Actors & Entertainers

From the bestselling author of A Shed of One’s Own, a very funny memoir about being 60.

Marcus Berkmann’s funny, instantly recognisable description of middle-age in A Shed of One’s Own struck a chord and turned it into a bestseller. Now he realises he has entered a new age category: the Young-Old.

Well, the body continues to provide challenges (every group meeting seems to begin the dreaded ‘organ recital’), and the bank balance may not be doing too well either – but it’s certainly not all doom and gloom. You have come to terms with your deficiencies and eccentricities (although your partner may not); your Fear of Missing Out has become Joy at Staying In; you have embraced the notion of the Power Nap – and though you’re not going to embark on a course of ‘mindfulness’ you nevertheless recognise if living in the moment also includes walking to the local for a pint with an old friend then you’ll sign up for it after all…

You could call it ‘beerfulness’.

‘Berkmann is a fine observer of decline. He says what other men would rather not think about, let alone discuss. Another ten years pottering around in his shed and he’ll have cracked it’ Sunday Times

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A fresh portrait of the man behind James Bond, and his enduring impact, by an award-winning biographer with unprecedented access to the Fleming family papers.

Ian Fleming’s greatest creation, James Bond, has had an enormous and ongoing 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.

Ian’s childhood with his gifted brother Peter and his extraordinary mother set the pattern for his ambition to be ‘the complete man’, and he would strive for the means to achieve this ‘completeness’ all his life. Only a thriller writer for his last twelve years, his dramatic personal life and impressive career in Naval Intelligence put him at the heart of critical moments in world history, while also providing rich inspiration for his fiction.

Nicholas Shakespeare is one of the most gifted biographers working today. His talent for uncovering new material that casts fresh light on his subjects is fully evident in this masterful, definitive biography.

‘This is a marvellous book about Ian Fleming, but it’s also one of the most engaging portraits of a particular period of British history that I have read in a long time.’ Antonia Fraser

‘A book so buoyant and delicious that you feel it will be a friend for life.’ Telegraph

The perfect Christmas gift for fans of James Bond and British history.

*A Financial Times and Spectator Book of the Year*

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Life is not a problem to be solved, but a reality to be experienced.

Let Jay Blades’ words of wisdom – gleaned from his own triumphs over adversity – help you to find your best path through life. Filled with characteristic warmth and humour, Jay talks about the life lessons that have helped him to find positivity and growth, no matter what he’s found himself facing.

Jay shares not only his adventures and escapades but also the way they have shaped his outlook and helped him to live life to the fullest. His insight and advice give you everything you need to be able to reframe your own circumstances and make the best of them.

It’s very easy to be passive in life and just do what you know. But, believe me, you’ll be a lot more excited every day if you shape your own future.

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‘It does everything you’d expect of a masterpiece – and it is one’ Sunday Express

‘Hums and crackles with delicious unease’ Independent

‘Captivating’ The Sunday Times

‘An absorbing thriller’ Mail on Sunday

NO ONE HAS EVER ESCAPED FROM THE INSTITUTE.

Luke Ellis, a super-smart twelve-year-old with an exceptional gift, is the latest in a long line of kids abducted and taken to a secret government facility, hidden deep in the forest in Maine.

Here, kids with special talents – telekinesis and telepathy – like Luke’s new friends Kalisha, Nick and Iris, are subjected to a series of experiments.

There seems to be no hope of escape. Until Luke teams up with an even younger boy whose powers of telepathy are off the scale.

Meanwhile, far away in a small town in South Carolina, former cop Tim Jamieson, looking for the quiet life, has taken a job working for the local sheriff. He doesn’t know he’s about to take on the biggest case of his career . . .

THERE’S ONLY ONE WAY OUT.

‘An epic tale of childhood betrayal and hope regained… an immersive tale full of suspense and thrills that will keep readers up late at night racing towards a heartbreaking yet glorious finale… a dazzling achievement’ – Daily Express

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Get up close and personal with Big John Fury, Gypsy Warrior and the inspiration and driving force behind boxing champion Tyson Fury.

