-
The English Civil War: A People’s History
This popular history of the English Civil War tells the story of the bloody conflict between Oliver Cromwell and Charles I from the perspectives of those involved.
The compelling narrative draws on new sources such as letters, memoirs, ballads and plays to bring to life the Roundheads and Cavaliers, the foot soldiers, war widows and witchfinders of one of the most significant turning points in British history, culminating in Oliver Cromwell s triumph and the execution of Charles I.
By blending the political and the personal, Diane Purkiss illuminates both the ideologies behind the English Civil War and the fears of those who fought in it; the men who were destroyed by the conflict and those, such as Oliver Cromwell, who were defined by it.
Read more
£9.70£14.20The English Civil War: A People’s History
£9.70£14.20 -
The Extraordinary Life of an Ordinary Man: A Memoir
As seen in The Last Movie Stars documentary – the raw, candid, unvarnished memoir of an icon. The greatest movie star of the past 75 years covers everything: his traumatic childhood, his career, his drinking, his thoughts on Marlon Brando, James Dean, Elizabeth Taylor, his greatest roles, acting, his intimate life with Joanne Woodward, his innermost fears and passions and joys. With thoughts/comments throughout from Joanne Woodward, Tom Cruise and many others.
In 1986, Paul Newman and his closest friend, screenwriter Stewart Stern, began an extraordinary project. Stuart was to compile an oral history, to have Newman’s family and friends and those who worked closely with him, talk about the actor’s life. And then Newman would work with Stewart and give his side of the story. The only stipulation was that anyone who spoke on the record had to be completely honest. That same stipulation applied to Newman himself. The project lasted five years.
The result is an extraordinary memoir, culled from thousands of pages of transcripts. The book is insightful, revealing, surprising. Newman’s voice is powerful, sometimes funny, sometimes painful, always meeting that high standard of searing honesty. The additional voices – from childhood friends and Navy buddies, from family members and film and theater collaborators such as Tom Cruise, George Roy Hill, Martin Ritt, and John Huston – that run throughout add richness and color and context to the story Newman is telling.
Newman’s often traumatic childhood is brilliantly detailed. He talks about his teenage insecurities, his early failures with women, his rise to stardom, his early rivals (Brando and Dean), his first marriage, his drinking, his philanthropy, the death of his son Scott, his strong desire for his daughters to know and understand the truth about their father. Perhaps the most moving material in the book centers around his relationship with Joanne Woodward – their love for each other, his dependence on her, the way she shaped him intellectually, emotionally and sexually.
THE EXTRAORDINARY LIFE OF AN ORDINARY MAN is revelatory and introspective, personal and analytical, loving and tender in some places, always complex and profound.
Praise for Paul Newman
‘One of the greatest screen actors of all time and a beautiful man.’ Daniel Craig‘He set the bar too high for the rest of us. Not just actors, but all of us.’ George Clooney
”He was my hero.’ Julia Roberts
‘Paul was an American Icon.’ President Bill Clinton
‘The ultimate cool guy, who men wanted to be like and women adored. He was an American icon, a brilliant actor, a Renaissance man and a generous but modest philanthropist … Newman entertained millions in some of Hollywood’s most memorable roles ever, and brightened the lives of amny more, especially seriously ill children, through his charitable works.’ Arnold Schwarzenegger
‘Sometimes God makes perfect people and Paul Newman was one of them.’ Sally Field
‘One of the very finest screen actors of our time. Newman spanned the gap between the golden days of Hollywood, the 40s and 50s with actors like Cary Grant and James Stewart and Clark Gable, and the present lot represented by Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise’ Sir Michael Parkinson
‘Newman was a fine driver, who was famous in Hollywood for doing his own stunt driving as often as not.’ Ron Dennis, Formula 1’s McLaren Chief
‘To say he was an extraordinary man would be an understatement. he saw himself as a working actor, not a movie star, and insisted that everyone else did the same. There was no ego, no entourage, no hangers on. Only Paul, his script and his incredible spirit. One can say this about very few people, but he was a truly great man. It seems to me to be one of the great 20th-century lives: he was famously generous, with his extraordinary and unstinting work for his charities, he was a shining example of how to use global fame for the greater good, and most of all he was one of the great movie actors of this or any other age. [Directing Newman] was the highlight of my professional life.’ Sam Mendes
Read more
£9.40£10.40 -
The Fastest Men on Earth: The Inside Stories of the Olympic Men’s 100m Champions
With an exclusive foreword by Usain Bolt, The Fastest Men on Earth tells the fascinating inside stories of the Olympic Men’s 100m Champions.
It takes just under ten seconds to run, but the results of the Olympic men’s 100 metres are etched forever into history. In The Fastest Men on Earth, journalist Neil Duncanson tells the stories of the 25 athletes who’ve been crowned champions in the event, and earned the coveted title of ‘Fastest Man on Earth’.
