Showing titles in Entertainment & Celebrities

The wry, honest and often hilarious chronicles of a very brave and clever TV presenter, Arctic Explorer and general drawer of the Short Straw. Moving quickly on from the devastating crash that nearly killed him he ranges widely over his life and times: a visit to Glastonbury with James May reminds of him of his early years of playing in a band and how and why he never quite made it as a rock star.

When Kelvin and Liz Fletcher left their happy home in Oldham for a 120-acre farm in the Peak District, they were totally unaware of the surprises that lay in store. Come along for the ride as they navigate the Mishaps, like shearing sheep in a way that costs more than the price for the wool; the Lessons, such as never turn your back on a flock of sheep—or, put simply, ‘always close the gate!'—and the Adventures, going from self-professed ‘townies’ to farmhands overnight. In Fletchers on the Farm, childhood sweethearts Kelvin and Liz reflect on their history.

Born in 1957 in Deptford, south London, Danny's first job after dropping out of school at the age of 15 was in One Stop Records, a small record shop in London's West End, frequented by Elton John and Mick Jagger, a store rather like the one in High Fidelity.

If you've ever laughed your way through David Sedaris' cheerfully misanthropic stories, you might think you know what you're getting with Calypso. You'd be wrong. When he buys a beach house on the Carolina coast, Sedaris envisions long, relaxing vacations spent playing board games and lounging in the sun with those he loves most. And life at the Sea Section, as he names the vacation home, is exactly as idyllic as he imagined, except for one tiny, vexing realization: it's impossible to take a vacation from yourself.

Britain's national icon, Michael Parkinson reads his long-awaited autobiography. From prize-winning journalist to chat show king on a show voted one of the top ten British TV programmes of all time, Michael Parkinson's starry career spans over four decades. Now an international celebrity himself, the man from a humble but colourful Yorkshire mining family who can tease out the secrets of even the most reticent star guest, at last reveals his own story.

Born in the tough East End of Glasgow and married into one of the city's most notorious criminal families, Janey Godley's young life was far from ordinary. From the grim and far-from-swinging '60s, to the discos of the '70s, to the tidal wave of heroin addiction which engulfed Glasgow's East End during the '80s, Janey was witness to an extraordinary underworld - as well as religious sectarianism, abject poverty and a frightening family of in-laws. Throughout it all, her indomitable spirit - and her vivid sense of humour - kept her alive.

Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor were a Sixties supercharged couple in an era of supercharged couples. As a pairing they were fantasy figures, impossibly desirable. Liz supple and soft, in perfumes and furs - yet with something demonic and lethal about her. Dick, in turn, with his ravaged, handsome face, looked as though lit by silver moonlight - poised to turn into a wolf. Roger Lewis uses this glamorous and damaged pair as the starting point to tell the story of an age of excess.

Versace. The very name conjures up images of outrageous glamour and bold sexuality, opulence and daring. All of course true, but only half the story. Versace is also the legacy of a great creative genius from a poor, backward part of southern Italy who transformed the fashion world through his intuitive understanding of both women and how a changing culture influenced the way they wanted to dress. House of Versace shows how Gianni Versace, with his flamboyant sister Donatella at his side, combined his virtuosic talent and extraordinary ambition to help create celebrity culture.

The year 1972 saw the beginning of a five-year span in which Stevie Wonder released five groundbreaking, critically acclaimed albums, garnering him more than half a dozen Grammys and more than 10 million albums sold, securing his place as one of the most important American musicians and songwriters in history. For the first time, uncover the untold story of an extraordinary artistic journey that shaped the greatest creative era in popular music history.

Told with acclaimed New Yorker writer Ariel Levy, Brothers is seventy-year-old drummer Alex Van Halen’s love letter to his younger brother, Edward (maybe “Ed,” but never “Eddie”), written while still mourning his untimely death.

