Service Alert
Delay in delivery of Direct to Player materials
You may experience a delay in delivery of Direct to Player materials. All requests for materials will be delivered as soon as possible. Thank you for your patience.
You may experience a delay in delivery of Direct to Player materials. All requests for materials will be delivered as soon as possible. Thank you for your patience.
Showing 81 - 100 of 3604 items
By D. H. Lawrence. 1997
In these impressions of the Italian countryside, Lawrence transforms ordinary incidents into passages of intense beauty.Twilight in Italy is a…
vibrant account of Lawrence's stay among the people of Lake Garda, whose decaying lemon gardens bear witness to the twilight of a way of life centuries old. In Sea and Sardina, Lawrence brings to life the vigorous spontaneity of a society as yet untouched by the deadening effect of industrialization. And Etruscan Places is a beautiful and delicate work of literary art, the record of "a dying man drinking from the founts of a civilization dedicated to life."By Simon Leyland. 2014
From petticoat duels and lucky cats to the Stiffs Express, Lord Nelson's spare nose, the Piccadilly earthquake and the Great…
Beer Flood of 1814, A Curious Guide to London takes you on a captivating, wildly entertaining tour of the city you think you know, unearthing the capital's secrets and commemorating its rich, colourful and unusual history. Brimming with tales of London's forgotten past, its strangest traditions and its most eccentric inhabitants, this book celebrates the unique, the unusual and the unknown. Perfect for tourists, day-trippers, commuters and the millions of people who call London home, this alternative guidebook will make you look at the city in a whole new light.By Dan Cruickshank. 2019
'The perfect guide to the hidden history of London's streets.' BBC History MagazineIn Cruickshank's London, Britain's favourite architectural historian describes…
thirteen walks through one of the greatest cities on earth. From the mysterious Anglo-Saxon origins of Hampstead Heath, via Christopher Wren's magisterial City churches, to the industrial bustle of Victorian Bermondsey, each walk explores a crucial moment in our history - and reveals how it helped forge the modern city. Along the way, Cruickshank peppers the book with vivid photographs, sketches and maps, so you can immediately follow in his footsteps.Every street in London contains a story. This book invites you to hear them.___'An inspiringly illustrated guide to walks across London . . . It proves how much we can miss if we don't pay close attention to our surroundings.' Country Life'All power to Cruickshank and his intrepid and knowledgeable kind. We need them.' Times Literary SupplementBy Rosita Boland. 2021
'I was fascinated, moved and entertained by every page. This is the kind of book the world needs right now'…
DONAL RYAN_______________'My dictionary's first two definitions of 'comrade' are:A close companion.An intimate associate or friend.The third one is:A fellow soldier.My friends have been all those things to me.'In this stunning essay collection, award-winning journalist Rosita Boland explores the many friendships that have shaped her life. Surprising and beautiful, she writes about the imaginary friends of early childhood, books that have provided companionship and joy, kindred spirits met while travelling, the friend she hoped might become something more, and also the friendships that become lost over time.Life-affirming, affecting and wise, Comrades is a powerful exploration of what it is to live, to connect, and to be human in this world._______________'An absorbing journey along life's tracks and trails.' THE SUNDAY TIMES IRELAND'A moving, beautiful and deeply felt meditation on friendship, loyalty and connectedness in a disconnected world' HILARY FANNINBy Geoff Tibballs. 2018
The classic pocket guide to the language of London. This wonderful little guide to cockney rhyming slang contains over 1,700…
old and new rhymes translated from Cockney to English and English to Cockney, including:Custard and jelly - tellyHot cross bun - nunLemon tart - smartRock ’n’ roll - doleSticky toffee - coffee...and many more. Master the art of the Cockney rhyme and discover the Cockney origins of common British phrases.By Charles Timoney. 2009
Vocabulary alone isn't enough. To survive in the most sophisticated - and the most scathing - nation on Earth you…
will need to understand the many peculiarities of the (very peculiar) French culture. And for that you need A Certain Je Ne Sais Quoi.If you want to fit in with the French you'll have to know how to deal with sardonic waiters; why French children hate Charlemagne; the etiquette of kissing, joke-telling and drinking songs, what to do with a bidet, the correct recipe for a salade nicoise and, of course, how to convey absolute, shattering indifference with a single syllable (Bof!).Charles Timoney, the author of Pardon My French, provides a practical, pleasurable guide to the charms of the Gallic people - from their daily routines to their peerless gesticulations, from their come-ons to their put-downs. Read on and put the oh la la back into your French vacances. Your inner gaul will thank you for it.By Peter Marren. 2018
