Joseph Delaney used to be an English teacher, before becoming the best-selling author of the Spook's series, which has been published in 30 countries and sold over 4.5 million copies worldwide. The first book, The Spook's Apprentice, was adapted into a major motion picture starring Jeff Bridges and Julianne Moore.

Joseph Delaney

PublicationStatus

Brand

Format

AgeRange

Series

Imprint

CategoryLabel

Anne Nolan

The Nolan Sisters swung with Sinatra, sang at the Royal Variety Performance and toured the world to crowds of adoring fans. 
 
They were one of the first superstar girl groups. 
 
But darkness lurked behind their glamorous, spotless public image. 
 
As the eldest Nolan sister, Anne Nolan's life appeared exciting and glamorous - a dream come true for any young singer. Surrounded by a bevy of loving sisters, two protective brothers and parents who wanted to see their children succeed, how could Anne Nolan's childhood have been anything but idyllic? 
 
And yet behind the fairytale script, behind the fame and glitz, lay hidden dark family secrets that have, until now, never been told. What drove a wedge between the sisters? 
 
Anne's story begins in Dublin and moves to the club scene of Blackpool, the scenes of a secret life - one that had to remain hidden, one of fear and pain that has cast a terrible shadow over her entire life. Finally, after decades of silence, Anne Nolan reveals the brutal truth behind the Nolans' carefully cultivated image in this startling and gripping autobiography.

Anne's Song

Robin Campbell

Ali Campbell

Born and raised in a council house on Birmingham's notorious Balsall Heath under the watchful eye of their staunchly socialist, folk singer father, Robin and Ali Campbell were to become members of the most successful reggae band in the world, a career that has spanned four decades. 
 
But this is not the autobiography of a pop band legend, but rather the story of two working class brothers crashing and burning and fighting back against the odds. It is the story of growing up in the 1960s to the sounds of Motown and ska, folk music and skiffle and radical politics and - most importantly - the new and infectious sound of reggae that was to capture the ears of these two teenage kids from the Midlands. 
 
Instilled by their father from an early age to always do things their own way, the brothers - in between dead end jobs and the dole office - put together a band that would show Balsall Heath what reggae was all about . Mismanagement, drink, drugs, divorce, paranoia and jail terms would dog the band and threaten to destroy it all - including the brother's relationship and yet they come to amass record sales in excess of 50 million, with nearly 50 hit singles to their credit - from 'Red Red Wine' and 'Don't Break My Heart' to 'Homely Girl' and 'I Got You Babe'.

Blood And Fire

Rick Wakeman

What do Postman Pat, Tommy Cooper, Norman Wisdom and George Best have in common with being abandoned in a Costa Rican jungle after a severe bout of flatulence? Indeed, how are they also connected to trying to buy an Australian brewery just to get a beer, owning twenty-two cars, an American soccer team and a Swiss mail-order pornography company? 
 
The common feature is of course a certain Richard Wakeman. 
 
The Further Adventures of a Grumpy Old Rock Star takes you, the privileged reader, on a trip of absurd excess, a cultural car crash of side-splitting hilarity and an unforgettable glimpse (again) into the life of one of Britain's most legendary showmen, rock stars and all-time great raconteurs.

Further Adventures of a Grumpy Old Rock Star

James Curtis

During his lifetime, Spencer Tracy was known as Hollywood's 'actor's actor'. Critics wrote that what Olivier was to theatre, Tracy was to film. Over his career he was nominated for nine Academy Awards, and won two. But there has been no substantial, intimate biography of the man, until now. 
 
From his earliest days in stock theatre, Tracy was a publicist's trial, guarding his private life fiercely. 
Most of the people associated closely with him shunned the limelight - notably his wife, his children and the great actress Katharine Hepburn, with whom he had an affair that lasted over 26 years. 
 
Although his screen roles often depicted a happy, twinkling Irishman, Tracy struggled with alchoholism to the end, a fact which the studios managed to keep out of the papers. 
 
With the help of Tracy's daughter, Susie, and access to previously unseen papers, James Curtis has now produced the definitive biography of a tortured, complex and immensely talented man. 
 
The book contains 124 integrated photos, many published for the first time.

