Cup, with his subsequent passion and energy, was instrumental in getting the first World Cup in 1987 off the ground and also paved the way towards the professional game. He then threw himself into the planning of the next World Cup but sadly died just a year before it started in 1991. John Kendall-Carpenter was remarkable man with many friends – and a few enemies! – not only in sport, but in education, the theatre, among politicians and writers. He is still a legend in Cornwall – his adopted home. This biography will appeal to every dedicated rugby supporter as well as those interested in sport in general and how rugby emerged from the fields of English public schools to the huge commercial sporting event it is today.Read more
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A Gambling Man
Charles II was thirty when he crossed the Channel in fine May weather in 1660. His Restoration was greeted with maypoles and bonfires, like spring after long years of Cromwell’s rule. But there was no going back, no way he could ‘restore’ the old. Certainty had vanished. The divinity of kingship fled with his father’s beheading. ‘Honour’ was now a word tossed around in duels. ‘Providence’ could no longer be trusted. As the country was rocked by plague, fire and war, people searched for new ideas by which to live. Exactly ten years later Charles II would stand again on the shore at Dover, laying the greatest bet of his life in a secret deal with his cousin, Louis XIV.
The Restoration decade was one of experiment: from the science of the Royal Society to the startling role of credit and risk, from the shocking licence of the court to the failed attempts at toleration of different beliefs. Negotiating all these, Charles II, the ‘slippery sovereign’, played odds and took chances, dissembling and manipulating his followers. The theatres were restored, but the king was the supreme actor. Yet while his grandeur, his court and his colourful sex life were on display, his true intentions lay hidden.
A Gambling Man is a portrait of Charles II, exploring his elusive nature through the lens of these ten vital years – and a portrait of a vibrant, violent, pulsing world, racked with plague, fire and war, in which the risks the king took forged the fate of the nation, on the brink of the modern world.
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£12.20£14.20A Gambling Man
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The Forgotten 500: The Untold Story of the Men Who Risked All for the Greatest Rescue Mission of World War II
The astonishing, never before told story of the greatest rescue mission of World War II–when the OSS set out to recover more than 500 airmen trapped behind enemy lines in Yugoslavia…During a bombing campaign over Romanian oil fields, hundreds of American airmen were shot down in Nazi-occupied Yugoslavia. Local Serbian farmers and peasants risked their own lives to give refuge to the soldiers while they waited for rescue, and in 1944, Operation Halyard was born. The risks were incredible. The starving Americans in Yugoslavia had to construct a landing strip large enough for C-47 cargo planes–without tools, without alerting the Germans, and without endangering the villagers. And the cargo planes had to make it through enemy airspace and back–without getting shot down themselves.
Classified for over half a century for political reasons, the full account of this unforgettable story of loyalty, self-sacrifice, and bravery is now being told for the first time ever. The Forgotten 500 is the gripping, behind-the-scenes look at the greatest escape of World War II.
“Amazing [and] riveting.”–James Bradley, New York Times bestselling author of Flags of Our Fathers
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The Hustlers: Gambling, Greed and the Perfect Con
A racy, entertaining story of gambling, greed and the perfect con.Read more
£12.00£14.20The Hustlers: Gambling, Greed and the Perfect Con
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Anne Frank’s Diary: The Graphic Adaptation
The First Graphic Adaptation of the Multi-Million Bestseller
’12th June, 1942: I hope I will be able to confide everything to you, as I have never been able to confide in anyone, and I hope you will be a great source of comfort and support.’
In the summer of 1942, fleeing the horrors of the Nazi occupation, Anne Frank and her family were forced into hiding in the back of an Amsterdam warehouse.
Aged thirteen when she went into the secret annexe, Anne Frank kept a diary in which she confided her innermost thoughts and feelings, movingly revealing how the eight people living under these extraordinary conditions coped with the daily threat of discovery and death.
Adapted by Ari Folman, illustrated by David Polonsky, and authorized by the Anne Frank Foundation in Basel, this is the first graphic edition of the beloved diary of Anne Frank.
‘Faithful to the spirit and often the language of the diary… Mr Polonsky’s beautiful artwork offers a charming and convincing view of Anne on the page’ THE ECONOMIST
‘Folman and Polonsky have reclaimed Anne Frank in all of her humanity, and they allow us to witness for ourselves her beauty, courage, vision and imagination. And, in doing so, they have elevated the tools of the comic book to create an astonishing work of art.’ JEWISH JOURNAL
‘The illustrations [. . .] retell Anne’s diary with great compassion, wit and ebullience’ StANDPOINT
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£12.00£14.20Anne Frank’s Diary: The Graphic Adaptation
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Kammy: The Funny and Moving Autobiography by the Broadcasting Legend
Foreword by Ben Shephard
‘Everyone loves Kammy . . . Full of humour and endless blunders’ – The Times
‘What a man, what a life, what a story, and what a great read’ – Paddy McGuinnessPresenter, commentator, (sometimes masked) singer, footballer, manager and campaigner, Kammy has done it all. His irrepressible enthusiasm – and a couple of legendary gaffes on Sky Sports – have seen him become broadcasting royalty.