Each chapter explores the fascinating, inspiring, and occasionally tragic lives of these supremely talented sprinters, as well as the intense drama of the record-breaking runs that wrote them into history. Immaculately researched and featuring exclusive interviews with several Olympic champions, including a new conversation with Usain Bolt, The Fastest Men on Earth brings the stories of some of the greatest athletes of all time to life like never before.
Read more
£8.70£9.50 -
The First World War: An Illustrated History
A. J. P. Taylor was one of the most acclaimed and uncompromising historians of the twentieth century. In this clear, lively and now-classic account of the First World War, he tells the story of the conflict from the German advance in the West, through the Marne, Gallipoli, the Balkans and the War at Sea to the offensives of 1918 and the state of Europe after the war. Containing photographs and maps, this an essential history of the war that ‘cut deep into the consciousness of modern man’.Read more
£10.40£12.30The First World War: An Illustrated History
£10.40£12.30 -
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
Read more
£12.10 -
The Forgotten Tudor Royal: Margaret Douglas, Grandmother to King James VI & I
As the daughter and cousin of queens and the granddaughter and niece of kings, Lady Margaret Douglas was an integral part of the Tudor royal dynasty. A favourite of her uncle King Henry VIII and a close friend of Queen Mary I she courted scandal which saw her imprisoned in the Tower of London on more than one occasion. Against the orders of Queen Elizabeth I she plotted the marriage of her eldest son Lord Darnley to Mary, Queen of Scots with disastrous consequences. She came as close to the executioners block as she did to the throne of England, with some believing she had a right to be queen. A devout Catholic all her life, she lived at a time when religious division split the country in half yet she remained steadfast in her beliefs. A respected and revered lady on both sides of the border, Lady Margaret Douglas, later Countess of Lennox through her marriage, suffered much heartbreak and loss. Her husband and son were both murdered at the hands of the Scots and she outlived all her children. Despite these tragedies she never gave up on her dream of uniting the thrones of England and Scotland which was realised through her grandson King James VI/I. The story of her life is a remarkable tale of intrigue and survival and deserves to be more widely told.Read more
£18.40£20.90 -
The Funniest Rugby Quotes… Ever!
From Brian Moore to Eddie Jones, rugby union players and coaches have entertained us with many hilarious sound bites over the years.In this comprehensive collection, author Gordon Law has compiled more than 250 side-splitting quotes and quips from the game’s biggest stars.
Packed with loads of witty remarks, verbal maulings and mixed metaphors, this book of bloopers will have rugby fans chuckling throughout the season.
“He epitomises England’s lack of skills. He has speed and bulk but plays like a castrated bull.”
David Campese on Will Carling“I’m off for a quiet pint; followed by 15 noisy ones.”
Bath’s Gareth Chilcott“It went well. There are no problems, and as a bonus, it showed that I have a brain!”
Corne Krige after going for a brain scan“He’s nicknamed Warren, as in Warren ugly b*stard.”
Jason Leonard on Dean RichardsRead more
£5.70 -
The Girls Who Went Away: The Hidden History of Women Who Surrendered Children for Adoption in the Decades Before Roe V. Wade
The astonishing untold history of the million and a half women who surrendered children for adoption due to enormous family and social pressure in the decades before Roe v. Wade.“It would take a heart of stone not to be moved by the oral histories of these women and by the courage and candor with which they express themselves.” –The Washington Post
“A remarkably well-researched and accomplished book.” –The New York Times Book Review
“A wrenching, riveting book.” –Chicago Tribune
In this deeply moving and myth-shattering work, Ann Fessler brings out into the open for the first time the hidden social history of adoption before Roe v. Wade – and its lasting legacy. An adoptee who was herself surrendered during those years and recently made contact with her mother, Ann Fessler brilliantly brings to life the voices of more than a hundred women, as well as the spirit of those times, allowing the women to tell their stories in gripping and intimate detail.
Read more
£8.30 -
The Great War for Civilisation: The Conquest of the Middle East
Robert Fisk’s bestselling eyewitness account of the events that have shaped the Middle East is alive with vivid reporting and incisive historical analysis.
The history of the Middle East is an epic story of tragedy, betrayal and world-shaking events. It is a story that Robert Fisk has been reporting for over thirty years. His masterful narrative spans the most volatile regions of the Middle East, chronicling with both rage and compassion the death by deceit of tens of thousands of Muslims, Christians and Jews.
Robert Fisk’s remarkable history is also the tale of a journalist at war – learning of the 9/11 attacks while aboard a passenger jet, reporting from a bombed-out Baghdad, interviewing Osama bin Laden – and of the courage and frustration of a life spent writing the first draft of history.
Read more
£16.70£18.00 -
The Greatest Footballer You Never Saw: The Robin Friday Story (Mainstream Sport)
Robin Friday was an exceptional footballer who should have played for England. He never did. Robin Friday was a brilliant player who could have played in the top flight. He never did.