Spencer Tracy

Norman Wisdom

Norman Wisdom's early years could easily have come straight from the pages of a Dickens novel. Left by their frightened mother, ill-treated by a brutal father, Norman and his brother were forced to fend for themselves, sleeping rough in London and stealing food to survive. This is a rags to riches tale of the man Charlie Chaplin said would take his mantle and who went on to make millions laugh around the world for over five decades. Here are the hardships, tragedies and triumphs that gave him his inspiration. From the days working the seasons at Scarborough, to the unforgettable and endearing character Norman Pitkin - the little man in a tight fitting suit, read of his rapid climb up the showbiz ladder.

My Turn

An Autobiography

Robert Wagner

In this moving memoir, Robert J. Wagner opens his heart to share the romances, the drama and the humor of an incredible life. Under the mentorship of stars like Spencer Tracy, he became a salaried actor in Hollywood's studio system among other hot actors of the moment such as his friends Rock Hudson and Tony Curtis. Wagner began to appear in a number of films alongside the most beautiful starlets. As his career blossomed he met the woman who would change his life forever, Natalie Wood. They fell instantly and deeply in love and stayed together until the stress of their careers drove them to divorce. 
 
Trying to forget the pain, he made more movies and spent his time in Europe with the likes of Steve McQueen, Sophia Loren, Peter Sellers, Laurence Olivier, David Niven, Liz Taylor and Joan Collins. He would meet and marry the beautiful former model and actress Marion Marshall. Together they had a daughter, and made their way back to America, where he found himself at the beginning of a new era in Hollywood - the blossoming of television. 
 
Despite his new found success, his marriage to Marion fell apart. He looked no further than Natalie Wood, for whom he still pined. To the world's surprise, they fell in love all over again. Their life together was cut tragically short, though, when Wood died after falling from their yacht. For the first time, Wagner writes about that tremendously painful time. After a serious bout with depression, he finally resurfaced and eventually married Jill St. John, who helped keep his family and his fractured heart together.

Pieces of My Heart

Richard Attenborough

Diana Hawkins

Richard Attenborough and Diana Hawkins have been friends and colleagues for nearly 50 years.They have now teamed up to write this frank and funny account of their unlikely partnership and his extraordinary life. 
 
Together, laughing and squabbling, they have travelled the world, meeting people and making films. Among the eclectic cast of characters who appear in this two-handed memoir are Steve McQueen, Mother Teresa, Charlie Chaplin, Robert Mugabe, Edward G Robinson, Ronald Reagan, David Lean, Margaret Thatcher, John Mills, Steven Spielberg, Noel Coward, Indira Gandhi, Gordon Brown and Nelson Mandela. 
 
Prompted by his adventures in the movie business, Attenborough reflects on the highs and lows of a long life, both in and out of the public gaze. He writes revealingly of his passion for football and politics, of his avuncular relationship with Princess Diana and finally about the tsunami tragedy which engulfed his family in December 2004.

Entirely Up to You, Darling

Ray Manzarek

The Doors were arguably the most important rock-and-roll band of the 1960s, unquestionably a catalyst for American music as we know it. Their music was the product of late-sixties southern California, with its idyllic facades. The Doors looked beyond these facades and wrote music about what they found, making them the ultimate symbol for rebellion and alienation: the key to the 1960s, counter-culture. Keyboardist Ray Manzarek co-founded the Doors with legendary guitarist Jim Morrison in 1965. Together with Robby Krieger and John Densmore they created a musical and cultural legend. Their original mix of jazz, classical, Californian surf, Flamenco guitar and Chicago blues made an irreversible impact on the music of the day, and the course of pop music ever since. Their worldwide popularity continues today with album sales of nearly two million a year. Ray Manzarek and Jim Morrison were both UCLA Film School graduates, best friends and rarely apart until Morrison moved to Paris shortly before his death in 1971. Ray Manzarek knows secrets about Jim Morrison and The Doors that others could only guess at; until now. In this unique musical biography, Manzarek reveals the truth behind the legendary rock band. His story gives illumination to the dark myths and lays to rest the rumours that have abounded about Jim Morrison and the band for years. Light My Fire truly gives us an insight into the times, the enigmatic lead singer, and the magic circle that was The Doors.