Now Kammy reveals all in this funny and moving autobiography. What happens when you double cross José Mourinho? What it’s like to play with Vinnie Jones? Who comes off better: Kammy or a rampaging gorilla? How did Kammy end up releasing his own top-ten record? What’s the real story behind his infamous line, ‘I don’t know, Jeff!’?
But despite the crazy tales, it hasn’t all been plain sailing. Kammy had a tough upbringing, faced racism during his playing career and has, in recent years, dealt with a rare brain condition – apraxia – that has affected his speech and seen him say goodbye to Sky Sports. Relating his battle against the condition, Kammy shows how he’s met every challenge with courage, determination and his infectious smile.
Packed with hilarious stories and featuring a cast of famous names, from Elton John to Channing Tatum, this is a book about friendship, courage and why it’s always important to have a good laugh.
‘A talented (and daft) lad from the Boro who has entertained the nation for decades, on and off the pitch. So get the tissues ready – this book will make you laugh and cry in equal measure’ – Steph McGovern
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Stuart Broad: Broadly Speaking: THE MUST-READ SPORTS AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF 2023
Stuart Broad is the ultimate competitor – someone addicted to the pressures of Test cricket, the big occasions and being thrust into the heat of battle.
For over seventeen years, he’s left it all on the field. A multiple Ashes winner and Wold Champion, Broad was integral to some of the greatest England teams of all time. His awards and achievements, however, don’t tell the whole story. He has always been a cricketer of more than mere numbers. Broad’s passionate and spontaneous behaviour has mad him a fan favourite. No other player feeds off the crowd quite like he does.
In his autobiography, Broad shares the moments from the game which have made him and those that almost broke him. What’s clear, however, is his unwavering belief in his own ability to become one of the best ever.
Candid, entertaining, and refreshingly honest, this book reveals the personal side of a true cricketing great.
__________The longevity of his career, and what he has achieved, should never be forgotten. Ben Stokes
He loves the big moments, the pressure situations. That’s a true sign of a champion, I think. He’s been incredible for England for a long, long time. Glen McGrath
Stuart Broad is the ultimate Ashes warrior. Ricky Ponting
One of England’s greatest players of all time. Joe Root
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£11.90£23.80 -
Oh Miriam!: Stories from an Extraordinary Life
‘Oh Miriam! risks the curse of the sequel, and pulls it off . . . A force of nature, a tour de farce. Bold, brave and bright, but also revealing, shocking and touching. Miriam is an icon, a cocksucker – and the star of her show’ ROBERT McCRUM, Independent
‘Our naughtiest national treasure . . . famously filthy, funny and phlegmatic . . . Oh Miriam! is Margolyes’s manifesto for a fulfilled life . . . She loves to tell it straight. And the older she gets, the straighter she tells it’ SIMON HATTENSTONE, Guardian
‘Irrepressible . . . A life-enhancing rollercoaster of a ride . . . this book is like Margolyes herself – outspoken, ebullient and unexpectedly wise’ EMMA LEE-POTTER, Daily Express
‘Snortingly funny . . . deliciously unbridled . . . There is something heroic in her unruliness. Let Miriam take the lead and enjoy the show’ RHIK SAMADDER, Observer
‘Insanely interesting, full of profanity and profundity, Oh Miriam!’s title comes from all the people who have ever exclaimed her name in every tone from horror to hilarity; and her unfiltered personality leaps off the page – honesty, kindness, generosity, sanity, erudition, outspokenness’ SUZANNE HARRINGTON, Irish Examiner
‘Endearingly eccentric’ WOMEN’S WEEKLY
From declaring my love to Vanessa Redgrave to being fed cockroaches by Steve Buscemi, from turnip-based comedy with Blackadder to being farted on by Arnold Schwarzenegger, from Graham Norton’s sofa to Alan Cumming’s camper van, my life has been (and continues to be) an uproarious adventure.
Oh Miriam! has been such a constant refrain in my life, said in all kinds of tones – laughs, surprised gasps and orgasmic sighs (I’m hoping for all of those from you as you read on!) – that it had to be the title of this book. And with a cast list that stretches from Churchill to DiCaprio, Dahl to Dietrich, Princess Margaret to Maggie Smith, I’ve so much more to tell you and so much more to say.
My chapters range from ‘How to Stay Married’ to ‘Don’t Let the Bastards Get You Down’. Discover how to break the thickest conversational ice; why swearing is actually good for you (though not on the Today programme); the unexpected things I learned at school and what my Spice Girl name would be. Not to mention my Tale of the Unexpected and my very own Vagina Monologue.
Buckle up and join me on another unforgettable adventure, but this time through my heart and head . . .
Read more
£11.90£23.80Oh Miriam!: Stories from an Extraordinary Life
£11.90£23.80 -
Unruly: The Number One Bestseller ‘Horrible Histories for grownups’ The Times
Discover who we are and how we got here this holiday season in comedian David Mitchell’s UNRULY: A History of England’s Kings and Queens – a thoughtful, funny exploration of the entitled and enthroned.
