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

Billy Crystal

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER 
 
"A book with a thousand laughs entwined with unknown stories about some of the most popular movies of the past decades." --Steve Martin 
 
"This book is kick-ass funny and truly unique. A Hollywood autobiography with only one wife, no rehab, a loving family and loyal friends." --Robin Williams 
 
"Billy Crystal is a national treasure. Thank God he wrote this hilarious and emotional book because now I don't have to and I'll still have something personal to give everyone at Christmas." --Bette Midler 
 
 
 
In this book Billy Crystal, currently starring in the new TV show THE COMEDIANS as an aging comic, gives a hilarious and heartfelt account of what it's REALLY like to get older. 
 
Billy Crystal is turning 65, and he’s not happy about it. With his trademark wit and heart, he outlines the absurdities and challenges that come with growing old, from insomnia to memory loss to leaving dinners with half your meal on your shirt. 
 
He also looks back at the most powerful and memorable moments of his long and storied life, from entertaining his relatives as a kid in Long Beach, Long Island, his years doing stand-up in the Village, up through his legendary stint at Saturday Night Live, When Harry Met Sally, and his long run as host of the Academy Awards. Readers get a front-row seat to his one-day career with the New York Yankees, his love affair with Sophia Loren, and his enduring friendships with several of his idols, including Mickey Mantle and Muhammad Ali. 
 
He lends a light touch to more serious topics like religion (“the aging friends I know have turned to the Holy Trinity: Advil, bourbon, and Prozac”), grandparenting, and, of course, dentistry. As wise and poignant as they are funny, Crystal’s reflections are an unforgettable look at an extraordinary life well lived.

Still Foolin' 'Em

Where I've Been, Where I'm Going, and Where the Hell Are My Keys?

Henry Rollins

'I believe that one defines oneself by re-invention. To not be like yourparents. To not be like your friends. To be yourself. To cut yourself out of stone.' 
Using his trademark wit, insight and verve, hardcore punk rock icon Henry Rollins interviews Jerry Lee Lewis, John Lee Hooker and Isaac Hayes, includes articles on Roky Erickson and David Lee Roth and reproduces his 1991 Lollapalooza tour journals. 
 
.

Do I Come Here Often?

David Kwong

David Kwong is the go-to consultant for Hollywood’s biggest illusion-heavy projects, including the hit films Now You See Me, The Imitation Game and Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation. In Spellbound he reveals how to bridge the gap between perception and reality to increase your powers of persuasion and influence. 
 
David Kwong has astounded large crowds, from CEOs to TED talk audiences to thousands of other hyper-rational people, making them see, believe and even remember what he wants them to. Illusion is an ancient art that centres on control: commanding a room, building anticipation, and appearing to work wonders. 
 
Illusion works because the human brain is wired to fill the gap between seeing and believing. Surprisingly, these are the tools used by top leaders like Steve Jobs and Richard Branson; masters of control and command who understand how to sway opinions and achieve goals. Spellbound shows us that illusions are more than just a set of tricks; it is a trainable craft that holds the principles of winning over an audience, which can be applied to every aspect of life. 
 
Through years of practice, research and learning (including a Harvard degree in the history of magic), David discovered the seven fundamental principles of illusion, like how to use the space between seeing and believing, shape narratives and command your audience by giving them agency. 
 
Packed with amazing stories and insights, Spellbound gives you a fresh and engaging way to sell your idea, production or skills to stand out from the crowd.

Spellbound

The Seven Magic Techniques of Influence, Persuasion and Success

Richard Witts

Nico was revered as ‘the most beautiful creature who ever lived’. She was Andy Warhol’s femme fatale and the High Preistess of Weird, yet few knew her real name or her wretched origins. When she called herself ‘a Nazi anarchist junkie’, they thought she was joking. 
 
Bob Dylan wrote a song about her, Jim Morrison a poem, Jean Baudrillard an essay, Andy Warhol a film, Ernest Hemingway a story – yet she fought against the idolatry of men to assert her independence as a composer of dissident songs. 
 
