Engelska

<p>1974, Watford, and two teenagers, Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou (George Michael) and Andrew John Ridgeley, meet for the first time. It isn&apos;t football or fashion or girls that bring them together (actually, girls: yes). Instead, they soon discover that they are both mad about music. Together they set out to follow an impossible dream, rooted in their shared love of records, the artists that made them and the sheer joy of pop. They didn&apos;t know it then but they were taking their first steps towards forming Wham! - soon to become the biggest band in the world. Now, for the very first time, Andrew Ridgeley tells that story.</p>

George is the story of two lives - the private man and the public legend. Georgios Panayiotou was just eighteen when he decided to adopt the stage name of George Michael. Sometimes his two worlds would collide with shattering consequences. Bestselling biographer Sean Smith has gone back to the neighbourhoods of North London to trace the astonishing journey of a sensitive but determined boy who grew up to be one of the biggest British pop stars of all time. Along the way, he talks to those close to George, revealing the real man - funny, articulate, intelligent and generous spirited - who hid behind the powerful image he created. He reveals the complex relationship with his high-achieving Greek-Cypriot father; the unconditional love of his mother; his teenage relationships with girls; and his first tragic love affair with another man. George's career began falteringly with a schoolboy band, exploded with Wham! before he became a solo phenomenon. But at the height of his fame, the world seemed to turn against him. Smith describes his despair at losing the two people who mattered most, how he sought consolation in drugs, his notorious 'coming out' and how he ended up in jail. His health failed him and he died heartbreakingly alone on Christmas Day, 2016. Affectionate yet honest and moving, George is both a celebration of George Michael's music and a lasting tribute to a decent and much-loved man.

<p>'<b>An important historical record and a well-paced story in its own right, Great-Uncle Harry is also much more than that: a tremendous act of love.' <i>Guardian<br/>___________________________________</i></b><br/><br/>From the time, many years ago, when Michael Palin first heard that his grandfather had a brother, Harry, he was determined to find out more about him.<br/><br/>The quest that followed involved hundreds of hours of painstaking detective work. Michael dug out every bit of family gossip and correspondence he could. He studied every relevant official document. He tracked down what remained of his great-uncle Harry's diaries and letters, and pored over photographs of First World War battle scenes to see whether Harry appeared in any of them. He walked the route Harry took on that fatal, final day of his life amid the mud of northern France. And as he did so, a life that had previously existed in the shadows was revealed to him.<br/><br/><i>Great-Uncle Harry </i>is an utterly compelling account of an ordinary man who led an extraordinary life. A blend of biography, history, travelogue and personal memoir this is Michael Palin at his very finest.<br/>___________________________________________<br/>PRAISE FOR EREBUS:<br/><b>'Beyond terrific.</b> I didn't want it to end.' BILL BRYSON<br/>'<b>Magisterial </b>. . . Palin<b> brings energy, wit and humanity </b>to a story that has never ceased to tantalise people.' <i>THE TIMES</i><br/>'Everybody's talking about it . . . <b>A brilliant book.' </b>CHRIS EVANS<br/><b>'</b>I absolutely loved it: <b>I had to read it at one sitting</b>.' LORRAINE KELLY</p>

<p>'An entertaining first-hand account of pure rock 'n' roll madness.' <i>The Daily Telegraph</i><br/><br/>'Hundreds of exclusive photos and brilliant one-liners make for a sensational read.' <i>the Sun</i><br/><br/>'We are the biggest band in Britain of all time, ever. The funny thing is, all that fucking mouthing off three years ago about how we were going to be the biggest band in the world - we actually went and did it.' Noel Gallagher<br/><br/>Oasis are one of the biggest bands the world has ever seen. Here, in <i>Supersonic, </i>they tell the story of their beginnings from dive-bar hopefuls to global superstars. They themselves talk us through the pivotal moments in their phenomenal trajectory, from the day Noel Gallagher joined his brother Liam's band, through their first crucial five years culminating at their landmark gigs at Knebworth Park in 1996 - the pinnacle of their success.<br/><br/>With over thirty hours of interviews with Liam, Noel and those closest to them, this book documents in unprecedented depth and with their trademark candour and humour, the story behind one of the world's greatest bands, all told in their own words and fully illustrated with exclusive photographs and ephemera throughout.</p>