Rave pioneers whose sound also encompassed hip hop, punk and rock, The Prodigy arguably had as much influence on contemporary pop culture as the Sex Pistols and these extraordinary images from Leeroy's personal archives capture the wild energy, ecstasy and abandon from the moment they dropped their first hit 'Charly' through the three albums which became the ubiquitous soundtrack to the decade: Experience, Music for the Jilted Generation and Fat of the Land.

Who but Carol Burnett herself has the timing, talent, and wit to pull back the curtain on the Emmy Award-winning show that made television history for 11 glorious seasons? In Such Good Company delves into little-known stories of the guests, sketches, and antics that made the show legendary as well as some favorite tales too good not to relive again. Carol lays it all out for us, from the show's original conception to its evolution into one of the most beloved primetime programs of its generation.

For nearly four decades, David Sedaris has faithfully kept a diary in which he records his thoughts and observations on the odd and funny events he witnesses. Anyone who has attended a live Sedaris event knows that his diary readings are often among the most joyful parts of the evening. But never before have they been available in print or audio.

Victoria Wood was a true pioneer among entertainers, earning her the rightful place as a national treasure time and time again. So one of the greatest sadnesses following her death in 2016 was that she left the world without giving her own full account of her life, having never written her autobiography. Now, with complete and exclusive access to Victoria's extensive archive of personal and professional material, and with intimate interviews with her family and closest friends, Jasper Rees will finally tell her rich story in full.

Achieving a hit in every decade since the 1950s, Cliff Richard stands alone in pop history. Coming of age in 1950s London, he began his music career at Soho's legendary 2i's Cafe, and now he's approaching his 80th birthday with record sales of over 250 million and counting. Cliff looks back on his humble upbringing and how he went on to fulfil his wildest dreams by becoming a pop star and even a film star. He talks about finding Christianity, reflects on the ups and downs of life in the public eye and reveals how the false allegations against him changed his life forever.

Born in Swaziland in 1957, Richard E. Grant moved to the UK to pursue his acting career and has been a fixture on our screens since his breakout role in Withnail and I in 1987. When his beloved wife, Joan, died in 2021 after almost 40 years together, she set him a challenge: to find a pocketful of happiness in every day. The result is this book.

In Surrender, it’s Bono who picks up the pen, writing for the first time about his remarkable life and those he has shared it with. In his unique voice, Bono takes us from his early days growing up in Dublin, including the sudden loss of his mother when he was 14, to U2’s unlikely journey to become one of the world’s most influential rock bands, to his more than 20 years of activism dedicated to the fight against AIDS and extreme poverty.

Ian Fleming's greatest creation, James Bond, has had an enormous impact on our culture. What Bond represents about ideas of masculinity, the British national psyche, and global politics has shifted over time, as has the interpretation of the life of his author. But Fleming himself was more mysterious and subtle than anything he wrote. Nicholas Shakespeare is one of the most gifted biographers working today and his unprecedented access to the Fleming archives and his nose for a story make this a fresh and eye-opening picture of a man who lived his life in the shadow of his famous creation.

A sassy, frank, funny and inspirational autobiography, MOUTHY is the unfiltered, uncensored and unbelievable story of the girl you think you know from shows like TOWIE, There's Something About Megan, Celebrity Big Brother, Ex on the Beach and Britain's Got Talent. This is the story of what really goes on when the cameras stop rolling and the paparazzi have gone home, uncovering the truth behind the headlines - straight from the famous Megan McKenna mouth.

John and Paul were more than friends, collaborators or rivals in the sense we normally understand those terms. They were both exceptionally intense young men who had the fabric of their world ruptured at a young age. There have been millions of words written about The Beatles, but this is the first book to focus on what lay at the heart of this phenomenon: the alchemy of two young men. Ian Leslie explores this volatile, madly creative quasi-marriage and misunderstood story. The result is a wildly enjoyable biography, told through the songs, which will make us see and hear John and Paul afresh.