Nico’s contribution as an artist (17 films and 7 LPs) was smothered by gossip of her alleged affairs with men and women, whether Jimi Hendrix or Jeanne Moreau, Brian Jones of the Rolling Stones or Coco Chanel. 
She drifted through society like a phantom. Each era celebrated a different Nico – the top covergirl of the Fifties, the Siren of the Sixties (as The Times acclaimed her), the Moon Goddess of the Seventies, and the High Priestess of Punk when rock stars like Siouxsie Sioux and Pattie Smith acknowledged her pre-eminence. Ironically, they did so at the lowest point in her life. For behind the Garbo-esque veneer lived a lonely woman trying to stand autonomous in a fast-changing world, seeking to survive her heroin addiction and to cope with her tormented mother and her troubled son, his existence denied by his film-star father. 
 
In this pioneer biography, which Nico asked the author to write shortly before her outlandish death in 1988, Richard Witts uncovers the reasons for her subterfuge, and examines the facts surrounding her encounters with terrorist Andreas Baader, the Black Panthers, and the Society for Cutting Up Men. Exclusive contributions from artists such as Jackson Browne, Iggy Pop, Viva, John Cale, David Bailey, Siouxsie Sioux – and many others including her relatives, friends and enemies – make this the definitive biography of an icon who was not only a testament to an era but hitherto unrecognised influence on popular music and style.

Nico: Life And Lies Of An Icon

Richard Topping

Have you ever wanted to be a lumberjack? Had trouble with a dead parrot? Or gone for a silly walk? 
 
Combining outrageous humour, unbridled creativity and surreal animation, John Cleese, Michael Palin, Graham Chapman, Terry Gilliam, Terry Jones and Eric Idle entertained millions and inspired generations of future comedians. Including all Monty Python material ever produced, from the Flying Circus to the Life of Brian to Spamalot! with biographies, programme guides and a filmography, this is a must-have plethora of Pythonism and a fitting tribute to comedic pioneers.

Monty Python

From the Flying Circus to Spamalot

M Middles

FACTORY RECORDS' REPUTATION AND FORTUNE WERE FOUNDED ON TWO BANDS -JOY DIVISION AND NEW ORDER - AND ONE SINGLE-MINDED AND STUBBORN PERSONALITY: ITS MEDIA-FRIENDLY COMPANY DIRECTOR ANTHONY H. WILSON. AT THE HEIGHT OF IT'S SUCCESS IN THE LATE 1980S, THE COMPANY REIGNED OVER THE MANCHESTER RAVE SCENE, RAN IT'S OWN CLUB, THE HACIENDA, AND HAD A STRING OF HIT RECORDS AROUND THE WORLD. BY 1992 THE BACK CATALOGUE HAD BEEN SOLD OFF, NEW ORDER AND HAPPY MONDAYS WERE IN DISARRAY, AND THE HACIENDA WAS SHUT DOWN BY THE POLICE. SINCE THEN THE STORY OF FACTORY RECORDS HAS BECOME THE STUFF OF MYTHS AND LEGENDS. A MAJOR NEW BRITISH FILM, TWENTY FOUR HOUR PARTY PEOPLE, REVISITS THE HEYDAY OF THE HACIENDA, AND STARS STEVE COOGAN AS ANTHONY H. WILSON ALONGSIDE MANY OF THE ARTISTS AND PERSONALITIES WHO WERE AROUND AT THE TIME. THE FILM IS RELEASED IN MARCH 2002. FROM JOY DIVISION TO NEW ORDER, ACCLAIMED ON IT'S ORIGINAL PUBLICATION IN 1996, TELLS THE REAL STORY OF FACTORY'S SPECTACULAR HISTORY. DRAWING ON EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEWS WITH THE MAJOR PLAYERS, MICK MIDDLES PROVIDES A TIMELY AND FACINATING LOOK AT THE UNIQUE PERSONALITIES AND MESSY REALITY BEHIND ONE OF THE UK'S MOST INFLUENTIAL AND (AT ONE TIME ) COMMERCIALLY SUCCESSFUL INDEPENDENT RECORD COMPANIES.