Why? Because Robin Friday was a man who would not bow down to anyone, who refused to take life seriously and who lived every moment as if it were his last. For anyone lucky enough to have seen him play, Robin Friday was up there with the greats. Take it from one who knows: ‘There is no doubt in my mind that if someone had taken a chance on him he would have set the top division alight,’ says the legendary Stan Bowles. ‘He could have gone right to the top, but he just went off the rails a bit.’ Loved and admired by everyone who saw him, Friday also had a dark side: troubled, strong-minded, reckless, he would end up destroying himself. Tragically, after years of alcohol and drug abuse, he died at the age of 38 without ever having fulfilled his potential.
The Greatest Footballer You Never Saw provides the first full appreciation of a man too long forgotten by the world of football, and, along with a forthcoming film based on Friday’s life, with a screenplay by co-author Paolo Hewitt, this book will surely give him the cult status he deserves.
Read more
£9.30£10.40 -
The Greatest Welsh XV Ever
Who are the fifteen best players ever to represent Wales at rugby? We all know the answers, but all our answers are different! In pubs and clubs, in classrooms and chat rooms the length and breadth of this rugby-mad nation, this is a question that prompts energetic and entertaining debate; a question that has divided households and destabilized lifelong friendships. In The Greatest Welsh XV Ever, which includes over 130 full-colour photographs, Eddie Butler has gone where angels (and ex-international back-row forwards) fear to tread. Devoting a chapter to each position on the field, he produces a shortlist of the great players, before making his final, decisive, definitive choice in each case. So will it be Barry John or Phil Bennett at number 10? Jamie Roberts or John Dawes at number 12? Graham Price or Adam Jones at number 3? This is your chance to join in the greatest national debate since devolutionRead more
£16.10The Greatest Welsh XV Ever
£16.10 -
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
£12.00£14.20 -
The Institute: Stephen King
‘It does everything you’d expect of a masterpiece – and it is one’ Sunday Express
‘Hums and crackles with delicious unease’ Independent
‘Captivating’ The Sunday Times
‘An absorbing thriller’ Mail on Sunday
NO ONE HAS EVER ESCAPED FROM THE INSTITUTE.
Luke Ellis, a super-smart twelve-year-old with an exceptional gift, is the latest in a long line of kids abducted and taken to a secret government facility, hidden deep in the forest in Maine.
Here, kids with special talents – telekinesis and telepathy – like Luke’s new friends Kalisha, Nick and Iris, are subjected to a series of experiments.
There seems to be no hope of escape. Until Luke teams up with an even younger boy whose powers of telepathy are off the scale.
Meanwhile, far away in a small town in South Carolina, former cop Tim Jamieson, looking for the quiet life, has taken a job working for the local sheriff. He doesn’t know he’s about to take on the biggest case of his career . . .
THERE’S ONLY ONE WAY OUT.
‘An epic tale of childhood betrayal and hope regained… an immersive tale full of suspense and thrills that will keep readers up late at night racing towards a heartbreaking yet glorious finale… a dazzling achievement’ – Daily Express
Read more
£9.60£10.40The Institute: Stephen King
£9.60£10.40 -
The Iron Duke: Bobby Windsor – The Life and Times of a Working-Class Rugby Hero
Lions legend Bobby Windsor has enjoyed triumphs beyond the dreams of most international players but has also suffered personal tragedy. His rugby career as the best hooker in the British Isles during the second golden era of Welsh rugby in the 1970s is a turbulent tale of blood and thunder on the pitch. There are riotous incidents off the pitch, including unscheduled fights with professional boxers, revelations about illegal payments during the so-called amateur era and what Windsor did to upset the Establishment and become blackballed by one of the most famous clubs in the world.
Windsor’s irrepressible sense of humour comes shining through on every page, except when he gives chapter and verse on the personal crisis that drove him to plan suicide.
The Iron Duke is the no-holds-barred, warts-and-all story of a working-class Welsh folk hero who rose from humble beginnings to become a permanent member of the greatest Lions team in the history of rugby union.
Read more
£0.80 -
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.
Read more
£11.40£12.30 -
The Last Word: The Sunday Times bestseller telling the true and honest story of Katie Price from a mother’s perspective revealing untold and new facts
Raw and unflinching
This is a mother’s account of her daughter’s life
And of Katie Price and her turbulent rise to fame
The Sunday Times bestselling memoir from Amy Price.
Katie Price’s life has long been lived in the public eye, documented both by her own books, reality tv, and the tabloids. But what does this story look like from the inside?
While battling a terminal illness, Katie’s mother, Amy Price, has the last word in this honest and insightful memoir, where she reveals how her family’s past has shaped her daughter’s future.
The Last Word is the definitive story of how Katrina Amy Alexandria Alexis Infield became Katie Price. It documents how her life has been shaped by a tradition of strong women, by cycles of abuse which have been repeated through generations, and by the impact of fame and trauma on a close family unit.