If you’re six foot three like me, twenty stone, and you like to stand up for yourself, you’re gonna get into trouble, aren’t ya? If you’ve got Fury DNA, you’re not shy of a fight. I’ll have a fight with anybody. Win, lose or draw. I’m out there, shirt off, done and dusted. I’m a traveller, a bare knuckle boxer and my life has been anything but ordinary. Now I’m setting the record straight.

From Netflix’s At Home With The Furys this is the Gypsy Warrior, unfiltered and in his own words. When Fury Takes Over is the insider story of the Fury family, from Tyson and Paris to Tommy and Molly-Mae, and an honest and unforgettable look at the Gyspy way of life.

‘MY DAD IS TRULY A MAN AMONGST MEN’ – TYSON FURY

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‘These are probably the toughest times we have faced in many decades, and we all have to find within us the strength and resilience to get through and to find happiness and love in our futures, whatever life throws at us.’

Kate Garraway has had to learn how to adapt ever since her husband Derek began his fight against the devastating impact of Covid, a condition that has left him needing 24-hour care at home and long spells in hospital. Every day brings uncertainty and new challenges to test Kate and her family’s resolve.

In The Strength of Love, Kate explores issues that resonate with so many of us. She looks at the impact of trauma as well as the importance of resilience, adaptability, curiosity and positivity when recovering from it. She talks about identity, purpose, how to embrace uncertainty and take back control of our lives. Through her and Derek’s story, she provides comfort and wisdom that will help anyone who has ever felt desperate, lonely or experienced profound loss, or who is fearful about what the future holds.

Despite all that she and her family have had to endure, Kate shows us that love truly is the most powerful and resilient emotion of all.

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Foreword by Sandy Toksvig | WATERSTONES’ BEST BOOKS OF 2023: ENTERTAINMENT

‘Give this book to everyone you know – NOW!’ Miriam Margolyes
‘This is a joyous, uplifting book’ Observer
‘He was so funny and such fun and here he is again in all his rib-tickling glory’ Gyles Brandreth

‘I don’t know how long I’ve got left . I don’t even buy green bananas anymore’

When the legendary comedian Barry Cryer died in January 2022, there was a vast outpouring of grief, appreciation and anecdotes – from the general public and fellow comics alike. Now, his son, Bob, is doing what Barry’s humility did not allow: revealing the story of the man behind the jokes.

This book is an ode both to Barry’s incredible life and to the lessons he so generously imparted on the art of comedy during his sixty-year career. Stretching from the music halls of the fifties, via working alongside everyone from Morecambe and Wise to Kenny Everett and David Frost, and into more recent times as a stalwart of Radio 4’s long-running I’m Sorry I Haven’t a Clue, where he worked with Rob Brydon and David Mitchell among many others, this book is a hugely entertaining insight into the life of a true comedy legend. Bob also shares a range of exclusive material unique to the Cryer family – including family photos, memorabilia, oral recordings, interviews with friends and colleagues (among them Michael Palin and Eric Idle) – as well as Bob’s own personal reflections on living and working with a comedy icon.

Laced with candour, warmth and filled with his trademark humour, Barry Cryer: Same Time Tomorrow? is not just a wonderfully witty and affectionate biography of a father by a son, but a heartwarming insight into a vanishing era of comedy.

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THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER

The intimate and uplifting memoir from one of Britain’s most loved singers – this is Alfie, off stage.

Bringing his characteristic sense of cheeky humour to the page, in this heartfelt book Alfie describes for the first time the highs and lows of over a decade singing and performing across the world. From personal dinners with Queen Elizabeth II and following in the steps of King of Rock ‘n’ Roll Elvis in Vegas to mischievous antics with Michael Ball, Alfie’s book takes us backstage to witness his brilliant career memories.

But this book is also a heartfelt insight to Alfie’s unmasked truth for the first time ever. His unflinching honesty reveals not only the success stories, but also the pressures and how, through challenging times, he learned more about himself than he ever thought possible.