Light My Fire - My Life With The Doors

Chantelle Houghton

From girl next door to the nation's sweetheart, this is the story of Chantelle's spectacular rise to fame and celebrity. Told in her own words, Chantelle takes us on what has been a sometimes bumpy, but a truly magical journey. 
 
As a little girl growing up in Essex, Chantelle Houghton dreamed of becoming famous and living the life of a star. But never could she have imagined just how this dream would eventually come true, transforming her into one of Britain's most loved and talked about celebrities. 
 
Here, we learn how her family played a crucial role in helping to shape her dreams and aspirations from an early age. We hear of the difficult times growing up and how Chantelle was able to overcome these obstacles, eventually launching a career in modeling. 
 
But it was to be Celebrity Big Brother that would change the course of Chantelle's life forever. She tells of the moment she first discovered she'd been picked, what really went on behind the scenes - the clashes of personalities in the house, the fallings out... and, of course, her falling in love with Preston. 
 
Winning Big Brother was a defining moment, and the madness that followed in those first few days outside of the house was to be just the beginning of Chantelle's new dream life. Learning to become accustomed to her new found fame hasn't been straightforward, but Chantelle has always kept her feet firmly on the ground. 
 
But it has been her love for Preston that has been the real fairy tale in Chantelle's extraordinary journey. She tells how their love grew away from the glare of paparazzi, and how this whirlwind romance ended up becoming the wedding of the year. 
 
In this honest and open autobiography, Chantelle shares her secret hopes and dreams for the future and looks back on the past year and reflects on just what an amazing fairy tale it's been.

Living the Dream

My Story

Jeffrey Meyers

The Genius and the Goddess, based on Jeffrey Meyers' long friendship with Arthur Miller and extensive archival research from Washington to Los Angeles, is a portrait of a marriage. The greatest American playwright of the twentieth century and the most popular American actress both complemented and wounded one another. 
 
Marilyn Monroe was a doomed personality whose tragic end was inevitable. Miller experienced creative agony with her. Their five-year marriage, from 1956 to 1961, coincided with the creative peak of her career, yet private and public conflict caused both of them great anguish. 
 
This book explains why they married, what sustained them for five years and what destroyed them; the effect of the anti-Communist witch-hunts on their marriage; and the impact of Marilyn on Miller's life and art. The fascinating cast of characters includes Marilyn's co-stars: Sir Laurence Olivier, Yves Montand and Clark Gable; her leading directors: John Huston, Billy Wilder and George Cukor; and her literary friends: Dame Edith Sitwell, Saul Bellow and Vladimir Nabokov. 
 
Meyers offers an incisive account of the making and meaning of The Misfits, which destroyed their marriage. But Marilyn remained Miller's tragic muse and her character, exalted and tormented, lived on, for the next forty years, in his work.

The Genius and the Goddess

Anna Massey

In 2005, Anna Massey was awarded a CBE for services to drama. 
 
Daughter of the Canadian actor, Raymond Massey (perhaps best-known for his role as Dr Gillespie in the TV series Dr Killdare), and Adrianne Allen (also a very successful stage actress), drama was in her blood. Her brother, Daniel, was a much-acclaimed actor. And even her godfather was one of the great film directors of all time - John Ford. 
 
Anna's first marriage was to Jeremy Brett, famous in his later years for his elegantly febrile performance on television as Sherlock Holmes. They had a son, David, together. But it was not a happy relationship and ended in divorce. 
 
In fact, family life was never easy or straightforward. Raymond fled the roost for the United States when Anna was very little, and married again. Adrianne was the most marvellous hostess who filled the house with an exotic mixture of guests, but, as a child, crucial emotional support was supplied by Nanny, who remained with Anna until her death. 
 
From her stage debut in The Reluctant Debutante to her performance in Michael Powell's notorious film, Peeping Tom, on through TV successes like The Pallisers and Hotel du Lac to a range of work in radio, Anna Massey has enjoyed the most remarkable career. And a whole host of extraordinary, often highly eccentric characters make their entrances and exits during its course. 
 