‘JUST FANTASTIC. DELIGHTFULLY CONTRARY AND HILARIOUSLY CANTANKEROUS. VERY, VERY FUNNY’ JESSE ARMSTRONG, CREATOR OF SUCCESSION AND PEEP SHOW
‘CLEVER, AMUSING, GLORIOUSLY BIZARRE AND RAZOR SHARP. MITCHELL – A FUNNY MAN AND A SKILLED HISTORIAN – TELLS STORIES THAT ARE INTERESTING AND FUN. HERE IS HORRIBLE HISTORIES FOR GROWNUPS’ GERARD DEGROOT, THE TIMES
‘CLEVER, FUNNY, MAKES YOU THINK QUITE DIFFERENTLY ABOUT HISTORY’ DAN SNOW, HISTORIAN AND BROADCASTER
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Think you know your kings and queens? Think again.
In UNRULY, David Mitchell explores how England’s monarchs, while acting as feared rulers firmly guiding their subjects’ destinies, were in reality a bunch of lucky sods who were mostly as silly and weird in real life as they appear today in their portraits.
Taking us right back to King Arthur (spoiler: he didn’t exist), David tells the founding story of post-Roman England right up to the reign of Elizabeth I (spoiler: she dies). It’s a tale of narcissists, inadequate self-control, excessive beheadings, middle-management insurrection, uncivil wars, and at least one total Cnut, as the population evolved from having their crops nicked by the thug with the largest armed gang to bowing and paying taxes to a divinely anointed king.
How this happened, who it happened to and why it matters in modern Britain are all questions David answers with brilliance, wit and the full erudition of a man who once studied history – and won’t let it off the hook for the mess it’s made.
A funny book about a serious subject, UNRULY is for anyone who has ever wondered how we got here – and who is to blame.
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‘Mitchell clearly knows his history, with a book that owes as much to Monty Python as it does to Simon Schama’ ANDREW MARR, BROADCASTER
‘I don’t think anyone other than David Mitchell could have written this book. It’s clever, funny and makes you think quite differently about history we thought we knew’ DAN SNOW, HISTORIAN AND BROADCASTER
‘Who knew a history of England’s rulers could be this hilarious? A brilliantly entertaining romp through monarchs’ i
‘By turns fascinating and funny – there is a jewel of an insight or a refreshing blast of clarifying wit on every page. David brings a delightfully contrary and hilariously cantankerous eye to the history of the English Monarchy. Informative, illuminating and very very funny’ JESSE ARMSTRONG, CREATOR OF SUCCESSION AND PEEP SHOW
‘I can’t recommend this book enough. Very funny and interesting, it is above all a proper work of history’ CHARLIE HIGSON
*The Times Number One Bestseller October 2023*
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Rivals in the Ring: 15 Greatest Boxing Rivalries of All Time (Greatest Sporting Rivalries)
In no sport can individual rivalries be so intense as in boxing. There is something almost primeval about standing in the ring together, with the ultimate aim of either knocking out or stopping their opponent, often with a crowd baying for blood.Unraveling the True Drama: Some of the boxing rivalries have spilled over outside the ring. While there can be an element of circus attached to professional boxing, there was no element of pantomime when it came to Jack Britton’s dislike towards Ted Lewis, for example, or the real hurt that some of the taunts of Muhammad Ali caused Joe Frazier.
The Dark Side of Glory: It should never be forgotten that boxing can also be a profoundly dangerous sport. Benny Paret lost his life in the ring after one fight, whilst two bit-players in the Chris Eubanks – Nigel Benn story were left with life-changing injuries.
And that is without mentioning the later impact on individual health of a career spent being hit for a living. Ali, Frazier, Floyd Patterson, and Ingemar Johansson would all fall victim to forms of dementia in their old age.
The Changing Face of Boxing: With advancements in medical science, today’s fighters are better protected, ensuring they would not engage in the frequency of battles like Sam Langford and Harry Wills did. As boxing evolves, so too does the understanding of its effects on the human body.
The Noble and the Controversial: It may be the Sport of Kings – and increasingly of Queens – but that does not always make it noble and true. This boxing book on the history of boxing over the last 120 years delves into the noble moments of the sport alongside the darker aspects that challenge its integrity.
Ultimately, any compendium of boxing rivalries is left with the difficult choice of what to include and what to leave out; those that follow in this boxing book for men can be regarded as an exemplar of many more.
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Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing: ‘Funny, fascinating and compelling’ The Times
‘There’s never been a more honest or raw memoir … and it may just save lives’ Daily Mail
‘Funny, fascinating, compelling … also a wonderful read for fans of Friends’ The Times
The beloved star of Friends takes us behind the scenes of the hit sitcom and his struggles with addiction in this candid, funny, and revelatory memoir that delivers a powerful message of hope and persistence.