From Joy Division To New Order

Cicely Berry

Voice and the Actor is the first classic work by Cicely Berry, Voice Director of the Royal Shakespear Company and world-famous voice teacher. Encapsulating her renowned method of teaching voice production, the exercises in this straightforward, no-nonsense guide will develop relaxation, breathing and muscular control - without which no actor or speaker can achieve their full potential. 
 
Illustrated with passages used in Cicely Berry's own teaching, Voice and the Actor is the essential first step towards speaking a text with truth and meaning. Inspiring and practical, her words will be a revelation for beginner and professional alike.

Voice And The Actor

Martin Roach

From Abracadabra by the Steve Miller Band to Zoom by ELO, this indispensable, innovatively designed book celebrates fifty years of British album charts, telling you everything you could possibly want to know about every album to reach the Top 100. With new feature material covering a huge range of areas, bands and history, it's an essential part of any serious music fan's collection. 
 
The Virgin Book of British Hit Albums covers everything, from the classics (Sgt Pepper, Nevermind, The Dark Side of the Moon) to the dodgy (Spiceworld, Seriously Orchestra) and the downright bizarre (Smurfs Go Pop!, Seventies Dinner Party). 
 
Where else are you going to find out that: 
 
Bridge over Troubled Water spent 307 weeks in the charts 
Pavarotti has topped the album charts - twice 
Lily Allen went triple-platinum in 2006 with Alright, Still 
Oasis sold 356,000 copies of Be Here Now in one day alone 
Both Gary Glitter and Mariah Carey released an album called Glitter 
Donny Osmond has never made it to No. 1 in the album charts

The Virgin Book of British Hit Albums

Using his trademark wit, insight and verve, icon Henry Rollins shares journals from his gruelling world tours of 1997 and 1998, as well as a record of the fulfilment of his longstanding dream to journey through Africa. He takes us on a rollercoaster of highs and lows, frustrations and exhilaration - from roving gangs of baboons in Kenya to haggling with immigration officials in Madagascar and his thoughts on meeting his childhood heroes, Black Sabbath - and finds a way to make his unique experiences accessible and meaningful to us all.

Smile, You're Travelling

Lucy Ellis

Bryony Sutherland

From her BAFTA-winning television work, such as My Beautiful Son, to her big screen debut alongside Michael Caine in Educating Rita, her starring in Billy Elliot (both of which earned her Oscar nominations) and her portrayal of Mrs Weasley in the Harry Potter films, Julie Walters has worked with some of the greatest and most diverse actors and directors in the world today. In December 2005, at the British Comedy Awards, Walters - alongside longtime friend and television comedy partner Victoria Wood - picked up the Outstanding Contribution to Comedy Award. 
Raised in a strict Catholic family in working class Birmingham, Julie Walters abandoned a nursing course to study drama at Manchester Polytechnic and went on to join the Liverpool Everyman Theatre where she cut her teeth as an actress. Over the next decade, she experienced three marriage proposals, two long-term romances and a period of heavy drinking. At the end of 1984 she met sociology student Grant Roffey and had a daughter Maisie, who was traically diagnosed with luekaemia and had to undergo years of painful chemotherapy. 
the authors have interviewed friends, teachers and colleagues to skilfully compile the first-ever biography of one of Britain's finest and best-loved actresses.

Julie Walters

Seriously Funny - An Unauthorised Biography

Cicely Berry, Voice Director of the Royal Shakespeare Company, is world-famous for her voice teaching. The Actor and the Text is her classic book, distilled from years of working with actors of the highest calibre.

The Actor And The Text

Barry Cryer

A collection of hilarious stories and eye-popping anecdotes from the nation's best-loved comedian 
 
Barry Cryer is one of the most respected and admired writers and performers of his time. In a career spanning forty years, Barry has worked alongside the greatest producers and performers in show business: Tommy Cooper, Humphrey Lyttelton, Morecambe and Wise, Willie Rushton, Peter Cook, Kenny Everett, Rory Bremner to name but a few - this book is a veritable Who's Who of comedy. 
 