On and off set or stage, there are encounters with the theatrical knights, Olivier, Redgrave, Richardson and Gielgud. Noel Coward takes more than one bow. Great friendships are formed with fellow actors like Alan Rickman, Alec McCowen, Dame Judi Dench, and the playwright, David Hare. And there are inevitable difficulties with directors like Otto Preminger. Anna also has to play the part of hostess to the Duke of Edinburgh - in real life. 
 
After all the inevitable vicissitudes and upsets, Anna Massey ends her book with the story of personal happiness, achieved without make-up, lighting or script. Telling Some Tales does not kiss and tell, or tell tales out of school. It is the candid, wry, funny and emotional account of a life intensely lived.

Telling Some Tales

Sara Dallin

Keren Woodward

______________________________________ 
'Engaging, entertaining, brilliantly recounted' Mirror 
 
'Captivating . . . an incredible story' i paper 
__________________________________ 
MUSIC, FAME AND A LIFELONG FRIENDSHIP 
 
Sara Dallin and Keren Woodward met in the school playground when they were four. They went on to become international stars and inspired a generation with their music, DIY-style and trailblazing attitudes. 
 
Told with humour and authenticity, and filled with never-before-seen photos, Really Saying Something takes us behind the scenes of their early days, the world tours, party games with George Michael, a close friendship with Prodigy's Keith Flint, and hanging out with Andy Warhol in New York. 
 
This is a celebration of a life-affirming friendship, with an unbeatable soundtrack. 
__________________________________ 
'Like something from a movie' Dermot O'Leary 
 
'A brilliant autobiography' Martin Kemp 
 
'A blast' Metro 
 
'What a nostalgia-fest' Kate Thornton

Really Saying Something

Sara & Keren – Our Bananarama Story

Dale Winton

For over 25 years, Dale Winton (1955-2018) was one of Britain's most popular stars. 
 
His warm and winning ways made him one of Britain's most popular and powerful personalities on TV, radio and with live audiences everywhere – but Dale's life was far from perfect. 
 
The story of his private life was traumatic and eventful, a tale of childhood insecurity, poverty and heartbreaking family tragedy – but also courage, commitment and strength. In this emotional, heartfelt book, Dale discusses the problems, the pain and the personalities of a life lived to the full in the mad world of showbusiness – as well as his plastic surgery, his lifelong battle with his weight, and the complicated truth about his sexuality. 
 
Rawest and most affecting is his honest account of his relationship with his parents, his bullying father who died on the day of Dale’s bar mitzvah – but particularly his close relationship with his troubled mother, whose struggle with depression ended with her taking her own life, her body found by Dale just days after his 21st birthday. 
 
With an eye to the future as well as his fascinating past, Dale Winton's autobiography will make compelling reading for millions, testament to the legacy of one of Britain's great entertainers.

Suzanne Finstad

Born Natasha Zakharenko, Natalie Wood continues to haunt us 20 years after her tragic and mysterious death.  Her dark hypnotic beauty and passionate performances made her a movie star legend, appearing in over fifty films including West Side Story  and Rebel Without a Cause for which she was Oscar nominated. The story of her life is tinged with tragedy and drama. Pushed by her domineering, frustrated mother - an alcoholic determined to make her child a star at whatever cost,  Natalie grew up fast -  lonely and a misfit, uncertain of her identity.  At fifteen she had embarked on an affair with a director 30 years her senior, she was brutally raped by a leading Hollywood star when she was sixteen -an attack which her mother forbade her to report.  Her leading men frequently became her lovers including Elvis Presley, James Dean , Warren Beatty and the real love of her life, Robert Wagner whom she eventually married twice. Her fear of being alone and the years of exploitation and abuse led to an addiction to sleeping pills and several suicide attempts and for the first time, this book looks at evidence, yet to be published, surrounding her premature and controversial death - drowning at the age of 43. Suzanne Finstad has spent 3 years researching this, the first substantive biography of Natalie Wood, conducting over 400 interviews with friends, family, lovers, co-stars and the police officials who investigated her death.

Natasha

The Biography of Natalie Wood

James Corden

THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLING AUTOBIOGRAPHY 
 
So... the story of my life. 
 