Here is the riveting story of acclaimed actor Matthew Perry, who takes us along on his journey from childhood ambition to fame to addiction and recovery in the aftermath of a life-threatening health scare. Before the frequent hospital visits and stints in rehab, there was five-year-old Matthew, who travelled from Montreal to Los Angeles, shuffling between his separated parents; fourteen-year-old Matthew, who was a nationally ranked tennis star in Canada; twenty-four-year-old Matthew, who nabbed a coveted role as a lead cast member on the talked-about pilot then called Friends Like Us. . . and so much more.
In an extraordinary story that only he could tell – and in the heartfelt, hilarious, and warmly familiar way only he could tell it – Matthew Perry lays bare the fractured family that raised him (and also left him to his own devices), the desire for recognition that drove him to fame, and the void inside him that could not be filled even by his greatest dreams coming true. But he also details the peace he’s found in sobriety and how he feels about the ubiquity of Friends, sharing stories about his castmates and other stars he met along the way. Frank, self-aware, and with his trademark humour, Perry vividly depicts his lifelong battle with addiction and what fuelled it despite seemingly having it all.
Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing is an unforgettable memoir that is both intimate and eye-opening – as well as a hand extended to anyone struggling with sobriety. Unflinchingly honest, moving, and uproariously funny, this is the book fans have been waiting for.
‘An unflinching and often harrowing must-read for 90s pop culture fans’ Guardian
‘Written with Chandler’s trademark sarcasm and self-deprecation’ Telegraph
‘A hopeful read … I started to think of [it] not as a celebrity memoir about addiction, but as an addiction memoir written by a man who understands his own history through the prism of showbiz’ Independent
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Confessions of a Rugby Mercenary
John Daniell is a rubgy mercenary. A brutal word for an often brutal game.
In 1996, when Rugby Union turned professional, John emigrated to France where he played for a decade in top competitions. His team ricocheted between fear and ecstasy, as they battled to save the club from relegation and their careers from the scrap heap.
Now he lifts the lid on the dark world of the journeyman player, where losing a home game is considered a crime, coaches and club owners will do anything to win, and agents ruthlessly manipulate players.
His compelling confessions are both shocking and funny, taking you behind the scenes, onto the field and into the very heart of the scrum.
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£11.80£15.20Confessions of a Rugby Mercenary
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Rough Seas: The Life Of A Deep-Sea Trawlerman
A trawlerman’s life was hard, often up against bad weather, rough seas and black frosts, although on calm days it was a pleasure to be at sea. In this eventful memoir, deep-sea trawlerman James Greene relates his life at sea, from his childhood when his father would take him out in some of the worst gales and hurricanes imaginable (and he loved every minute of it!), to his early careers as a deckhand learner, obtaining his skipper’s ticket, and the many experiences – both disastrous and otherwise – to occur throughout his time at sea. During his career he was involved in ship collisions and fires, arrested for poaching, fired upon by Icelandic gunboats, in countless storms and even swept overboard in icy conditions off the Russian coast. The British trawling industry is now a by-gone age and people are beginning to forget the adventures and hardships that characterised this profession. This book seeks to keep the memories of a once great industry alive.Read more
£11.70£14.20Rough Seas: The Life Of A Deep-Sea Trawlerman
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Royal Witches: From Joan of Navarre to Elizabeth Woodville
‘An important and timely book.’ – Philippa Gregory
Joan of Navarre was the richest woman in the land, at a time when war-torn England was penniless.Eleanor Cobham was the wife of a weak king’s uncle – and her husband was about to fall from grace.
Jacquetta Woodville was a personal enemy of Warwick the Kingmaker, who was about to take his revenge.
Elizabeth Woodville was the widowed mother of a child king, fighting Richard III for her children’s lives.
In Royal Witches, Gemma Hollman explores the lives of these four unique women, looking at how rumours of witchcraft brought them to their knees in a time when superstition and suspicion was rife.
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Billington: Victorian Executioner
‘An insightful and gripping account that will take you into the dark but fascinating world of a Victorian executioner.’ – Stewart P. Evans
Between 1884 and 1905 James Billington and his three sons, Thomas, William and John, were responsible for 235 executions in Victorian Great Britain and Ireland. They hanged many notorious murderers, but equally fascinating is the story of the family. Did James really feel he served society and justice, or did this position satisfy something more personal?