The Last Word was Number 2 in the Sunday Times Hardback Non-Fiction bestseller list on Sunday 16th July.
Read more
£9.50£19.00 -
The Life of a Medical Officer in WWI: The Experiences of Captain Harry Gordon Parker
The Life of a Medical Officer in WW1 documents the experiences of Captain Harry Gordon Parker and provides a rare insight into the conflict that engulfed Europe from 1914-1918. Having joined the Naval Medical Service as a Royal Navy Temporary Surgeon, Parker’s first taste of war was aboard a hospital evacuation ship, which regularly crossed the English Channel, from Southampton to France, picking up casualties from the battle grounds. Somewhat disillusioned with the whole experience, he requested a transfer to the Royal Medical Army Corps and soon found himself transported to the trenches in France. It was here, first serving with the Lancashire Fusiliers and then later as permanent Regimental Medical Officer with the 2nd Manchester’s Regiment, that he spent the remainder of the war, witnessing first-hand the horrors of Passchendaele, Arras and the Somme. Parker’s account not only reveals a record of the conflict, but also encompasses a totality of military life as it impacted on the medical fraternity. From bureaucratic red tape, lack of medical supplies, lice infestations, trench foot and absurd missions where the incompetence of his own side was as dangerous as the enemy, his thoughts are penned with sincerity, the utmost compassion as well as a certain degree of sardonic humour: We went into the trenches for the first time at Givenchy. It snowed heavily, and our rations did not arrive. The Royal Welsh, however, generously shared their rations with our men, who repaid the kindness by (accidentally) shooting one of the Sergeants through the stomach!’. With endorsement from family members, author Lorraine Evans has revised Parker’s notes and scribblings for clarity and added complementary text to provide historical background. What transpires is a lasting and classic chronicle, an extraordinary human account of history as it ensued.Read more
£17.30£20.90 -
The Man Who Never Was: The Remarkable Story of Operation Mincemeat (Now the subject of a major new film starring Colin Firth as Ewen Montagu)
Now the subject of a major new film starring Colin Firth as Ewen Montagu in Operation Mincemeat.
In the early hours of 30 April 1943, a corpse wearing the uniform of an officer in the Royal Marines was slipped into the waters off the south-west coast of Spain. With it was a briefcase, in which were papers detailing an imminent Allied invasion of Greece. As the British had anticipated, the supposedly neutral government of Fascist Spain turned the papers over to the Nazi High Command, who swallowed the story whole. It was perhaps the most decisive bluff of all time, for the Allies had no such plan: the purpose of ‘Operation Mincemeat’ was to blind the German High Command to their true objective – an attack on Southern Europe through Sicily. Though officially shrouded in secrecy, the operation soon became legendary (in part owing to Churchill’s habit of telling the story at dinner). Ewen Montagu was the operation’s mastermind, and in his celebrated post-war memoir, The Man who Never Was, he reveals the incredible true story behind ‘Operation Mincemeat’.
Read more
£7.60£12.30 -
The Mesmerist: The Society Doctor Who Held Victorian London Spellbound
Medicine, in the early 1800s, was a brutal business. Operations were performed without anaesthesia while conventional treatment relied on leeches, cupping and toxic potions. The most surgeons could offer by way of pain relief was a large swig of brandy.
Onto this scene came John Elliotson, the dazzling new hope of the medical world. Charismatic and ambitious, Elliotson was determined to transform medicine from a hodge-podge of archaic remedies into a practice informed by the latest science. In this aim he was backed by Thomas Wakley, founder of the new magazine, the Lancet, and a campaigner against corruption and malpractice.
Then, in the summer of 1837, a French visitor – the self-styled Baron Jules Denis Dupotet – arrived in London to promote an exotic new idea: mesmerism. The mesmerism mania would take the nation by storm but would ultimately split the two friends, and the medical world, asunder – throwing into focus fundamental questions about the fine line between medicine and quackery, between science and superstition.
Read more
£10.50£18.00 -
The Murder of the Whitechapel Mistress: Victorian London’s Sensational Murder Mystery
This is the true story of respected businessman, Henry Wainwright, who had everything he needed in 1871: a loving wife and five children, a delightful London townhouse and successful family business, but just one year later, Henry’s life would be turned upside down. He embarked on a risky affair, setting his mistress, Harriet Lane, up in lodgings with an allowance to look after herself and the couple’s two children as they pretended to be husband and wife. It was at this time that Henry’s finances tumbled out of control; with gambling debts and a failing business, bankruptcy loomed. His world started to crumble and what happened next as he tried to regain control involved a scandalous conspiracy which ended in murder and ruined the lives of three families. This fast-moving story will transport the reader to the East End of Victorian London, revealing information on the lives of those involved and detailing the police investigation and the subsequent Old Bailey trial. Fourteen years before the infamous Jack the Ripper Murders, it was the original ‘Whitechapel Mystery’ and probably the most sensational criminal case of the 1870s. It’s a story of love, weakness and devious, desperate liars.Read more
£20.00£23.80 -
The New Royals: Queen Elizabeth’s Legacy and the Future of the Crown
For seventy years, Queen Elizabeth ruled over an institution and a family. During her lifetime she was constant in her desire to provide a steady presence and to be a trustworthy steward of the British people and the Commonwealth. In the face of her uncle’s abdication, in the uncertainty of the Blitz, and in the tentative exposure of her family and private life to the public via the press, Elizabeth became synonymous with the crown.
