Steve Roud was Local Studies Librarian for the London Borough of Croydon and served as Honorary Librarian of the Folklore Society for over fifteen years. He has been researching British folklore for over thirty years and is the joint author of the Oxford Dictionary of English Folklore, plus other books on traditional drama and folk song, and the Penguin Guide to the Superstitions of Britain and Ireland, which won the Katharine Briggs Folklore Award in 2004. His publications include London Lore (2008) and The Lore of the Playground (2010). He also compiles the Folk Song Index and the Broadside Index, two internationally acclaimed computer databases of traditional folk and popular song. He lives in Sussex.

Steve Roud

PublicationStatus

Brand

Format

AgeRange

Series

Imprint

CategoryLabel

The Week

Read about the man who convinced Einstein there was a God, the newspaper publisher who brought down a president and the code-cracking genius who helped foil the Nazis, and remember the lives of those that created the extraordinary moments in our modern history. 
 
Based on the obituaries that appear in every issue of The Week, here is a book that brings together the famous and infamous figures of our generation. From the world’s influential leaders and thinkers of the day, such as Nelson Mandela, Steve Jobs, Margaret Thatcher and Sir Patrick Moore, to the more infamous and eccentric, this is a fascinating compendium of the lives of our times.

The Lives of the Famous and the Infamous

Everything You Need To Know About Everyone Who Mattered

Clive Driscoll

The true story behind the ITV series, Stephen 
 
Former Detective Chief Inspector Clive Driscoll is most famous for being the man who finally secured convictions for the murder of Stephen Lawrence, a case previously mired by claims of institutional racism and corruption. For Clive, it was the pinnacle of a 35-year career with the world's most famous police force, the Metropolitan Police Service. 
 
Clive's prodigious rise through the ranks of the Met saw him front some of the most high-profile units at Scotland Yard. He was put in charge of their policy for sexual offences, domestic violence, child protection and the paedophile unit before heading up the Racial and Violent Crime Task Force tackling their backlist of cold cases. 
 
From action-packed moments chasing down criminals to more tender occasions, like gaining the trust of a murder victim's family, to making crucial legal history, and unearthing huge national scandals, In Pursuit of the Truth is the definitive account of modern day policing, its successes and failings included, seen through the eyes of a man who has dedicated his life to making a difference. This is a book that every part of society can learn from.

In Pursuit of the Truth

My life cracking the Met’s most notorious cases (subject of the ITV series, Stephen)

Stuart Maconie

In Hope and Glory Stuart Maconie goes in search of the days that shaped the Britain we live in today. Taking one event from each decade of the 20th century, he visits the places where history happened and still echoes down the years. Stuart goes to Orgreave and Windsor, Wembley and Wootton Bassett, assembling a unique cast of Britons from Sir Edmund Hillary to Sid Vicious along the way. 
 
It’s quite a trip, full of sex and violence and the occasional scone and jigsaw. From pop stars to politicians, Suffragettes to punks, this is a journey around Britain in search of who we are.

Hope and Glory

A People’s History of Modern Britain

Richard M. Langworth

Churchill's wise words about the love of country have rallied nations and made Churchill our greatest national hero. The Patriot's Churchill shows Sir Winston's view of the British way by emphasizing his precepts of collegiality and friendship toward political opponents, magnanimity in victories, and wry reflections after defeats. This is a selection of the best Churchill quotations about Britain gleaned from books, articles, speeches, private papers and conversations, compiled with the assistance or scholars, family members and those who knew him. His belief in the strength, courage and moral fibre of the British was always reflected in the poetic cadence of his rousing words. 
 
'Never give in, never, never, never, never-in nothing, great or small, large or petty-never give in except to convictions of honour and good sense.' 
 
'We shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender' 
 
'Today we may say aloud before an awe-struck world, "We are still masters of our fate. We are still captains of our souls.' 
 
'In a long and varied life I have constantly watched and tried to measure the moods and inspirations of the British people. There is no foe they will not face. There is no hardship they cannot endure.'

The Patriot's Churchill

An inspiring collection of Churchill's finest words

Everyone talks about 'Middle England'. Sometimes they mean something bad, like a lynch mob of Daily Mail readers, and sometimes they mean something good, like a pint of ale in a sleepy Cotswold village in summer twilight. But just where and what is Middle England? Stuart Maconie didn't know either, so he packed his Thermos and sandwiches and set off to find out... 
 