Billington: Victorian Executioner provides a complete account of the stories behind James Billington’s executions, as well as the real man behind the rope – a man whose business was death. This enthralling biography is an exciting addition to any true crime bookshelf.Read more
£11.60£12.30Billington: Victorian Executioner
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Executioner: The Chronicles of a Victorian Hangman
James Berry, a dour and somewhat pious ex-policeman who hailed from Yorkshire, was Britain’s hangman from 1884 to 1892 and was responsible for carrying out 200 executions. As an amateur criminologist he built his own black museum and kept scrapbooks relating to his activities. He was also something of a showman, and not averse to publicity, whose press coverage caused the government acute embarrassment. Capable of cold, even callous detachment, Berry’s sensitivity meant that he was often too upset before and after one of his 200 executions to be able to speak.There were also a few horrific incidents on the gallows and his job evidently had its effect on him as, in retirement, Berry became so depressed that he took steps to commit suicide. In this biography, Stewart Evans here takes the reader on a fascinating journey into the world of Victorian crime and punishment. Evans is a leading crime historian, widely considered one of the Victorian era. His previous books include Jack the Ripper, Letters From Hell and Jack the Ripper and the Whitechapel Murders. He lives in Cambridgeshire.Read more
£11.60£17.10Executioner: The Chronicles of a Victorian Hangman
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The Death of You: Life After Elite Sport
Arguably the greatest Olympian of all time, Michael Phelps, with twenty-eight Olympic medals to his name, was asked if he would like his children to follow in his footsteps. His answer, ‘Honestly, in a perfect world, I’d say no. Just because I don’t want them to live in my footsteps. And I also know everything about it – I know the ins and the outs, the good, the bad, and the ugly. So, you know, as a parent, it just – it frightens me.’ The truth is that the vast majority of the public don’t understand this alarming answer from Phelps. The question as to why so many elite sportspeople fall off the edge of a cliff in life when they retire is often answered in either a too complicated or too simplistic way to give people a meaningful answer. This book changes that. Using brutally honest interviews with sport stars Matthew Hoggard, Paul Walsh, Gail Emms, Tom May, Johnny Nelson and Clare Shine, Luke Sutton breaks down why this happens for a reader in a way that hasn’t been done yet. Anyone fascinated by sport or elite performance in general will be enthralled by this book. There is so much to take from it.Read more
£11.60£14.20The Death of You: Life After Elite Sport
£11.60£14.20 -
Iron Spy: The True Story of the Greatest Double Agent in World War II
Known as Fritz to his German spy-handlers and Zig-Zag to the British secret service, Eddie Chapman was a man of many faces. While his early life was rife with petty crime, gang activity and a dishonourable discharge from the British military, Chapman’s unique skills were eventually sought out by Nazi Germany, and after convincing them he could use his criminal contacts to sabotage the English forces, he was quickly recruited.But Chapman’s loyalty to his country knew no limits. A talented, handsome, and reckless Englishman, Chapman was a traitor on the surface but a fearless patriot on the inside. After cracking Germany’s military code, the British sought Chapman for their own affairs, and Chapman was happy to oblige.
Eventually being awarded the prestigious Nazi Iron Cross for services to Germany while acting as a double agent for Britain, Chapman’s espionage efforts involved masterful deceit and feats which few men alive could ever boast of.
Eddie Chapman’s life story is an unbelievable journey of crime, jail-breaks, treachery, and love. He was responsible for saving countless lives during his career, cementing himself as the ultimate double agent during World War II.
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The Princess Royal: From Princess Mary to Princess Anne (The Royal House of Windsor)
An engrossing account of the life of Princess Anne and how her role was shaped by the six women who served as Princess Royal before her.Ideal for readers of Gyles Brandreth, Ingrid Seward and Hugo Vickers.
To understand what it is to be a Princess Royal, the ‘doyenne of royal biographers’ Helen Cathcart skilfully portrays the lives of the foremost royal daughters from the days when princesses were ‘ladyes’ and the King’s eldest son was styled Prince Royal, through to our present Princess Royal.
There have been seven Princess Royals throughout British history, the inaugural of whom was Princess Mary, the eldest daughter of King Charles I and Queen Henrietta Maria, followed by Princess Anne (daughter of King George II), Princess Charlotte (daughter of King George III), Princess Victoria (daughter of Queen Victoria), Princess Louise (daughter of King Edward VII), and Princess Mary (daughter of King George V). The current holder of the title, Princess Anne, emerges from this background, clearly demonstrating how the role or Princess Royal has evolved over the generations into one of duty and personal achievement.
Drawing on royal letters, journals and associated material, the author’s fascinating pen captures the first four decades of Princess Anne’s life, from playful child and stylish teenager to champion rider and tireless campaigner for good causes. Along the way are royal engagements and regimental dinners, a love affair with a Dragoon and a terrifying kidnap attempt.
The Princess Royal is the definitive account of what it means to be the first and most royal of royal daughters and how Princess Anne is truly a Princess Royal for our times.
‘Wide acclaim as a royal biographer … objective, uninhibited and penetrating’ – Sunday Express
‘Helen Cathcart writes about royalty as if she were one of them’– The Daily Mail
‘The doyenne ofroyal biographers’ –The Daily Telegraph
‘A tireless chronicler of royalty’–The Guardian
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Rambling Man: My Life on the Road
THE NUMBER ONE BESTSELLING HILARIOUS NEW BOOK FROM THE NATION’S FAVOURITE COMEDIAN, BILLY CONNOLLY
Being a Rambling Man was what I always wanted to be, to live the way I damn well pleased. I’ve met the weirdest and most wonderful people who walk the Earth, seen the most bizarre and the most fantastic sights – and I’ve rarely come across something I couldn’t get a laugh at. I don’t think I’ve ever had a bad trip. Well, apart from in the 1970s, but that’s a whole other story . . .