I've often thought about this moment, about what it would be like to write my memoirs. I always thought it would make me feel important. It doesn't. If anything it makes me feel a little strange. 
 
The truth is, I should never have been this famous guy. I wasn't the cool, clever, good-looking boy at school. But I always dreamt of it, hoped for it, longed for it: throughout school when I was disruptive, in my teens when I tried to form my own boy band and through hundreds of auditions for parts which were met with constant rejection. Until finally I co-wrote Gavin and Stacey. And my whole life changed... 
 
This is that story. The story of how I found myself here, talking to you.

May I Have Your Attention Please?

Jim Steinmeyer

This is the story of the Golden Age of magic and of the world's most legendary magicians: the eccentric personalities who patented the first ghost and competed fiendishly in the race to make things materialize, levitate and disappear.We meet Harry Kellar, the ruthless thief of secrets who was the model for the Wizard of Oz, and PT Selbit, the first man to saw a woman in half on stage.We meet John Nevil Maskelyne, whose Egyptian Theatre was a London institution for sixty years. Hiding the Elephant is the masterwork of a man who has dedicated his life to magic, who knows the tricks inside out, and still believes.

Hiding The Elephant

How Magicians Invented the Impossible

Arthur Smith

'My name is Arthur Smith, unless there's anybody here from the Streatham tax office. In which case, I'm Daphne Fairfax.' This has been Arthur's opening line at hundreds of stand-up comedy performances. In fact, he is neither Daphne nor Arthur. Friends and family know him as Brian. 
 
One of the 'alternative comedians' who shook up light entertainment in the eighties and nineties, Arthur (and Brian) is also a broadcaster, an opening bat for Grumpy Old Men, a West End playwright (his plays include An Evening with Gary Lineker) and a guest on innumerable radio and TV panel shows. 
 
In My Name is Daphne Fairfax he reflects on the nature of comedy and his days as a scruffy kid on the bombsites of Bermondsey, a wild-haired undergraduate, a roadsweeper, an English teacher, a failed rock star, a boozed-up sexual adventurer and an intensive care patient who has been told never to drink again. 
 
Hilarious, scandalous and rude, his memoir incorporates a tender tribute to his parents and a vigorous account of the peculiar business of being alive.

My Name is Daphne Fairfax

A Memoir

Barbara Sinatra

Thirty years after she first heard his voice singing to her from a jukebox at her local drive-in, Barbara began her love affair with Frank Sinatra. After a tempestuous courtship, she finally heard him say the wedding vows that began his fourth, final, and most enduring marriage; one that would last more than two decades until the end of his life. Generous and jealous, witty and wicked, Frank comes alive in this poignant inside story of the highs and lows of marriage to one of the world's most famous men. In this, her first public love letter to the husband she adored, his wife celebrates the sensational singer, sexy heartthrob, possessive mate, and loyal friend that was Frank Sinatra. 
 
This book will let his legions of fans see another side of "Ol' Blue Eyes." Though Frank Sinatra's children have written memoirs about their father, this is the first time his wife of twenty-two years is sharing intimate details of life with the man and the legend.

Lady Blue Eyes

My Life with Frank Sinatra

Gene Simmons

KISS has released thirty-seven records and sold 80 million albums worldwide. Gene Simmons has also acted in films and on television, has written and produced albums for other recording artists, has managed the recording career of, among others, Liza Minelli, and was founder and president of his own recording label, Simmons Records/RCA. He also launched his film and TV producing career with Detroit Rock City for New Line Cinema. Gene Simmons lives in Beverley Hills, California, and was recently the rock star teacher on Channel 4's Rock School. 
 
Here for the first time Gene Simmons, the notorious mainman of the explosive rock and roll group KISS, tells his story. Delivered in Gene's own honest, outrageous and uncensored voice, he tells of his early beginnings in Israel, of his arrival in New York at the age of eight, his first taste of 1950s pop culture and his developing thirst for fame, fun and girls. Undoubtedly one of the most infamous rock and roll legends alive, Gene tells the never before revealed story of KISS's reign as the biggest and most popular band in the world. Finally, the real story of the man behind the make-up.