Is Middle England about tradition and decency or closed minds and bigotry? Is it maypoles and evensong, or flooded market towns and binge drinkers in the park? And is Slough really as bad as Ricky Gervais and John Betjeman make out? From Shakespeare to JK Rowling, Vaughan Williams to Craig David, William Morris to B&amp;Q, Stuart Maconie leads the expedition, with plenty of stop-offs for tea and scones, to discover the truth.

Adventures on the High Teas

In Search of Middle England

David Veevers

The story of the British Empire is a familiar one: Britain came, it saw, it conquered, forging a glorious world empire upon which the sun never set. In fact, far from being the tale of a single nation imposing its will upon the world, the British Empire found itself reshaped by the tenacious resistance of the powerful Indigenous and non-European people it encountered. From ill-advised ventures in Ireland to the failure to curtail North African Corsair states all the way to the collapse of commercial operations in East Asia, British attempts to create an imperial enterprise often ended in embarrassment and even disaster. 
 
In this book, David Veevers looks beyond the myths of triumph and into the realities of British misadventures in the early days of Empire, meeting the extraordinary people across the world who were the real forces to be reckoned with. From the Emperors who determined the expansion of the English East India Company, to the West African kings who resisted English entreaties and set the terms of the lucrative slave trade, to the Paramount Chiefs in America who fought to expunge European forces from their homelands, The Great Defiance retells the story of early Empire from the perspective of the Indigenous and non-European people who held the fate of the British in their hands.

The Great Defiance

How the world took on the British Empire

Factory, mine and mill. Industry, toil and grime. Its manufacturing roots mean we still see the North of England as a hardworking place. But, more than possibly anywhere else, the North has always known how to get dressed up, take itself out on the town and have a good time. After all, working and playing hard is its specialty, and Stuart Maconie is in search of what, exactly, this entails what it tells us about the North today. 
 
Following tip offs and rumour, Stuart takes trip to forgotten corners and locals’ haunts. From the tapas bars of Halifax to the caravan parks of Berwick Upon Tweed, from a Westhoughton bowling green to Manchester’s curry mile, via dog tracks and art galleries, dance floors and high fells, Stuart compares the new and old North, with some surprising results. 
 
The Pie at Night could be seen as a companion to the bestselling Pies and Prejudice, but it is not a sequel. After all, this is a new decade and the North is changing faster than ever. This is a revealing and digressive journey and a State of the North address, delivered from barstool, terrace, dress circle and hillside.

The Pie At Night

In Search of the North at Play

Paul Flynn

‘One of the most important books about gay culture in recent times’ The Quietus 
 
Long-listed for the Polari First Book Prize 
 
In 1984 the pulsing electronics and soft vocals of Smalltown Boy would become an anthem uniting gay men. A month later, an aggressive virus, HIV, would be identified and a climate of panic and fear would spread across the nation, marginalising an already ostracised community. Yet, out of this terror would come tenderness and 30 years later, the long road to gay equality would climax with the passing of same sex marriage. 
 
Paul Flynn charts this astonishing pop cultural and societal U-turn via the cultural milestones that effected change—from Manchester’s self-selection as Britain’s gay capital to the real-time romance of Elton John and David Furnish’s eventual marriage. Including candid interviews from major protagonists, such as Kylie, Russell T Davies, Will Young, Holly Johnson and Lord Chris Smith, as well as the relative unknowns crucial to the gay community, we see how an unlikely group of bedfellows fought for equality both front of stage and in the wings. 
 
This is the story of Britain’s brothers, cousins and sons. Sometimes it is the story of their fathers and husbands. It is one of public outrage and personal loss, the (not always legal) highs and the desperate lows, and the final collective victory as gay men were final recognised, as Good As You.

Good As You

From Prejudice to Pride – 30 Years of Gay Britain

Madeleine Vibert

Toni Maguire

'Lying in the prison of my bed, his dark silhouette closes in, a pillow in his hands. My throat tightens in fear…’ 
 
At the tender age of five, Madeleine was living a daily nightmare. In a dark, grey building on Jersey, she was just another orphan, defenceless and alone. She was also an easy target. 
 
Unbeknownst to the outside world, the care home manager was abusing her, using her like she was his toy. “Say nothing, no one will believe a nasty little kid like you,” he’d whisper. Terrified, Madeleine would keep quiet. And, worse still, the home was selling the children to men who would inflict on them the worst possible abuse. No one cared. 
 