When Billy set out from Glasgow as a young man he never looked back. He played his banjo on boats and trains, under trees, and on top of famous monuments. He danced naked in snow, wind and fire. He slept in bus stations, under bridges and on strangers’ floors. He travelled by foot, bike, ship, plane, sleigh – even piggy-backed – to get to his next destination.
Billy has wandered to every corner of the earth and believes that being a Rambling Man is about more than just travelling – it’s a state of mind. Rambling Men and Women are free spirits who live on their wits, are interested in people and endlessly curious about the world. They love to play music, make art or tell stories along the way but, above all, they have a longing in their heart for the open road.
In his joyful new book, Billy explores this philosophy and how it has shaped him, and he shares hilarious new stories from his lifetime on the road. From riding his trike down America’s famous Route 66, building an igloo on an iceberg in the Arctic, playing elephant polo (badly) in Nepal and crashing his motorbike (more than once), to eating witchetty grubs in Australia, being serenaded by a penguin in New Zealand, and swapping secrets in a traditional Sweat Lodge ritual in Canada, Rambling Man is a truly global adventure with the greatest possible travel companion.
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£11.40£23.80Rambling Man: My Life on the Road
£11.40£23.80 -
The Woman in Me: Britney Spears
The Woman in Me is a brave and astonishingly moving story about freedom, fame, motherhood, survival, faith, and hope.In June 2021, the whole world was listening as Britney Spears spoke in open court. The impact of sharing her voice—her truth—was undeniable, and it changed the course of her life and the lives of countless others. The Woman in Me reveals for the first time her incredible journey—and the strength at the core of one of the greatest performers in pop music history.
Written with remarkable candour and humour, Spears’s ground-breaking book illuminates the enduring power of music and love—and the importance of a woman telling her own story, on her own terms, at last.
____________________________________‘The sharpness of her perspective is a miracle… May her truth pose a legitimate threat to the system that exploited her’ – Guardian
‘Britney Spears holds nothing back in her short, bittersweet and extremely powerful memoir… That it hasn’t turned into a complete tragedy is a testament to Spears’s essential fortitude of spirit – something that burns off these pages’ – Telegraph
‘Spears’s prose contains more compassion and perspective than bitterness or self-pity’ – The Times
‘It’s nearly impossible to come out of it without empathy for and real outrage on behalf of Spears, whose admitted bitterness over the dire circumstances of the last decade-plus of her life is tempered by an enduring, insistent optimism’ – New York Times
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£11.40£23.80The Woman in Me: Britney Spears
£11.40£23.80 -
Black Victorians: Hidden in History
A landmark history exploring and celebrating the lives of Black Victorians.
Beyond the patrician vision of Victorian Britain traditionally advanced in our textbooks, there always existed another, more diverse Britain, populated by people of colour marking achievements both ordinary and extraordinary.
In this deeply researched and dynamic history, Woolf and Abraham reach into the archives to recentre our attention on marginalised Black Victorians, from leading medic George Rice to political agitator William Cuffay to abolitionists Henry ‘Box’ Brown and Sarah Parker Remond; from pre-Raphaelite muse Fanny Eaton to renowned composer Samuel Coleridge-Taylor. While acknowledging the paradoxes of Victorian views of race, Black Victorians demonstrates, with storytelling verve and a liberatory impulse, how Black people were visible and influential, firmly rooted in British life.
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£11.40£12.30Black Victorians: Hidden in History
£11.40£12.30 -
Jason Leonard: Full Time the Autobiography of a Rugby Legend
Leonard’s story starts as rugby started – in the amateur days, when the Cockney Carpenter began playing for Barking and Saracens in the days before multi-million pound business owners and sponsorship deals. His big break came when he was invited to join the England squad for their tour to Argentina in 1990 and has been capped 100 times.
It was a tour that precipitated one of the greatest periods in the history of the British game, and Leonard provides a compelling insight into life behind the international scenes with England and the Lions, as well as the domestic game through his time at Saracens and Harlequins.
Once told that he would never walk again after undergoing life-saving surgery on his neck, Leonard describes the torment he went through during this period – both physical and financial – and how he fought against all the odds to re-establish himself on the international stage. With 100 Test caps won to date, and a career in rugby union spanning two decades, there is no more experienced player in the modern game.
Leonard has plenty to tell about the people he has met during his career – Rob Andrew, Will Carling, Lawrence Dallaglio, Brian Moore, Dick Best and Clive Woodward all feature – and with nicknames like ‘The Fun Bus’ and ‘The Scourge of the Barking Barmaids’ the stories are as colourful and controversial as the man himself.
All is revealed in this fascinating portrait of an English rugby legend who also reflects upon England’s 2002 Six Nations campaign, his hopes for his international future and a tough year for Quins.
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Fringes: Life on the Edge of Professional Rugby
Updated edition of the #1 Amazon Bestseller
LONGLISTED FOR THE WILLIAM HILL SPORTS BOOK OF THE YEAR PRIZE 2020Sports books tend to detail extraordinary achievements, triumphs against the odds or commemorate World Cup winning captains.
This book does not do that.
For many, playing professional sport is the Dream Job. Few manage it, very few make it to the top and for the rest, life is very different. This is their story.