Laying bare the events that have shaped Alfie into the performer he is today, Face the Music demonstrates to us all that it’s not our mistakes that define us – but instead, how we choose to come back from them.

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Take a journey to Château-de-la-Motte Husson in the spellbinding memoir from Sunday Times bestselling authors, Dick and Angel Strawbridge.

Dick and Angel recount the newest and biggest challenges they faced on the journey to transforming their once derelict and abandoned château in France’s Pays de la Loire into a thriving family home and sustainable business.

When the Covid-19 pandemic engulfs the world, the château faces a new challenge and the Strawbridges must find ways to adapt in order to keep their dream life in France alive. From the cancellation of the wedding season to finding new ways to complete renovations, living in an isolated bubble whilst continuing to film their TV series through to life after the pandemic, this is Dick and Angel at their most honest and heartfelt, revealing many details never seen on TV.

As entertaining, warm and irresistible as ever, Join Dick and Angel on their remarkable journey to find their family’s forever home.

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‘The most life-affirming, joyful read of the year’ – Sunday Times

‘Winningly heartfelt’ – The Guardian

‘A triumph’ – Daily Mail

Bob Mortimer’s life was trundling along happily until suddenly in 2015 he was diagnosed with a heart condition that required immediate surgery and forced him to cancel an upcoming tour. The episode unnerved him, but forced him to reflect on his life so far. This is the framework for his hilarious and moving memoir, And Away…

Although his childhood in Middlesbrough was normal on the surface, it was tinged by the loss of his dad, and his own various misadventures (now infamous from his appearances on Would I Lie to You?), from burning down the family home to starting a short-lived punk band called Dog Dirt. As an adult, he trained as a solicitor and moved to London. Though he was doing pretty well (the South London Press once crowned him ‘The Cockroach King’ after a successful verdict), a chance encounter in a pub in the 1980s with a young comedian going by the name Vic Reeves set his life on a different track. And now, six years on, the heart condition that once threatened his career has instead led to new success on BBC2’s Gone Fishing.

Warm, profound, and irrepressibly funny, And Away… is Bob’s full life story (with a few lies thrown in for good measure.)

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What Goes on Tour, Stays on Tour…Until Now!

As a cricketer, broadcaster and celebrity jungle-dweller, Phil Tufnell has travelled the world far and wide. From the great cricket tours of Australia and South Africa to his equally memorable jaunts to Benidorm and Blackpool, Phil has spent much of his life living out of a suitcase, meeting a host of colourful and memorable characters along the way.

The Tourist takes you out on the road, into the dressing room and behind the scenes of the commentary box to reveal just what really happens on Tour. Did Phil once push a baby grand piano down the stairs of a plush hotel? Did he accidentally eat a rat? Was he blamed for England being bowled out for 46 against the West Indies without even being in the team?

There’s only one way to find out…

It’s time to take a hilarious trip across the world with one of our most treasured sports personalities.

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Two comedy greats talk life, friendship and the joys of fishing…

Bob Mortimer and Paul Whitehouse have been friends for 30 years, but when life intervened, what was once a joyous and spontaneous friendship dwindled to the odd phone call or occasional catch up. Then, Glory Be! They were both diagnosed with heart disease and realised that time is short. They’d better spend it fishing…

So they dusted off their kits, chucked on their waders and ventured into the achingly beautiful British countryside to fish, rediscover the joys of their friendship and ruminate on some of life’s most profound questions, such as: How did we get so old? Where are all the fish? What are your favourite pocket meats? What should we do if we find a corpse?

Following the success of the BBC’s Mortimer & Whitehouse: Gone Fishing series, this wonderful book by two lifelong friends is a love letter to the joys of angling, the thrill of the catch and the virtue of having a right daft laff with your mates. On the fish, the equipment, the food, and the locations, Gone Fishing is the perfect book for fans of Bob Mortimer, Paul Whitehouse and for anyone who wants to read a brilliantly written and endlessly funny joint memoir on life, friendship and joys of fishing.