This is Madeleine’s heart-breaking story and her fight to survive.

They Stole My Innocence

The shocking true story of a young girl abused in a Jersey care home

Harriet Salisbury

The Museum of London Group

London's East Enders are known for being a tough, humorous and lively lot. In the early 20th century, families crowded into single rooms, children played on the streets and neighbours' doors were never locked in case you needed an escape route from the police... 
 
World War 2 changed everything. During the Blitz, men set off for work never to return and rows of houses were reduced to rubble overnight. Yet the East Enders' ability to keep calm and carry on cemented their reputation for cheerful resilience. 
 
They say Hitler killed off the bugs but, along with the slums, the Blitz destroyed a way of life. After the war families were scattered - some to estates on the edge of London, others to isolated high-rise blocks. The old East End communities were gone forever. 
 
Told by the residents themselves, The War on Our Doorstep is an eye-opening, moving and laugh-out-loud depiction of the history of London's East End and what it means to be an East Ender.

The War on our Doorstep

London's East End and how the Blitz Changed it Forever

Andrew Collins

Andrew Collins was born 37 years ago in Northampton. His parents never split up, in fact they rarely exchanged a cross word. No-one abused him. Nobody died. He got on well with his brother and sister and none of his friends drowned in a canal. He has never stayed overnight in a hospital and has no emotional scars from his upbringing, except a slight lingering resentment that Anita Barker once mocked the stabilisers on his bike. Where Did It All Go Right? is a jealous memoir written by someone who occasionally wishes life had dealt him a few more juicy marketable blows. The author delves back into his first 18 years in search of something - anything - that might have left him deeply and irreparably damaged. With tales of bikes, telly, sweets, good health, domestic harmony and happy holidays, Andrew aims to bring a little hope to all those out there living with the emotional after-effects of a really nice childhood. Andrew Collins kept a diary from the age of five, so he really can remember what he had for tea everyday and what he did at school, excerpts from his diary run throughout the book and it is this detail which makes his story so compelling.

Where Did It All Go Right?

Growing Up Normal in the 70s

Christopher Winn

We all love to be beside the seaside! 
 
Be it the crunch of the sand beneath your feet, or the promise of an unexplored rock pool that draws you to the sea, prepare to be whisked away by bestselling author Christopher Winn as you delve into the charming tales of England's coastline. 
 
Divided into eighteen chapters – one for each of the coastal counties in the UK – this book will entertain and illuminate, by casting new light on the many points of intrigue to be explored along 3000 miles of spectacularly diverse and historically rich English coast. 
 
Illustrated with beautiful black-and-white line drawings, by Mai Osawa, this book makes the perfect companion for any seaside outing. You’ll find yourself exclaiming again and again – I never knew that!

I Never Knew That About Coastal England

The Voice

Launched at the 1982 Notting Hill Carnival, The Voice newspaper captured and addressed a generation figuring out what it meant to be Black and British. Written for and by Black people, the newspaper shone a light on systematic injustices as well as celebrating Black Britain's success stories. 
 
From hard hitting news reports covering the murder of Stephen Lawrence to championing the likes of Sir Lewis Hamilton and Idris Elba, the newspaper has campaigned, celebrated and educated people for the last forty years. 
 
As well as celebrating amazing successes in sport, politics and the arts, The Voice documented everyday life in the community, from the emergence of a Black middle class in the '90s and the achievements of Black entrepreneurs to how different facets of the community were explored in contemporary music and literature. 
 
Since its small beginnings in Hackney, The Voice has also become a fantastic training ground for prominent journalists and figures including former politician Trevor Phillips, broadcaster Rageh Omaar and writer Afua Hirsch. Today, The Voice is Britain's longest running and only Black newspaper. 
 
Told through news reports, editorials and readers' personal letters, this emotive book documents the social history of Black Britain over the last four decades. Each chapter is illustrated with amazing newspaper pages from The Voice's extensive archives as well as iconic and dramatic front covers from 1982 to the present day. 
 
With a foreword from Sir Lenny Henry and written by former and current Voice journalists, this powerful book is a celebration of the ground-breaking paper which gave a voice to the voiceless.

40 years of Black British Lives

Estelle Paranque

A queen on the edge. 
 