?
But times change. Recent years have brought grief and turmoil to the House of Windsor, and even as England celebrated the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, there were calls for a changing of the guard.In The New Royals, journalist Katie Nicholl provides a nuanced look at Elizabeth’s remarkable and unrivalled reign, with new stories from Palace courtiers and aides, documentarians, and family members. She examines King Charles and Queen Consort Camilla’s decades in waiting and beyond-where “The Firm” is headed as William and Kate present the modern faces of an ancient institution. In the wake of Harry and Meghan leaving the Royal Family and Prince Andrew’s spectacular fall from grace, the royal family must reckon with its history, the light and the dark, in order to chart a course for Britain beyond its Queen and to show that it is an institution capable of leadership in an ever-changing modern world.
Read more
£16.20£20.90 -
The People’s Game: How to Save Football: THE AWARD WINNING BESTSELLER
*WINNER OF BEST SPORTS WRITING AT THE SPORTS BOOK AWARDS 2023*
*Out now: Includes brand new material*
THE AWARD-WINNING SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER
‘Neville at his authentic best. [He] is the closest thing to a spokesman there is for English football.’ Sunday Times
‘Brilliant.’ Mail on Sunday
‘Gary Neville usually talks a lot of sense, and writes it too . . . Neville’s words are timely.’ Henry Winter, The Times
__________The beautiful game is under threat. The greed and selfishness of the biggest clubs is harming the sport, with smaller clubs struggling for financial survival and supporters being left behind.
It’s time to fix football.
__________Football is the people’s game. A sport accessible to everyone and enjoyed by millions around the world.
But football is broken. Beneath the glamourous sheen of the Premier League, it’s a game that’s rusting and rotten. The growing influence and wealth of the biggest teams is harming the game, leaving fans out of pocket and smaller clubs clinging to survival. The European Super League, which looked to eradicate competition in favour of guaranteed profits, was just the beginning.
This isn’t what football is about. Something’s got to change. Enough is enough.
Gary Neville has had a front-row seat in football for over 30 years, witnessing the sport at every level – as a player, a coach, a pundit and an owner. Most of all, he’s a fan. Shocked by the state of the game, Gary looks to find out how we got into this mess, who’s responsible, and what we can do about it.
The People’s Game is Gary’s vision for a brighter future. Drawing on interviews with those at the epicentre of the sport’s biggest issues – from the role of ownership to the lack of funding in the football league, the rise in racism, ownership models and the future of the women’s game – he explains how football has sleepwalked into this mess and offers a new path forward. With stories from his own playing career, as well as insight into some of the biggest footballing decisions in recent history, this is a total look at the game today.
This is a passionate, personal and critical account of how football lost its soul, and what we can do to get it back.
__________Read more
£6.60£10.40 -
The Princes in the Tower: Solving History’s Greatest Cold Case
History re-written: has the 540-year-old mystery been solved?
‘The totality of evidence revealed is astonishing. Following the discovery of King Richard III’s grave in a car park in Leicester in 2012, The Missing Princes Project will again rewrite the history books, redrawing what we know about Richard III and Henry VII and pressing the reset button of history.’ – Philippa Langley
In the summer of 1483, two brothers were seen playing in the grounds of the Tower of London, where they’d been lodged by the King’s Council – their uncle, the future Richard III, its chief member. From there the boys seem to vanish from the historical record, and so one of the greatest and most intriguing mysteries of British history was born. Over the centuries, historians have debated tirelessly about the fate of Edward V and Richard, Duke of York: did they die in the Tower? Did they escape? Were they murdered?
After astonishing success in locating and laying to rest Richard III, Philippa Langley turns her forensic focus onto this enduring case, teaming up with criminal investigative experts, historians, archivists and researchers from around the world in her groundbreaking The Missing Princes Project. Following years of extensive research, investigation and formidable dedication, this landmark study has finally reached completion, with stunning conclusions.
In The Princes in the Tower: Solving History’s Greatest Cold Case, join Langley as she records the painstaking investigative work undertaken and lays out the evidence to reveal the remarkable untold story. Here she is able, finally, to address any injustice and solve the mystery surrounding the Princes in the Tower once and for all.
Compelling in breadth and detail, this book asks its readers to re-examine what they thought they knew about one of our greatest historical mysteries. Perfect for fans of the period and the likes of Dan Jones, Philippa Gregory and Janina Ramirez.