Kiss and Make-Up

Jem Roberts

'It's a great missing piece of the jigsaw - people go on endlessly about Python and Peter Cook, which is all well and good but there's basically this great corpus of work stretching for decades - and consistently good ... A major piece of work, and universally loved.' 
 
So says John Lloyd, brains behind Blackadder, QI, Spitting Image, and so much besides - all shows with a massive debt to I'm Sorry I'll Read That Again and I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue. Together they form a body of work stretching across five decades, from Cambridge in 1960 to today's world-beating Antidote to Panel Games, a laughter-bringer which has inspired unparalleled adoration in millions over fifty series. This book tells the whole story, from Footlights to Broadway to the ferret-filled madness of Radio Prune - comedy's answer to the rock &amp; roll revolution of the sixties. Offering an exhaustive guide to the comedy world that brought us Mornington Crescent, besides episode guides, glossaries and rare facsimiles, Jem Roberts will take the story right up to the present day, celebrating the lives of Willie Rushton, Sir David Hatch and of course, the irreplaceable Humphrey Lyttelton. With exclusive input from the Teams, plus Bill Oddie, Stephen Fry, Bill Bailey, Neil Innes and many more, this is the long-overdue authoritative, entertaining and, above all, very silly lasting celebration of an unsung comic legacy that both shows so richly deserve.

The Fully Authorised History of I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue

The Clue Bible from Footlights to Mornington Crescent

John Cleese

A candid and brilliantly funny memoir... 
 
...of how a tall, shy youth from Weston-super-Mare went on to become a self-confessed comedy legend. 
 
En route, John Cleese describes his nerve-wracking first public appearance at St Peter’s Preparatory School at the age of eight and five-sixths; his endlessly peripatetic home life with parents who seemed incapable of staying in any house for longer than six months; his first experiences in the world of work as a teacher who knew nothing about the subjects he was expected to teach; his hamster-owning days at Cambridge; and his first encounter with the man who would be his writing partner for over two decades, Graham Chapman. 
 
And so on to his dizzying ascent via scriptwriting for Peter Sellers, David Frost, Marty Feldman and others to the heights of Monty Python. 
 
Punctuated from time to time with John Cleese’s thoughts on topics as diverse as the nature of comedy, the relative merits of cricket and waterskiing, and the importance of knowing the dates of all the kings and queens of England, this is a masterly performance by a former schoolmaster.

So, Anyway...

The Autobiography

Craig Brown

Listeners to Radio Four have long reserved a very special place in the hearts for Wallace Arnold. For over four decades, he has delighted his ever-increasing band of followers with his sparkling mixture of wit and wisdom. A regular panellist on Any Questions, Stop the Week and Just a Minute, the occassional host of You and Yours, Wallace Arnold has also long been the Housewives' Favourite on Woman's Hour. 
 
In Welcome to my Worlds! Wallace Arnold takes us behind the scenes of the worlds of politics, high society, the literary life and the wireless, in all of which he continues to play a crucial role. 
 
Why was Sir Robin Day seen in the bar of the Garrick Club dressed as Widow Twankey? In what year did John Bratby paint Lord Goodman naked on an ironing board? How did Major Ronald Ferguson gain his role as the headmistress in the remake of the classic St Trinian's comedy series? In a series of marvellously erudite and entertaining vignetters, Wallace Arnold answers all these questions and many more.

Welcome To My Worlds!

The Dread Decades of Wallace Arnold

John Szwed

Writer, musicologist, archivist, singer, DJ, filmmaker, record, radio and TV producer, Alan Lomax was a man of many parts. Without him the history of popular music would have been very different. 
 
Armed with a tape-recorder and his own near-flawless good taste, Lomax spent years travelling the US, particularly the south, recording its heritage of music and song for posterity, bringing to light the talents of performers ranging from Jelly Roll Morton to Leadbelly and Muddy Waters, and crucially influencing generations of musicians from Pete Seeger to the Stones, from Woody Guthrie to Bob Dylan. 
 
His influence continues: recordings made by Lomax are the core of the sound-tracks of Oh Brother, Where art Thou? and Gangs of New York, and even featured, remixed, on Moby's Play. 
 
John Szwed's biography is the first ever of this remarkable and contradictory man (whom he both knew and worked with for ten years); through it Szwed will tell the story of a musical and political era, as he did so successfully in his previous book on Miles Davis.