<p>Sinéad O&apos;Connor&apos;s voice and trademark shaved head made her famous by the age of twenty-one. Her recording of Prince&apos;s Nothing Compares 2 U made her a global icon. She outraged millions when she tore up a photograph of Pope John Paul II on American television. O&apos;Connor was unapologetic and impossible to ignore, calling out hypocrisy wherever she saw it. She has remained that way for three decades. Now, in Rememberings, O&apos;Connor tells her story - the heartache of growing up in a family falling apart; her early forays into the Dublin music scene; her adventures and misadventures in the world of sex, drugs and rock&apos;n&apos;roll; the fulfilment of being a mother; her ongoing spiritual quest - and through it all, her abiding passion for music.</p>

<p>Robbie Robertson's singular contributions to popular music have made him one of the most beloved songwriters and guitarists of his time. With songs like 'The Weight', 'The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down' and 'Up on Cripple Creek', he and his partners in the Band fashioned a music that has endured for decades, influencing countless musicians.<br/><br/>In this captivating memoir, written over five years of reflection, Robbie employs his unique storyteller's voice to weave together the journey that led him to some of the most pivotal events in music history. He recounts the adventures of his half-Jewish, half-Mohawk upbringing on the Six Nations Indian Reserve and on the gritty streets of Toronto; his odyssey at sixteen to the Mississippi Delta, the fountainhead of American music; the wild, early years on the road with rockabilly legend Ronnie Hawkins and the Hawks; his unexpected ties to the Cosa Nostra underworld; the gripping trial-by-fire of 'going electric' with Bob Dylan on his 1966 world tour and their ensuing celebrated collaborations; the formation of the Band and the forging of their unique sound, culminating with history's most famous farewell concert, brought to life for all time in Martin Scorsese's great movie <i>The Last Waltz</i>.<br/><br/>This is the story of a time and place - the moment when rock 'n' roll became life, when legends like Buddy Holly and Bo Diddley crisscrossed the circuit of clubs and roadhouses from Texas to Toronto, when the Beatles, Hendrix, the Stones and Warhol moved through the same streets and hotel rooms. It's the story of exciting change as the world tumbled through the '60s and early '70s and a generation came of age, built on music, love and freedom. Above all, it's the moving story of the profound friendship among five young men who together created a new kind of popular music<b>.</b><br/><br/><i>Testimony </i>is Robbie Robertson's story, lyrical and true, as only he could tell it.</p>

<p><b>'Just wonderful, so funny and charming. Sam Neill's lively, lovely book made me laugh out loud'</b> MERYL STREEP</p><p><br/><b><i>Dead Calm The Hunt for Red October The Piano Jurassic Park</i></b><br/><br/>For over forty years, Sam Neill's name has been a hallmark of quality. From enduring blockbusters to arthouse and cult classics, his work has taken him all over the world, working with Hollywood's greats.<br/><br/>In <i>Did I Ever Tell You This?</i> he invites us in, sharing stories from an extraordinary life with heaps of charm, honesty and a good-humoured appreciation for the absurd.<br/><br/><b>'Sam Neill is a legend, and in this magnificent book he shares his stories of family, friends and film' </b>LAURA DERN<br/><br/><b>'Charming. A transparently lovely man, with a life hectically well lived'</b> <i>Mail on Sunday</i><br/><br/><b>'A fabulously entertaining, insanely readable memoir'</b> STEPHEN FRY<br/><br/><b>'Really, really, really funny. There are some cracking stories</b>' LORRAINE KELLY<br/><br/><b>'I love this book. A real treat. Fantastic' </b>GRAHAM NORTON<br/></p>