Read more
£19.61£25.00 -
The Princes in the Tower: Solving History’s Greatest Cold Case AS FEATURED ON CHANNEL 4
History re-written: has the 540-year-old mystery been solved?
‘The totality of evidence revealed is astonishing. Following the discovery of King Richard III’s grave in a car park in Leicester in 2012, The Missing Princes Project will again rewrite the history books, redrawing what we know about Richard III and Henry VII and pressing the reset button of history.’ – Philippa Langley
In the summer of 1483, two brothers were seen playing in the grounds of the Tower of London, where they’d been lodged by the King’s Council – their uncle, the future Richard III, its chief member. From there the boys seem to vanish from the historical record, and so one of the greatest and most intriguing mysteries of British history was born. Over the centuries, historians have debated tirelessly about the fate of Edward V and Richard, Duke of York: did they die in the Tower? Did they escape? Were they murdered?
After astonishing success in locating and laying to rest Richard III, Philippa Langley turns her forensic focus onto this enduring case, teaming up with criminal investigative experts, historians, archivists and researchers from around the world in her groundbreaking The Missing Princes Project. Following years of extensive research, investigation and formidable dedication, this landmark study has finally reached completion, with stunning conclusions.
In The Princes in the Tower: Solving History’s Greatest Cold Case, join Langley as she records the painstaking investigative work undertaken and lays out the evidence to reveal the remarkable untold story. Here she is able, finally, to address any injustice and solve the mystery surrounding the Princes in the Tower once and for all.
Compelling in breadth and detail, this book asks its readers to re-examine what they thought they knew about one of our greatest historical mysteries. Perfect for fans of the period and the likes of Dan Jones, Philippa Gregory and Janina Ramirez.
Read more
£19.60£23.80 -
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
Read more
£11.40 -
The Real Stanley Baxter
Stanley Baxter delighted over 20 million viewers at a time with his television specials. His pantos became legendary. His divas and dames were so good they were beyond description.
Baxter was a most brilliant cowboy Coward, a smouldering Dietrich. He found immense laughs as Formby and Liberace. And his sex-starved Tarzan swung in a way Hollywood could never have imagined. But who is the real Stanley Baxter?
The comedy actor’s talents are matched only by his past reluctance to colour in the detail of his own character. Now, the man behind the mischievous grin, the twinkling eyes and the once- Brylcreemed coiffure is revealed.
In a tale of triumphs and tragedies, of giant laughs and great falls from grace, we discover that while the enigmatic entertainer could play host to hundreds of different voices, the role he found most difficult to play was that of Stanley Baxter.
Read more
£4.80£9.50The Real Stanley Baxter
£4.80£9.50 -
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
£12.20£14.20 -
The Ref’s Call: Memoir of an Irish Rugby Referee
‘A genuine presence on the field, Owen refereed with the perfect balance of respect and authority’ Keith Wood
‘Highly respected with vast experience and knowledge, Owen Doyle contributed hugely to the world of rugby refereeing, both on and off the field’ Nigel Owens
‘Owen Doyle was a highly respected referee who officiated matches with passion, commitment, knowledge and, occasionally, some great humour’ Will Carling
With a foreword by Donal Lenihan.
Owen Doyle is an Irish Times columnist and former Irish rugby Test match referee. Here in his frank, revealing and often humorous memoir, The Ref’s Call, he gives a behind-the-scenes glimpse into the high-pressured world of international rugby.
From the processes involved in becoming a referee, to officiating in the Five Nations, touring Internationals and a World Cup, Doyle takes us through the most memorable matches of his career and how, following his retirement, he became instrumental in coaching the most successful generation of referees in the IRFU’s history.
Covering over forty years of rugby, and written in his own inimitable style, Doyle looks at the challenges facing modern rugby, particularly the issues of concussion and dementia, to give a fascinating insight into the great game, told from a unique perspective.
Read more
£9.60£10.40The Ref’s Call: Memoir of an Irish Rugby Referee
£9.60£10.40 -
The Rescue: The True Story of the SAS Mission to Save Hostages from the Taliban
The thrilling retelling of a real-life hostage rescue mission, by SAS hero and million-selling author, Andy McNab.
It is 2012 and in Northern Afghanistan, an international crisis has erupted.
A group of aid workers have been kidnapped by local insurgents and are now hidden in a winding mountain region. After attempts to negotiate a deal with the bandits fail, and with the lives of the hostages hanging in the balance, there is only option…
SAS and Navy SEALs are sent in to find and free them.
The Rescue is the action-packed story of the special forces’ attempts to save the hostages from almost certain death. Drawing on classified sources and using his own personal insight into the inner-workings of these units, Andy McNab gives a page-turning account of this incredible mission.
A heart-pounding true story of covert scouting missions, dangerous parachute jumps and fighting to survive in the face of impossible odds, this is the SAS like you’ve never read before.