Anne Boleyn has mesmerised the English public for centuries. Her tragic execution, orchestrated by her own husband, never ceases to intrigue. How did this courtier's daughter become the queen of England, and what was it that really tore apart this illustrious marriage, making her the whore of England, an abandoned woman executed on the scaffold? While many stories of Anne Boleyn's downfall have been told, few have truly traced the origins of her tragic fate. 
 
In Thorns, Lust and Glory, Estelle Paranque takes us back to where it all started: to France, where Anne learned the lessons that would set her on the path to becoming one of England's most infamous queens. At the court of the French king as a resourceful teenage girl, Anne's journey to infamy began, and this landmark biography explores the world that shaped her, and how these loyalties would leave her vulnerable, leading to her ruin at the court of Henry VIII. 
 
A fascinating new perspective on Tudor history's most enduring story, Thorns, Lust and Glory is an unmissable account of a queen on the edge.

Thorns, Lust and Glory

The betrayal of Anne Boleyn

Roderick Bailey

Imperial War Museum

'It wasn't until after he was safely back in the aircraft again that I heard that he'd actually been out on the wing to try to put the fire out ... Remember that we were flying at about 90 miles an hour at a height of 13,000 feet' 
Squadron Leader RP Widdowson on Sergeant James Ward, who earned his VC in 1941 
 
The Victoria Cross, awarded to the most courageous and determined servicemen, is the highest military decoration that can be bestowed. 
 
In Forgotten Voices: Victoria Cross, first-hand accounts of soldiers, sailors and airmen describe the incredible events that earned these extraordinary men the VC in the last century. 
 
Captivating and often humbling, these stories depict exceptional acts of bravery in unimaginable situations, of men who would say they were just doing their duty. 
 
Introduction by General Sir Richard Dannatt.

Forgotten Voices of the Victoria Cross

Maureen Wells

In 1941, as the Second World War raged on, 20-year-old Maureen Bolster began writing to her boyfriend Eric Wells. He was stationed in the Middle East while Maureen remained on the Home Front. Their letters would be the only communication between the young love-struck couple for four long years. 
 
Filled with warmth and humour, this charming collection of Maureen's letters describes her life working for the war effort back home. Uproarious incidents occur when she encounters lecherous GIs, immoral lodgers and irascible landladies in her work first as a billeting officer; then as a Wren courier, bravely delivering secret documents by trains, boats and planes; and finally as a Wren stoker. But all the while her thoughts are with her sweetheart Eric as he fights for his country in such far away places as Bahrian, Cairo, Mosul and Beirut. 
 
Funny, touching and romantic, Entertaining Eric tells the true story of a love that survived war and separation - against all odds.

Entertaining Eric

A Wartime Love Story

Patrick Touher

Sent to an Industrial School in Dublin at the age of seven, Patrick Touher was forced into a tough regime of education and training, prayer and punishment, strict discipline and fearful nights. No allowances were made for emotion, sentiment or boyhood worries, and anyone who disturbed the routine was severely punished. Artane demanded absolute obedience, absolute submission; Patrick's was an education in cruelty and fear. 
 
Patrick Touher spent eight long years in Artane Industrial School. Run by the Christian Brothers, the school has become synonymous with the widespread abuse of children in Ireland in the 1940s and 1950s which is currently the subject of an official inquiry. 
 
This is the inside story of a childhood lived in the most horrific of circumstances. A moving and powerful true account, Fear of the Collar bears testament to the courage and determination of the children that society forgot.

Fear of the Collar

The True Story of the Boy They Couldn't Break

Lyn Smith

Following the success of Forgotten Voices of the Great War, Lyn Smith visits the oral accounts preserved in the Imperial War Museum Sound Archive, to reveal the sheer complexity and horror of one of human history's darkest hours. 
 
The great majority of Holocaust survivors suffered considerable physical and psychological wounds, yet even in this dark time of human history, tales of faith, love and courage can be found. As well as revealing the story of the Holocaust as directly experienced by victims, these testimonies also illustrate how, even enduring the most harsh conditions, degrading treatment and suffering massive family losses, hope, the will to survive, and the human spirit still shine through.

Showing results for: ‘Steve Roud’

Filters

Category

Publication Date

Format

Imprint

Follow penguin

Follow ladybird

Follow puffin

Sign up to the Penguin newsletter