From humble beginnings at the Windmill Theatre and Expresso Bongo, to The Frost Report, Call My Bluff and I'm Sorry I haven't a Clue, Barry recalls the good, the bad, and the downright ugly in his own inimitable style. 
 
'Barry Cryer ...an anecdote jukebox whose whole life is basically one big chatshow.' 
Guardian

The Chronicles of Hernia

Mike Barson

Mark Bedford

Chris Foreman

Graham McPherson

Cathal Smyth

Lee Thompson

Dan Woodgate

New Foreword by Irvine Welsh. 
 
In Before We Was We Madness tell us how they became them. A story of seven originals, whose collective graft, energy and talent took them from the sweaty depths of the Hope and Anchor's basement to the Top of the Pops studio. 
 
In their own words they each look back on shared adventures. Playing music together, riding freight trains, spraying graffiti and stealing records. Walking in one another's footsteps by day and rising up through the city's exploding pub music scene by night. Before We Was We is irreverent, funny and full of character. Just like them.

Before We Was We

The Making of Madness by Madness

Madness by Madness

Eddie Izzard

David Quantick

Eddie Izzard - action transvestite, boy racer and male tomboy - spent the 1990s conquering Britain. As the decade ended, he looked further afield. "Dressed To Kill", his stand-up tour, saw him transport his high heels and off-the-shoulder numbers to New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco, taking a natural comedian's delight in the differences separating the two sides of the Pond. In this book, he reflects on his birth in Yemen and his childhood in Northern Ireland, Wales and London, and muses on animals, male tomboys, street theatre, sex, crime, God, "The Great Escape", Bible stories starring Sean Connery and James Mason, and cats who dig for oil. He also reflects on the trials and tribulations of being an cross-dressing, surrealist comedian intent on making it in America.

Dress To Kill

Tony Curtis

Some Like it Hot is one of the most famous films of all time and is also the most profitable comedy in the history of film, not to mention one of the most beloved. It was voted number one funniest movie ever by the American Film Institute and as well as starring Hollywood legend Tony Curtis, it brought together the comedy talents of Marilyn Monroe, Jack Lemmon and Billy Wilder. It has contributed numerous quotes, styles and stories to Hollywood film lore and has remained the film that Curtis is still most asked about by its legions of fans. 
 
For the first time, Curtis will share the untold story behind the making of this legendary film. Told in his frank and inimitable voice, the book will reveal much about his working relationship with Jack Lemmon and the director Billy Wilder. It will explain why the film was changed from colour production to black and white and tell the story of its initially lukewarm reception. The book will also reveal much about Marilyn Monroe, including Curtis' romance with her, her alleged abortion and her conflict with Wilder. Finally, it will describe the film's ongoing impact on Curtis' life and will feature many exclusive never-before-seen photographs from his own collection.

Some Like It Hot

Me, Marilyn and the Movie

Spike Milligan

This tribute to one of the world's greatest ever entertainers is a must for all Milligan fans. For the first time, this diverse and thrilling selection of scripts, sketches, poems, prose and nonsense is available in paperback. 
 
The combination of quickfire wit and downright silliness is supported by contributions from some of showbusiness' greatest entertainers, including Barry Humphreys and Ronnie Scott.

A Celebration

Brian Jay Jones

For the first time ever—a comprehensive biography of one of the twentieth-century’s most innovative creative artists: the incomparable, irreplaceable Jim Henson. 
 
He was a gentle dreamer whose genial bearded visage was recognized around the world, but most people got to know him only through the iconic characters he created: Kermit the Frog, Bert and Ernie, Miss Piggy, Big Bird. The Muppets made Jim Henson a household name, but they were only part of his remarkable story. 
 