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GET EXTRA TWATTY THIS CHRISTMAS WITH THE PERFECT STOCKING FILLER AND DIVE BEHIND THE SCENES OF A LEGEND IN BRITISH COMEDY!

When I was younger I wanted to be an interesting, sophisticated, semi-heroic, multi-layered person.

BUT.

That kind of perfect is impossible. Being an actual twat is much more the real me. Sorry to boast, but I am a champion twat.

In The Twat Files I will tell you about all the times I’ve been a total and utter twat. The moments where I’ve misunderstood stuff and messed up. In my life these have been key because:

Mistakes tell us about ourselves.
Mistakes tell us about others.
Mistakes are hilarious.
Mistakes expose our flaws.
Mistakes show us ourselves honestly.
Mistakes are gloriously human.

My hope is that these stories might fire up yer engines to remind you of just what a massive twat you also are.

Let’s celebrate and revel in this most delightful of traits together.

That would be perfectly twatty.

‘This woman is a national treasure’ Mail on Sunday

‘Dawn French is a wonderful writer’ Daily Mail

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Foreword by Ben Shephard

‘Everyone loves Kammy . . . Full of humour and endless blunders’ – The Times
‘What a man, what a life, what a story, and what a great read’ – Paddy McGuinness

Presenter, commentator, (sometimes masked) singer, footballer, manager and campaigner, Kammy has done it all. His irrepressible enthusiasm – and a couple of legendary gaffes on Sky Sports – have seen him become broadcasting royalty.

Now Kammy reveals all in this funny and moving autobiography. What happens when you double cross José Mourinho? What it’s like to play with Vinnie Jones? Who comes off better: Kammy or a rampaging gorilla? How did Kammy end up releasing his own top-ten record? What’s the real story behind his infamous line, ‘I don’t know, Jeff!’?

But despite the crazy tales, it hasn’t all been plain sailing. Kammy had a tough upbringing, faced racism during his playing career and has, in recent years, dealt with a rare brain condition – apraxia – that has affected his speech and seen him say goodbye to Sky Sports. Relating his battle against the condition, Kammy shows how he’s met every challenge with courage, determination and his infectious smile.

Packed with hilarious stories and featuring a cast of famous names, from Elton John to Channing Tatum, this is a book about friendship, courage and why it’s always important to have a good laugh.

‘A talented (and daft) lad from the Boro who has entertained the nation for decades, on and off the pitch. So get the tissues ready – this book will make you laugh and cry in equal measure’ – Steph McGovern

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***Order now to secure the limited Collector’s Edition!***

Featuring a silver foiled design underneath the dust jacket, this special edition is exclusive to the first print run and available only while stock lasts.

THE INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER

Blockbusters, Baywatch … Mastermind, Moonlighting … Porridge, Parkinson … Peter Kay takes you on a journey into the wonders of TV –back to the days when Dusty Bin was a household name, Robin of Sherwood was a pin-up and the Brookside siege was the event of the year. For a young telly-loving Peter growing up in Bolton, TV meant Sunday bath nights with a black-and-white portable, the unbridled excitement of the new Christmas TV guide and his elderly neighbour’s inconvenient hearing problem.

Here, for the first time, he collects his TV memories and adventures together in this brilliant book. Join Peter as he finds success on the small screen, leaving his own unique footprint in the golden age of TV: from making tea at Granada Studios and marching along to ‘(Is This the Way to) Amarillo’ to hanging out in the Rovers Return, having run-ins with Bernard Manning and starring in possibly the worst Doctor Who episode of all time. You’ll go behind the scenes of the legendary Phoenix Nights, take The Road to Nowhere with Max & Paddy and discover how Peter created his BAFTA-winning performance in Car Share.

So sit back and enjoy a journey through the wonderful world of television. Endearing, sidesplittingly funny and utterly unforgettable – T.V. sees Peter Kay at his vivid, nostalgic and hilarious best.

Peter Kay’s book ‘T.V.’ was a No.2 Sunday Times bestseller w/c 25-09-2023.

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