In Fringes, Ben Mercer invites you to witness life at the outer edges of professional rugby. This is a first hand account of what life is like as a journeyman professional athlete. You play, but to the wider public you don’t exist. You earn but you don’t drive a flash car. You sometimes pack out a stadium but sometimes, you play in a deserted park. This is the story for the majority of sports professionals. Only the minority taste the top, only one person gets to lift the cup or win the medal, only 15 get to play for England at any one time. For the rest, that’s not the case.
Ben Mercer is a former professional rugby player who after becoming disillusioned and uninspired plying his trade in the English Second Division, accepted an offer out of the blue to go to France and do something different – help an amateur team turn professional. This is a first hand account of what life is like in the lower reaches of professional sport – where your employment status is as precarious as your health and barely anyone will know your name.
It’s about how it feels to live year to year, with teammates constantly on the move. It’s about how professionalism irreversibly changes the French club Stade Rouennais as they move up the divisions, about the tension between progress and identity in a rugby team. It’s also about how it feels to actually be out there on the field, how it feels to occasionally do something extraordinary and how it feels when this is no longer enough for you to make the sacrifices that you need to make to keep playing.
There’s no ghostwriting, it’s an unmitigated meditation on how it feels and what it means to play rugby for a living, to dedicate yourself to an uncompromising but occasionally beautiful game.
If you’ve wanted to know what life is really like as a professional athlete, on the Fringes, away from the glitz and glamour of the international game then look no further.
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The Jersey: The All Blacks: The Secrets Behind the World’s Most Successful Team
The phenomenal international number one bestseller with exclusive interviews with Richie McCaw, Steve Hansen, Beauden Barrett and Dan Carter, The Jersey is the definitive story behind the greatest sports team on the planet.
‘Extremely well written. Compelling, accurate, insightful and brilliant in the way it captures the New Zealand way’ – John Hart, former All Blacks coach.
With a better winning record than any other sports team in history, they stand head and shoulders above their nearest rugby rivals. How did a country of just 4.8 million people conquer the world?
Peter Bills, who has reported on international rugby for more than forty years, was given exclusive access to all the key figures in New Zealand rugby as he set out to understand the secrets behind the All Blacks success. Peter talked at length with ninety people, both in New Zealand and around the world, with intimate knowledge of what makes the All Blacks tick.
The Jersey goes to the heart of the All Blacks success. It is also an epic story of not just a rugby team but a nation, whose identities are inextricably linked.
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I love rugby! But I don’t understand the rules…
The rules of rugby explained in simple terms. At last, a book that everyone can read to learn and understand the sometimes complicated rules of rugby. From offside to scrum and tackling, everything you need to know about rugby is explained in this book in a simple and understandable way. Dive into the world of rugby and become unbeatable about the rules.
All explanations are backed by diagrams and illustrations.Read more
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Charles Dickens: A Life
Charles Dickens is the acclaimed definitive biography by bestselling author Claire Tomalin
Charles Dickens was a phenomenon: a demonicly hardworking journalist, the father of ten children, a tireless walker and traveller, a supporter of liberal social causes, but most of all a great novelist – the creator of characters who live immortally in the English imagination: the Artful Dodger, Mr Pickwick, Pip, David Copperfield, Little Nell, Lady Dedlock, and many more.
At the age of twelve he was sent to work in a blacking factory by his affectionate but feckless parents. From these unpromising beginnings, he rose to scale all the social and literary heights, entirely through his own efforts. When he died, the world mourned, and he was buried – against his wishes – in Westminster Abbey.Yet the brilliance concealed a divided character: a republican, he disliked America; sentimental about the family in his writings, he took up passionately with a young actress; usually generous, he cut off his impecunious children.
From the award-winning author of Samuel Pepys, Charles Dickens: A Life paints an unforgettable portrait of Dickens, capturing brilliantly the complex character of this great genius. If you loved Great Expectations, Oliver Twist and A Christmas Carol, this book is invaluable reading.
‘By far the most humane and imaginatively sympathetic account yet for the general reader’ Amanda Craig, New Statesman
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£11.40£12.30Charles Dickens: A Life
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A Cook’s Tour: In Search of the Perfect Meal
‘It works extremely well. In large part because Bourdain is a very funny writer; sharp, honest and with a beguiling mix of belligerence and sensitivity’ Sunday Telegraph
‘Brilliantly written up in a raw, stylish gonzo prose, with pitch-black humour and a devilish turn of phrase’ Evening Standard
____________________
Anthony Bourdain, life-long line cook and bestselling author of Kitchen Confidential, sets off to eat his way around the world.But being Anthony Bourdain, this was never going to be a conventional culinary tour. Bourdain heads out to Saigon where he eats the still-beating heart of a live cobra, and travels deep into landmined Khmer Rouge territory to find the rumoured Wild West of Cambodia (Pailin).
Other stops include dining with gangsters in Russia, a medieval pig slaughter and feast in northern Portugal, the Basque All Male Gastronomique Society in Saint Sebastian, rural Mexico with his Mexican sous-chef, a pilgrimage to the French Laundry in the Napa Valley and a return to his roots in the tiny fishing village of La Teste, where he first ate an oyster as a child.