This extraordinary biography--written with the generous cooperation of the Henson family--covers the full arc of Henson’s all-too-brief life: from his childhood in Leland, Mississippi, through the years of burgeoning fame in Washington D.C., New York, and London, to the decade of international celebrity that preceded his untimely death at age fifty-three. Drawing on hundreds of hours of new interviews with Jim Henson's family, friends, and closest collaborators, as well as unprecedented access to private family and company archives--including never-before-seen interviews, business documents, and Henson’s private letters--Brian Jay Jones explores the creation of the Muppets, Henson’s contributions to Sesame Street and Saturday Night Live, and his nearly ten year campaign to bring The Muppet Show to television. Jones provides the imaginative context for Henson’s non-Muppet projects, including the richly imagined worlds of The Dark Crystal and Labyrinth—as well as fascinating misfires like Henson’s dream of opening an inflatable psychedelic nightclub or of staging an elaborate, all-puppet Broadway show. 
 
An uncommonly intimate portrait, Jim Henson captures all the facets of this American original: the master craftsman who revolutionized the presentation of puppets on television, the savvy businessman whose deal making prowess won him a reputation as “the new Walt Disney,” and the creative team leader whose collaborative ethos earned him the undying loyalty of everyone who worked for him. Here also is insight into Henson’s intensely private personal life: his Christian Science upbringing; his love of fast cars, high-stakes gambling, and expensive art; and his weakness for women. Though an optimist by nature, Henson was haunted by the notion that he would not have time to do all the things he wanted to do in life—a fear that his heartbreaking final hours would prove all too well-founded. 
 
An up-close look at the charmed life of a legend, Jim Henson gives the full measure to a man whose joyful genius transcended age, language, geography, and culture—and continues to beguile audiences worldwide.

Jim Henson

The Biography

Eric Sykes

Eric Sykes is one of Britain's creative comedy geniuses combining personal warmth, superbly observed written and performed comedy and a deeply intimate understanding of what a viewing audience wants. Here he has assembled a comedy hall of fame for those who have inspired, entertained and, most of all, amused him. 
 
Including tributes to comedy greats Tommy Cooper, Les Dawson, Ken Dodd, Spike Milligan, Peter Sellers and many, many more, this is a beautiful and personal testimony to the wonderful characters who have stimulated Eric's life-long love affair with laughter.

Eric Sykes' Comedy Heroes

Francesca Martinez

If you grow up in a world where wrinkles are practically illegal, going bald is cause for a mental breakdown, and women over size zero are encouraged to shoot themselves (immediately), what the hell do you do if you’re, gasp … DISABLED? 
Whatever body you’re born into, the pressure to be normal is everywhere. But have you ever met a normal person? What do they look like? Where do they live? What do they eat for breakfast? 
And what the **** does normal mean anyway? 
This is the award-winning wobbly comedian Francesca Martinez’s funny, personal, and universal story of how she learned to stick two shaky fingers up to the crazy expectations of a world obsessed with being ‘normal’.

What the **** is Normal?!

Empire Magazine

From the team who brought you The Empire Film Guide, here are all the obscure, indecent and downright bizarre movie facts and figures that were not considered sensible for a practical film guide. 
 
Discover which country translated GI Jane as Satan Female Soldier, which Hollywood heartthrob is the lead singer of 30 Odd Foot of Grunts, and which country takes a bag of toasted leaf cutter ants to the cinema instead of popcorn! 
 
The Schott's Miscellany of movies, packed full of movie facts, figures and lists, as well as explanations of filmmaking terminology and a "shot miscellany" - a list of all the various camera shots. You will soon know your Oscar Hosts from your Monty Python French insults, and never be short of small talk again!

Empire Movie Miscellany

Instant Film Buff Status Guaranteed

Vic Reeves

Vic Reeves' vivid, enchanting, and utterly hilarious childhood memoir is a comic masterpiece. 
 
Before there was Vic Reeves, there was a boy called James Moir who was much the same as any other lad.Obsessed with owning a pet crow, a master at writing his name and terrified of his father's immense moustache. Growing up in Yorkshire and then CountyDurham, the boy who would be Reeves somehow managed to escape the attentions of 'Randy Mandy' and get a crash course in pig castration, before having encounters with Jimi Hendrix and the Yorkshire Ripper. 
 