Read more
£9.50£19.00 -
The Rest is History: The official book from the makers of the hit podcast
Make room Herodotus, stand down Bede, pipe down Pepys – there’s a new history book in town.
From the chart-topping podcast The Rest is History, a whistle-stop tour through the past – from Alexander the Great to Tolkien, the Wars of the Roses to Watergate. The nation’s favourite historians Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook take on the most curious moments in history, answering the questions we didn’t even think to ask:
– Did the Trojan War actually happen?
– What was the most disastrous party in history?
– Was Richard Nixon more like Caligula or Claudius?
– How did a hair appointment almost blow Churchill’s cover?
– Why did the Nazis believe they were descended from Atlantis?Whether it is sending historical figures to Casa Amor in a series of Love Island, ranking history’s most famous eunuchs and pigeons (including Winkie, the unsung hero of the Second World War), or debating the meaning of greatness, there is nothing too big or too small for Tom and Dominic to unpick.
So run your Egyptian milk bath, strap up your best Spartan sandals, and prepare for a journey down the highways and byways of the human past. . .
WATERSTONES’ BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: HISTORY
Read more
£14.99£18.99 -
The Royal Line of Succession: Official Souvenir Guide
The Royal Line of succession can be traced back over 2,000 years of British history. This book includes the genealogies of Britain’s Royal Families, from the days of the Kings of Wessex in the 6th century to the present day, together with brief introductions to each historical period and change of dynasty. It is an invaluable guide to this fascinating subject.Read more
£2.70 -
The Royal Puzzle Book: 300 Challenges and Teasers from Alfred the Great to Charles III
Test your knowledge of kings and queens by attempting to answer some 300 questions across 25 topics, from early kingdoms to the realms of England, Scotland and Wales and the British Royal Family of the modern era.
The topics range from Coronations to Sports and Pastimes – from the first English queen crowned in her own right to the only royal to have won an Olympic Medal. Do you know which country’s national anthem uses the same music as ‘God Save the King’? Whose corpse is said to have exploded in its coffin? What was Queen Victoria’s first name? These hundreds of puzzles are accompanied by a wealth of illustrations from the collections of the British Library. Accept the challenge and see how much more you can learn.
Read more
£11.10£14.20 -
The Smallest Giant: An Actor’s Life
I was happy enough in the circus appearing as the tallest midget in captivity, but when my employer decided that I should also appear as the smallest giant in captivity, I decided it was time to move on and seek my fortune in a different sphere Thus begins Michael Craig’s fascinating, wittily wicked memoir of his life in film, theatre and television. After spending more than fifty years in the hurly burly of show business, Michael Craig has become an essential part of Australian cultural life. In The Smallest Giant, he shares anecdotes about this life and the people he has loved and worked with, including Julie Andrews, Judi Dench, Harold Pinter and Peter O’Toole. Starting as a journeyman actor in English repertory theatre, Michael went on to have an extraordinary international career as a theatre and film actor and writer. He has appeared in more than fifty films and countless television productions, acted with the Royal Shakespeare Company, on Broadway in New York and on London’s West End in major productions like Funny Girl with Barbara Streisand. Coming to Australia in 1972, Michael met actress Sue Walker, the star of such shows as Gypsy, and settled down for good. He most famously starred as Dr William Sharp in the ABC’s long-running television drama GP and has worked with the cream of Australian theatre. With an easy charm, Michael proves himself an exceptional raconteur as he tells the story of a struggling young actor who became the star of film, theatre and television.Read more
£16.80 -
The Soong Sisters
“If the story of the Soong family were told as fiction, people would say it was fascinating but too improbable. . . . A dramatic human chronicle . . . engrossing.” —The New York Times Book Review
In the early twentieth century, few women in China were to prove so important to the rise of Chinese nationalism and liberation from tradition as the three extraordinary Soong sisters—Eling, Chingling and Mayling—who would each marry historic figures. Told with wit and verve by New Yorker correspondent Emily Hahn, a remarkable woman in her own right, the biography of the Soong sisters reveals the story of China through both World Wars. It also chronicles the changes to Shanghai as they relate to a very eccentric family that had the courage to speak out against the ruling regime. Greatly influencing the history of modern China, they interacted with their government and military to protect the lives of those who could not be heard, and appealed to the West to support China during the Japanese invasion.
“[A] first-rate reportorial job on three distinguished women.” —Kirkus Reviews
“A spirited, well-informed book . . . a fascinating saga . . . Hahn skillfully interweaves the personal material which she has collected in abundance with some indispensable background knowledge of Chinese history.” —The AtlanticRead more
£9.00The Soong Sisters
£9.00 -
The Strength of Love: Embracing an Uncertain Future with Resilience and Optimism
*** The Sunday Times Bestseller ***
‘Intimate, tender and brutally honest … a remarkable book.’ Decca Aitkenhead, The Sunday Times‘These are probably the toughest times we have faced in many decades, and we all have to find within us the strength and resilience to get through and to find happiness and love in our futures, whatever life throws at us.’