The Man Who Recorded the World

A Biography of Alan Lomax

Richard Webber

In August 1958, the opening scenes of a low-budget black and white film flickered onto cinema screens up and down the country. No one could have foreseen what impact Carry on Sergeant would have then and in the future. Not only did it become one of the top three grossing films for that year, it also kick started the longest running and most successful comedy series of all time. 
 
Here, for the very first time, is the essential biography of this most treasured institution in the world of British cinema. Complete with exclusive interviews with cast and crew, and the debut publication of Vince Powell's script of Carry On Down Under, Fifty Years of Carry On is a must for any fan of the unique and ever hilarious spectacle that is Carry On.

Fifty Years Of Carry On

Marnie Simpson

The Sunday Times bestseller from one of the UK's best-loved television stars. 
 
'I'm a girl with a crazy head, a big heart and even bigger dreams. If I've made mistakes, I've learned from them. But whatever's happened to me , I can never say that life's been boring.' 
 
From a young North-East girl to star of the small screen, Geordie Shore personality Marnie Simpson is here to lift the lid and reveal all. 
 
Marnie Simpson is one of the UK's best-loved TV personalities, first bursting on to our screens in the TV series Geordie Shore. Marnie lifts the lid on her life with characteristic punch – uncover the real Marnie through the ups and downs of growing up in Newcastle to the hilarious and dramatic antics of Geordie Shore and Celebrity Big Brother. 
 
Marnie reveals all – and everything in between!

Stripped Bare

Fiona Phillips

Fiona Phillips is one of our best-loved television presenters. Well-known for being warm, chatty and down to earth, she attended her local comprehensive in Southampton before studying English in Birmingham. For over twelve years she presented GMTV, during which time she interviewed some of the most famous and influential people on the planet, from film stars to royalty, politicians to local heroes. But in August 2008 Fiona announced that she was to quit the job she loved, revealing that her father, Phil, had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's just a year after her mother had died of the same disease and that she had decided to devote more time to him and to her family. 
 
Before I Forget is a wonderfully honest account of growing up in the 1960s and 70s within a complex family. During her childhood her father could sometimes be distant and demanding which both saddened her and drove her to succeed, her mother always the devoted wife and the steady heart of the family. When Fiona lands the job at GMTV she revels in how proud they are of her achievement. When her mother and then her father succumb to Alzheimer's we share in Fiona's sadness as she movingly describes watching them fade away, one moment interviewing George Clooney the next taking a call from Pembrokeshire Social Services to say that her mother had wandered away from her care home. 
 
Before I Forget is an extraordinary book which will resonate with Fiona's millions of fans and the millions of people who day-by-day are going through, or have gone through, the same experiences.

Before I Forget

David Lines

When David Lines first heard This is the Modern World by The Jam, it sparked off a love affair that continues to this day. Paul Weller became the blueprint for David's life, and he followed his music and his style with the fervour of a truly devoted fan - to the bemusement of his long-suffering family. At once disarmingly candid and hilariously funny, this is the story of what it means to have a hero, its pleasures and pitfalls. Illustrating his memoir with landmark songs from The Jam and The Style Council, David maps out the occasionally bizarre events in the life of an obsessive fan and wannabe writer. 
 
From Player's Navy Cut to Gitanes, boating blazers to cashmere sweaters, The Modfather is about acquiring style, finding substance and living life with Paul Weller.

The Modfather

My Life with Paul Weller

J. F. Roberts

___________________ 
They had a cunning plan. 
 
A few decades ago, three young grads from England's greatest universities - Oxford, Cambridge, and Hull (actually, Manchester) - came up with a historical comedy series. Few thought it would live long in the memory. 
 
Today, Blackadder is a timeless comic masterpiece, and its stars have gone on to glittering careers. The True History of the Black Adder is the first ever history of one of Britain's greatest and most unique sitcoms, from its medieval beginnings to its legendary tragic finale. 
 
Informed by exclusive - and hilarious - interviews with essential figures like Rowan Atkinson, Tony Robinson, Ben Elton, Stephen Fry, Brian Blessed and many more, this the definitive account of how a British institution came to be, as well as a fascinating look into how this classic comedy was almost very different - and a compendium of brilliantly funny anecdotes from a team of Britain's most celebrated comedians. 
 