Written with the inimitable machismo and humour that has made Tony Bourdain such a sensation, A Cook’s Tour is an adventure story sure to give you indigestion.
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£11.40£12.30A Cook’s Tour: In Search of the Perfect Meal
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Life Lessons: Wisdom and Wit from Life’s Ups and Downs
Life is not a problem to be solved, but a reality to be experienced.
Let Jay Blades’ words of wisdom – gleaned from his own triumphs over adversity – help you to find your best path through life. Filled with characteristic warmth and humour, Jay talks about the life lessons that have helped him to find positivity and growth, no matter what he’s found himself facing.
Jay shares not only his adventures and escapades but also the way they have shaped his outlook and helped him to live life to the fullest. His insight and advice give you everything you need to be able to reframe your own circumstances and make the best of them.
It’s very easy to be passive in life and just do what you know. But, believe me, you’ll be a lot more excited every day if you shape your own future.
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Kaputt (New York Review Books Classics)
Curzio Malaparte was a disaffected supporter of Mussolini with a taste for danger and high living. Sent by an Italian paper during World War II to cover the fighting on the Eastern Front, Malaparte secretly wrote this terrifying report from the abyss, which became an international bestseller when it was published after the war. Telling of the siege of Leningrad, of glittering dinner parties with Nazi leaders, and of trains disgorging bodies in war-devastated Romania, Malaparte paints a picture of humanity at its most depraved.Kaputt is an insider’s dispatch from the world of the enemy that is as hypnotically fascinating as it is disturbing.
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£11.40£12.30Kaputt (New York Review Books Classics)
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The Twat Files: A hilarious sort-of memoir of mistakes, mishaps and mess-ups
GET EXTRA TWATTY THIS CHRISTMAS WITH THE PERFECT STOCKING FILLER AND DIVE BEHIND THE SCENES OF A LEGEND IN BRITISH COMEDY!
When I was younger I wanted to be an interesting, sophisticated, semi-heroic, multi-layered person.
BUT.
That kind of perfect is impossible. Being an actual twat is much more the real me. Sorry to boast, but I am a champion twat.
In The Twat Files I will tell you about all the times I’ve been a total and utter twat. The moments where I’ve misunderstood stuff and messed up. In my life these have been key because:
Mistakes tell us about ourselves.
Mistakes tell us about others.
Mistakes are hilarious.
Mistakes expose our flaws.
Mistakes show us ourselves honestly.
Mistakes are gloriously human.My hope is that these stories might fire up yer engines to remind you of just what a massive twat you also are.
Let’s celebrate and revel in this most delightful of traits together.
That would be perfectly twatty.
‘This woman is a national treasure’ Mail on Sunday
‘Dawn French is a wonderful writer’ Daily Mail
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£11.40£20.90 -
The Woman in Me: Britney Spears
The Woman in Me is a brave and astonishingly moving story about freedom, fame, motherhood, survival, faith, and hope.In June 2021, the whole world was listening as Britney Spears spoke in open court. The impact of sharing her voice—her truth—was undeniable, and it changed the course of her life and the lives of countless others. The Woman in Me reveals for the first time her incredible journey—and the strength at the core of one of the greatest performers in pop music history.
Written with remarkable candour and humour, Spears’s ground-breaking book illuminates the enduring power of music and love—and the importance of a woman telling her own story, on her own terms, at last.
____________________________________‘The sharpness of her perspective is a miracle… May her truth pose a legitimate threat to the system that exploited her’ – Guardian
‘Britney Spears holds nothing back in her short, bittersweet and extremely powerful memoir… That it hasn’t turned into a complete tragedy is a testament to Spears’s essential fortitude of spirit – something that burns off these pages’ – Telegraph
‘Spears’s prose contains more compassion and perspective than bitterness or self-pity’ – The Times
‘It’s nearly impossible to come out of it without empathy for and real outrage on behalf of Spears, whose admitted bitterness over the dire circumstances of the last decade-plus of her life is tempered by an enduring, insistent optimism’ – New York Times
Read more
£11.40£23.80The Woman in Me: Britney Spears
£11.40£23.80 -
My Life, My Football
Ballon d’Or winner. Champions League winner. Serie A winner. Captain of Ukraine at their first-ever World Cup. Andriy Shevchenko conquered the football world. His career featured some of the sport’s greatest characters – from Valerij Lobanovsky, who shaped his early years at Dynamo Kyiv, to Carlo Ancelotti, Paolo Maldini, Andrea Pirlo and Kaka as part of a world-class Milan team. But Shevchenko’s story transcends football. Growing up 150km from the Chernobyl disaster, witnessing the decline of the Soviet Union and its descent into lawlessness, the struggles of his beloved Ukraine to gain independence in 1991 – and then the agony of the Russian invasion of his homeland in 2022. This is a football and human story like no other.Read more
£11.20£12.30My Life, My Football
£11.20£12.30