Kate Garraway has had to learn how to adapt ever since her husband Derek began his fight against the devastating impact of Covid, a condition that has left him needing 24-hour care at home and long spells in hospital. Every day brings uncertainty and new challenges to test Kate and her family’s resolve.
In The Strength of Love, Kate explores issues that resonate with so many of us. She looks at the impact of trauma as well as the importance of resilience, adaptability, curiosity and positivity when recovering from it. She talks about identity, purpose, how to embrace uncertainty and take back control of our lives. Through her and Derek’s story, she provides comfort and wisdom that will help anyone who has ever felt desperate, lonely or experienced profound loss, or who is fearful about what the future holds.
Despite all that she and her family have had to endure, Kate shows us that love truly is the most powerful and resilient emotion of all.
Read more
£9.50£20.90 -
The T in LGBT: Everything you need to know about being trans
Hey, I’m Jamie, a 29-year-old trans guy from the UK. I’ve been transitioning for 12 years now after realising I was trans (by accident!) at sixteen years old. I knew I was a boy since the age of four, but realised whilst growing up that I was different. It was only in my teens that I found the words to express who I was and what I needed to do. Since then, I’ve been on testosterone for more than a decade – I know, I can’t believe it either – I’ve also had top and bottom surgery and legally changed my sex, so I know a few things about the transitioning process and being trans!
I want to welcome you to The T in LGBT where you can explore and learn about so many topics surrounding gender identity: realising you’re trans, starting hormones, considering surgery, and everything in between. Whether you’re questioning your own identity and are looking for advice on certain stages of transition, or whether you’re wanting to learn about the trans experience to support someone or understand allyship, I hope this book can be your one-stop guide to everything trans related.
And don’t just take my word for it either – this book is packed full of advice, tips, and the personal stories of a range of trans voices, because no one journey is the same.
Read more
£14.20£18.00 -
The Tourist: What happens on tour stays on tour … until now!
What Goes on Tour, Stays on Tour…Until Now!
As a cricketer, broadcaster and celebrity jungle-dweller, Phil Tufnell has travelled the world far and wide. From the great cricket tours of Australia and South Africa to his equally memorable jaunts to Benidorm and Blackpool, Phil has spent much of his life living out of a suitcase, meeting a host of colourful and memorable characters along the way.
The Tourist takes you out on the road, into the dressing room and behind the scenes of the commentary box to reveal just what really happens on Tour. Did Phil once push a baby grand piano down the stairs of a plush hotel? Did he accidentally eat a rat? Was he blamed for England being bowled out for 46 against the West Indies without even being in the team?
There’s only one way to find out…
It’s time to take a hilarious trip across the world with one of our most treasured sports personalities.
Read more
£4.70£20.90 -
The Tourist: What happens on tour stays on tour … until now!
What Goes on Tour, Stays on Tour…Until Now!
As a cricketer, broadcaster and celebrity jungle-dweller, Phil Tufnell has travelled the world far and wide. From the great cricket tours of Australia and South Africa to his equally memorable jaunts to Benidorm and Blackpool, Phil has spent much of his life living out of a suitcase, meeting a host of colourful and memorable characters along the way.
The Tourist takes you out on the road, into the dressing room and behind the scenes of the commentary box to reveal just what really happens on Tour. Did Phil once push a baby grand piano down the stairs of a plush hotel? Did he accidentally eat a rat? Was he blamed for England being bowled out for 46 against the West Indies without even being in the team?
There’s only one way to find out…
It’s time to take a hilarious trip across the world with one of our most treasured sports personalities.
Read more
£10.50£20.90 -
The Traitor of Colditz: The Untold Story of Britain’s Bravest Double Agent THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER
THE GRIPPING SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER
‘A vastly entertaining tale, bursting with astonishing stories and extraordinary characters … A fascinating read’ Sunday Telegraph
‘Brilliant … An amazing story, one I hadn’t heard too much about’ Dan Snow
IT IS THE DEPTHS OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR.
The Germans like to boast that there is ‘no escape’ from the infamous fortress that is Colditz.
The elite British officers imprisoned there are determined to prove the Nazis wrong and get back into the war.
As the war heats up and the stakes are raised, the Gestapo plant a double-agent inside the prison in a bid to uncover the secrets of the British prisoners. Captain Julius Green of the Army Dental Corps and Sergeant John ‘Busty’ Brown must risk their lives in a bid to save the lives of hundreds of Allied servicemen and protect the secrets of MI9.
Drawn from unseen records, The Traitor of Colditz brings to light an extraordinary, never-before-told story from the Second World War, an epic tale of how MI9 took on the Nazis and exposed the traitors in their midst.
Read more
£7.60£9.50
