Two friends grow up in a North London Jewish suburb. David is bright, parent-pleasing and obviously destined for great things. But somehow he ends up earning peanuts in a Suffolk bookshop while his devious and wayward friend Jack, becomes rich and famous as a TV chat-show host.When Jack dies, his widow and publisher commission David to write his biography; after all, dependable David can be relied upon not to dish the dirt about the sex, the drugs and the women. David however soon ...

A liff is a familiar object or experience that English has no word for. Afterliff, its long-awaited sequel, corrects this disgraceful oversight by recycling the names found on signposts.This brilliant successor to Douglas Adams' and John Lloyd's 1983 classic The Meaning of Liff features over 900 essential new definitions, including:Anglesey n.Hypothetical object at which a lazy eye is looking.Badlesmeare n.

How did Robert Purcell, distinguished barrister and perfect specimen of the British Establishment, end up in prison? An intellectual giant but an emotional pygmy, Robert is a man struggling to come to terms with the forces that have brought him down, from the wife who wanted him to change, to the ex-girlfriend who came back to haunt him and the childhood bully who turned into an adult bully.Despite everything, Robert remains the same magnificently self-righteous man he always was, ...

For Richard and Sarah, leaving the rat-race of London for the sleepy village of Worth feels like a dream come true. But their new life isn’t quite as idyllic as it first seems. The cottage is tiny and the neighbours are excruciating. Soon they find themselves reverse-commuting back to London on the weekends, just to be with people they like. Then Catherine moves in next door. Smart, sophisticated, beautiful Catherine seems like the answer to their prayers. But will their new best friend tu...

Be disturbed, as you see the present reflected in the glass of an uneasy future…Enter ten darkly compelling futures in this stunning collection of full-cast radio dramas from some of the UK’s best writers, including Val McDermid, Anita Sullivan and Ed Harris. Starring Meera Syal, Tony Robinson, Gina McKee, Oliver Chris, Harriet Walter and more.From AI-controlled healthcare and genetic engineering to immersive virtual realities, ecological collapse, antibiot...

Miles Jupp stars as James Boswell, Dr Johnson's time-travelling biographer, with a host of top actors and comedians as his celebrity interviewees'Blisteringly funny... essential listening' Radio TimesBefore James Boswell penned a biography of his friend, Dr Johnson, they were both nobodies. But his Life of Samuel Johnson made them famous - so now Boswell's out to work his magic on other celebrities. Travelling thr...

From Douglas Adams (The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy) and John Lloyd (Blackadder, Spitting Image, QI), this is the 42nd anniversary edition of The Meaning of Liff. Revised, updated and ready to change your life.In life, there are hundreds of familiar experiences, feelings and objects for which no words exist, yet hundreds of strange words are idly loafing around on signposts, pointing at places. The Meaning of Li...

This ebook edition includes an exclusive commentary on the Witches of Discworld, written by Jacqueline Simpson, co-author of The Folklore of Discworld.A SHIVERING OF WORLDSDeep in the Chalk, something is stirring. The owls and the foxes can sense it, and Tiffany Aching feels it in her boots. An old enemy is gathering strength.This is a time of endings and beginnings, old friends and new, a blurring of edges and a shifting of power. Now Tiffany stands betwee...

NOW A MAJOR FILM STARRING DAME MAGGIE SMITH'The first book that ever made me laugh out loud' Adam Kay'Utter genius' Daily MailIn 1974, the homeless Miss Shepherd moved her broken down van into Alan Bennett's garden. Deeply eccentric and stubborn to her bones, Miss Shepherd was not an easy tenant. And Bennett, despite inviting her in the first place, was a reluctant landlord. And yet she lived there for fifte...

A hilarious compendium of all that's weird and wonderful about life in the British Isles - the eccentric, bizarre bureaucracy and outright oddity reported over the last year by the nation's newspapers, including: Guardian headline, 'Man with false leg hit with toilet lid.'; The Astrological Magazine, 'announces that it is to cease due to unforeseen circumstances.' Jack Crossley spent some 40 years in Fleet Street and has compiled this laugh-out-loud collection of anecdotes and strange goin...

*NEW NOVEL RESTLESS DOLLY MAUNDER SHORTLISTED FOR THE WOMEN’S PRIZE FOR FICTION 2024*FROM THE BOOKER PRIZE-SHORTLISTED AND WOMEN’S PRIZE-WINNING AUSTRALIAN NOVELISTKate Grenville's The Secret River was one of the most loved novels of 2006. Shortlisted for the Booker Prize and awarded the Commonwealth Writer's Prize, the story of William Thornhill and his journey from London...

Irish Genealogy Tips, Techniques and Tales makes a great addition to an Irish family researcher's reference library. The book contains Irish genealogy problem solving tips and techniques, to include: finding an ancestor's birthplace, deciphering illegible handwriting, translating Irish place names, working with transcription errors, and much more. Some Irish roots travel tips, Irish immigration patterns, children name customs, a "brick wall" case study, and a list of popular Irish genealog...