Jean Cocteau and the Saint
May 20, 2018
These brilliant sketches show that, even to the surprise of ‘the Saint’ author Leslie Charteris, Jean Cocteau was a fully paid-up fan of Simon Templar. … More Jean Cocteau and the Saint
Category: Books
A year ago today: an extract from ‘Nothing Has Changed’
May 17, 2018
One year on, this is my diary account of the most extraordinary day. … More A year ago today: an extract from ‘Nothing Has Changed’
A visit to Talland House
May 7, 2018
It’s those steps. How many times have I seen fading photos of those steps? With Henry James sitting on them or Julia Stephen or the young Virginia Woolf or Vanessa Bell? And to stand in front of them, on them, in the rooms into which they lead is just incredible. It’s amazing to have been … More A visit to Talland House
Nothing Has Changed
February 24, 2018
My first book is an account of the extraordinary 2017 General Election as seen by me. It was an election like no other and I hope I’ve given some sense of the excitement, energy and sometimes downright bafflement involved in covering it. You can buy ‘Nothing Has Changed’ directly from the Parthian books website here. Here’s … More Nothing Has Changed
Jack Clemo, ‘The Marriage of a Rebel’
November 29, 2015
Easily one of the strangest books I’ve ever read, this is the second volume of memoirs by the Cornish poet Jack Clemo. I’d read both his novels years ago and some of his verse, but this was new to me. So much is strange about it: the way he reviews his own poetry, his unique brand … More Jack Clemo, ‘The Marriage of a Rebel’
Virginia Woolf’s passport
October 18, 2015
Virginia Woolf’s passport. A postcard from the Literary Passports set from Galley Beggar Press.
Illustration from Folio Book of Comic Short Stories
October 13, 2015
One of many by Paul Cox for this volume.
Andy Beckett, ‘Promised You a Miracle’
October 11, 2015
Far from another exercise in eighties nostalgia, this book is a fascinating closer examination of a couple of years that apparently changed Britain forever. It’s fair to say that Beckett is uncertain about the value of this change although he’s open-minded enough to acknowledge the many benefits it brought as well as recognising the human … More Andy Beckett, ‘Promised You a Miracle’
Salman Rushdie ‘Two Years Eight Months & Twenty-Eight Nights’ re-read
October 11, 2015
If you’ve read any Salman Rushdie previously, you’ll know what you’re letting yourself in for: a tumble of stories, ideas, jokes, allegories and references to books, films, politics, music, art, comic books and contradictory opinions. He specialises in having his cake and eating it and this book is high on the cake-having and eating. And like … More Salman Rushdie ‘Two Years Eight Months & Twenty-Eight Nights’ re-read
Salman Rushdie, ‘Two Years Eight Months and Twenty-eight Nights’
September 24, 2015
I don’t know what to make of this yet. Obviously, I’m already a fan so I already enjoy all the Rushdie traits: linguistic japery, strangeness, pop-culture mingling with high-culture, the dizzying tumble of stories and ideas. I haven’t been able to get a handle on it properly in my first reading but I have a feeling … More Salman Rushdie, ‘Two Years Eight Months and Twenty-eight Nights’