British history is a patchwork of questionable stories, constantly rewritten, re-evaluated and ridiculed; final editorial control has always belonged to the winners. And nobody likes winners... 
 
At last, Blackadder enthusiasts can now uncover THE cunning plan, in all its hideous hilarity.

The True History of the Blackadder

The Unadulterated Tale of the Creation of a Comedy Legend

Danny Dyer

Growing up in the eighties in East London was no picnic. Proper hard bastards, wannabe villains and cockney wide boys everywhere you went, all looking to make their mark. With trouble at home and more at school, Danny Dyer didn't have many options. He was a rascal, running with a tough crowd, getting himself into scrapes with the Old Bill, on the verge of becoming just another nobody. 
 
Until he started to act. 
 
It came naturally to him. He landed role after role, working with big stars, making a name for himself. And then came Human Traffic, and his career went into overdrive. Fame opened doors into the best clubs, the best booze and even better drugs. But with the highs came the lows, and as the drinks flowed, the work dried up. Shut out of an industry that didn't understand him, that heard his reputation before bothering with his talent, he had no choice but to turn it around and sort himself out. 
 
This is the real story - straight up. 
 
Funny, honest, full of swagger, and jammed full of antics and anecdotes, this memoir tears it up proper and delivers on every page.

Straight Up

My Autobiography

Phil Collins

In his own words is the candid, witty, and unvarnished story of the songs and shows, the hits and pans, the marriages and divorces, the ascents to the top of the charts and into the tabloid headlines. 
 
As one of only three musicians to sell over 100 million records both in a group and as a solo artist, Collins breathes rare air, but he has never lost his talent for crafting songs that touch listeners around the globe. 
 
This is the story of his epic career, from child actor to one of the most successful songwriters of the pop music era. A drummer since almost before he could walk, Collins received on-the-job training in the seedy, thrilling bars and clubs of 1960s swinging London before finally landing the drum seat in Genesis. Later he would step into the spotlight on vocals after the departure of Peter Gabriel, and compose the songs that would rocket him to international solo fame with the release of Face Value and 'In the Air Tonight'. 
 
Whether he's recalling jamming with Eric Clapton and Robert Plant, pulling together a big band fronted by Tony Bennett, playing twice at Live Aid, or writing the Oscar-winning music for Disney's smash-hit animated film Tarzan, Collins keeps it intimate and his storytelling gift never wavers.

Not Dead Yet: The Autobiography

biblio.categories.code

biblio.publicationStatus

biblio.brand

biblio.workEditions.format

biblio.ageRange

biblio.series.seriesName

biblio.imprint.description

biblio.type

About us

About Us (Header 4)

Best-Jane-Austen-quotes_Online-Desktop_Penguin

James-Baldwin

Marian-Keyes

haruki-murakami-320×320-1

Richard-Osman

Malorie Blackman

Lisa-Jewell

Charlie-Mackesy

Authors (Header 3)

Children&#039;s

Company

Discover

Fiction

Non-fiction

Penguin Classics

Penguin Shop (Header 5)

Useful links

Work with us

Search Results

The Fall of the West

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Fight or Flight (Book 21)

The Mortons

Little Black Classics Box Set

Watch a trailer for The Spook's Blood

A photograph of Ben Barnes in character for Shadow and Bone Netflix series.

Interviews

Shadow and Bone’s Ben Barnes on tear-jerking books and what he’s reading

An image showing a selection of adventure stories for 9-12 year olds on a bright yellow background with orange doodles that include a hashtag, flag, danger sign and speech bubble

Children's reading lists

16 books for 9 to 12-year-olds that love adventures

An image of a selection of books for 9-12s on a blue background with a large splodge and striped print

24 must-read books for 9-12-year-olds

A picture of several different children's books on a pink to blue ombre background; each book has a bright yellow shadow

Showing results for: ‘joseph delaney’

Filters

Category

Publication Date

Format

Imprint

Follow penguin

Follow ladybird

Follow puffin

Sign up to the Penguin newsletter