Peopled with weird and wonderful characters, Vic Reeves' memoir is authentic, witty and inventive, and as unique as you'd expect from one of Britain's most exceptional comedy talents.

Me Moir - Volume One

Kelly Osbourne

This no-holds-barred account of Kelly Obsourne's upbringing is as shocking as it is disarmingly funny. From stories about her father's alcoholism to pushing over portaloos on tour, Kelly unflinchingly deals with the extraordinary experiences that have made up her life so far: 
 
'Kelly Osbourne has written Fierce, a handbook for teenage girls/memoir of adolescence lived under very bright lights. After reading it, and her anecdotes about her mum's early experiments with home waxing, and her dad snipping off her thong, and Amy Winehouse complimenting her on her tits, and the confidence that comes with Vicodin, as well as the fact boxes with advice about bullying and hair straighteners, I like her very much.' Eva Wiseman, Observer

Fierce

Bob Bevan

Firmly established in the world of entertainment, The Cat's route to fame has been through corporate and sporting dinners. He grew up loving sport and perservered despite having only one eye and an almost total absence of natural ability. His reputation as a figure of fun and his readiness to laugh at his own failures have reaped rich rewards. 
How many of us have played football with Bobby Moore and George Best at Wembley, or played at Lord's, or written a poem teasing the Duke of Edinburgh for never recognising us? In Nearly Famous, The Cat writes hilariously of the many famous people he has worked with - everyone from Colin Cowdrey, Bobby Robson and Terry Venables to Eric Clapton, Rod Stewart, Billy Connolly, Eric Morcambe and Brian Johnston - and the highs and lows of that most serious of businesses: making people laugh.

Nearly Famous: Adventures of an After-Dinner Speaker

Meat Loaf

David Dalton

Meat Loaf's bizarre and spectacular life story is scarcely credible. After surviving an abusive childhood, during which he was almost murdered by his alcoholic father, he starred in one of the biggest stage and film musicals ever, then went on to record the third best-selling album of all time. 
 
To Hell and Back is the true story of a man who ran away from a cruel home life at 17 and starred in the legendary Rocky Horror Picture Show before turning to rock 'n' roll. His first album, Bat Out Of Hell, was considered so uncommercial by his first record label that they dropped him - only for it to go on to sell 20 million copies worldwide. He then spent the 1980s on the skids, with a severe drink and drugs problem and mounting money problems leading him to a nervous breakdown, before making a triumphant comeback with 1993's album Bat Out Of Hell II and colossal hit single 'I'd Do Anything For Love'. 
 
This is an extraordinary story and a classic rock autobiography.

To Hell And Back

An Autobiography

Liz Kaye

OMG. It's Chuck Bass and Nate Archibald from Gossip Girl in one book. 
 
We're all mad about the boys, but is it Ed Westwick's bad-guy allure that ticks your box, or Chace Crawford's pretty-boy looks? Or - naughty - both? Well, to help you decide, Gossip Boys, the unauthorised double biography of Chace and Ed, charts the lives of these hot young things, who are best friends both on the show and in real life. Brit-born Westwick has the edgy cool of his character, having fronted the indie band The Filthy Youth, and appearing in cult films such as Son of Rambow and Children of Men. Crawford meanwhile is the ultimate all-American idol, signed by the first talent agent who interviewed him and being named 'Summer's Hottest Bachelor' by People and winning the Teen Choice Award for 'Male Hottie'. 
 
The huge success of Gossip Girl has seen these actors become two of the biggest pin-ups around, and favourites of magazines like Grazia and teen TV programming such as T4. 
 
Now you can learn all about the boys: their early days, their flames old and new, their careers and the bromance that has made them scorching stars.

Gossip Boys

The double unauthorised biography of Ed Westwick and Chace Crawford

Mick Foster

Tony Allen

This is the combined life story of Mick Foster and Tony Allen, revealing how these most unlikely of stars toured the world and entered the record books. A charming narrative told with heaps of Celtic charm, it is filled with nostalgic reminiscences about growing up in rural Ireland in the 1950s and 60s, and spans the breadth of their long career, including appearing on Top of the Pops alongside Bob Geldof and being feted by Terry Wogan, and the extraordinary moment when they found themselves at the very top of the charts, beating Take That to the number-one slot.

After All These Years

Our Story

Rena Fruchter

Chevy Chase is a much-loved Hollywood star. His success as a writer and actor on Saturday Night Live in the 70s made him a household name. 
 
It had been a long, hard route to the top for Chevy. Behind the fame lay a childhood riddled with abuse. But his remarkable strength and determination helped him rise above it and find his talent as an actor, writer, comedian, and musician. 
 
Best known for his role in the National Lampoon Vacation series Chevy has starred in some of the greatest comedies of our time. His latest film, Funny Money, received critical acclaim at the Sarasota Film Festival. 
 
Now, for the first time, Chevy speaks openly and candidly about his career, his personal struggle with drugs, his friendship with three American Presidents, and his family life. 
 
Honest, funny and informative, this is the complex and fascinating world of Chevy Chase.

I'm Chevy Chase ... and You're Not

John Warburton

The Mondays were the band who had it all. Credited with a range of achievements, from creating Madchester and introducing indie kids to dance music to bringing ecstasy to Britain, they were the rock 'n' roll story that beggared belief. In Shaun they had an inspired gutter poet; in his sidekick Bez they had a cultural icon. 
 
Hallelujah is the story of how this hapless group of ruffians, thieves, thugs and dealers, prompted by boredom, drugs and a visit from the taxman, got their act back together after six long years and played a sell-out world tour. Along the way a man was set on fire, an orgy was staged, someone nearly drowned and every single band member got lost in Europe. There were guns, writs, jellyfish, fights, copious amounts of class As - and a skull on a stick. 
 
Former Daily Sport journalist John Warburton, Shaun's friend and confident, went along for the ride. He includes contributions from others who've witnessed the madness first hand, including Jo Whiley, Chris Moyles, Steve Lamacq and Fatboy Slim.

Hallelujah!

The extraordinary story of Shaun Ryder and Happy Mondays

Groucho Marx

'The temptation to write about yourself is irresistible, especially when you are prodded into it by a crafty publisher who has slyly baited you into doing it with a miserly advance of fifty dollars and a box of cheap cigars' - Groucho Marx 
 
Groucho Marx's autobiography is a rags-to-riches story with a difference. The most outrageous and voluble of the legendary Marx Brothers had a career that stretched from Vaudeville to gameshow, conquering Hollywood on the way. From the triumphs and disasters of a life spent in show business to his unconsummated loves, Groucho's story is told with humour and wit and in Groucho's own unique style. 
 
As TS Eliot said of him: 'The mind boggles'.

Groucho and Me

The Autobiography

Mark Clapham

Lance Parkin

Alias, the hit espionage TV series, mixes high-tech spy action, glamorous disguises, shocking plot twists and an ongoing family saga into one of the most clever and entertaining television shows in years. 
 
Secret agent Sydney Bristow thinks that the agency she works for, SD-6, is a branch of the CIA and that their aim is the safety of the country. When Sydney discovers that SD-6 is really a criminal organisation working as part of a global conspiracy, however, she becomes a double agent for the real CIA. So begins a dangerous life 
of secrets and deceptions in which Sydney is not only faced with the truth about SD-6, but with Other long-held secrets regarding her family. 
 
This essential unofficial guide to Alias covers each episode of the first two seasons in turn, exploring and evaluating them in informative and easy-to-read categories, analysing and explaining each aspect of the series' complex plotlines as well as decoding hidden clues within each episode. The motivations and actions of each character are discussed, along with the real-world context for Alias's espionage setting. Secret Identities is the completely up-to-date and indispensable guide to the world of Sydney Bristow and the secrets she uncovers.

Showing results for: ‘Steve Roud’

Filters

Category

Publication Date

Format

Imprint

Follow penguin

Follow ladybird

Follow puffin

Sign up to the Penguin newsletter