**ONE OF THE GUARDIAN’S BEST BOOKS OF 2018**Join renowned naturalist Peter Marren on an exciting quest to see every species…
of wild plant native to Britain.The mysterious Ghost Orchid blooms in near darkness among rotting leaves on the forest floor. It blends into the background to the point of invisibility, yet glows, pale and ghostly. The ultimate grail of flower hunters, it has been spotted only once in the past twenty-five years. Its few flowers have a deathly pallor and are said to smell of over-ripe bananas. Peter Marren has been a devoted flower finder all his life. While the Ghost Orchid offers the toughest challenge of any wild plant, there were fifty more British species Peter had yet to see, having ticked off the first 1,400 rummaging in hedges, slipping down gullies and peering in peat bogs. But he set himself the goal of finding the remaining fifty in a single summer. As it turned out, the wettest summer in years. This expert and emotional journey takes Peter the length and the breadth of the British Isles, from the dripping ancient woods of the New Forest to the storm-lashed cliffs of Sutherland. He paddles in lakes, clambers up cliffs in mist and rain, and walks several hundred miles, but does he manage to find them all? Partly about plants, partly autobiography, Chasing the Ghost is also a reminder that to engage with wild flowers, all we need to do is look around us and enjoy what we see. Praise for Chasing the Ghost:‘Peter Marren is the unsung hero of Britain’s nature writers’ Stephen Moss, author of Dynasties‘Jolly, quixotic and ends with real poignancy’ Guardian ‘A poignant reminder to us all to engage with the wild flowers that grow around us’ i NewspaperBy Mark Twain. 2007
One of the great derisive monuments to the imbecilities of the tourist experience, Mark Twain's (1835-1910) account of his tour…
with a group of fellow Americans around the sights of Europe is both hilarious and touching, Twain's exasperation and dismay at the phoney and exploitative being matched by his excitement and pleasure in the genuinely beautiful.Great Journeys allows readers to travel both around the planet and back through the centuries – but also back into ideas and worlds frightening, ruthless and cruel in different ways from our own. Few reading experiences can begin to match that of engaging with writers who saw astounding things: Great civilisations, walls of ice, violent and implacable jungles, deserts and mountains, multitudes of birds and flowers new to science. Reading these books is to see the world afresh, to rediscover a time when many cultures were quite strange to each other, where legends and stories were treated as facts and in which so much was still to be discovered.By Abc Merriman-Labor. 2022
'We shall therefore confine our walk to Central London where people meet on business during the day, and to West…
London where they meet for pleasure at night. If you will walk about the first City in the British Empire arm in arm with Merriman-Labor, you are sure to see Britons in merriment and at labour, by night and by day, in West and Central London.'In Britons Through Negro Spectacles Merriman-Labor takes us on a joyous, intoxicating tour of London at the turn of the 20th century.Slyly subverting the colonial gaze usually placed on Africa, he introduces us to the citizens, culture and customs of Britain with a mischievous glint in his eye.This incredible work of social commentary feels a century ahead of its time, and provides unique insights into the intersection between empire, race and community at this important moment in history.Selected by Booker Prize-winning author Bernardine Evaristo, this series rediscovers and celebrates pioneering books depicting black Britain that remap the nation.By Simon Jenkins. 2017
Discover the architectural gems that are Britain's 100 Best Railway Stations in this Sunday Times top 10 bestseller'This is a…
cracker . . . a beautiful book' Chris EvansIt is the scene for our hopeful beginnings and our intended ends, and the timeless experiences of coming and going, meeting, greeting and parting. It is an institution with its own rituals and priests, and a long-neglected aspect of Britain's architecture. And yet so little do we look at the railway station.Simon Jenkins has travelled the length and breadth of Great Britain, from Waterloo to Wemyss Bay, Betws-y-Coed to Beverley, to select his hundred best railway stations. Blending his usual insight and authority with his personal reflections and experiences - including his founding the Railway Heritage Trust - the foremost expert on our national heritage deftly reveals the history, geography, design and significance of each of these glories. Beautifully illustrated with colour photographs throughout, this joyous exploration of our social history shows the station's role in the national imagination; champions the engineers, architects and rival companies that made them possible; and tells the story behind the triumphs and follies of these very British creations. These are the marvellous, often undersung places that link our nation, celebrated like never before.'However spectacular the book's photographs, it's the author's prowess as a phrase-maker that keeps you turning the pages' The Times'An uplifting exploration of our social history' GuardianBy Caroline Taggart. 2012
Ever wondered if Cheapside really is cheap, what you do in Threadneedle Street, or who the knights of Knightsbridge were?Did…
you know that Piccadilly is actually an insult? And that Euston Road was built because there were too many cows on Oxford Street? Or that the River Fleet was covered over partly because of a drunken butcher? Take a trip down narrow lanes, through cobbled streets and crowded markets to discover the meanings behind the city’s place names. Meet forgotten residents whose names survive in the places where they lived, such as Sir George Downing of Downing Street, and uncover tales from London’s murky past that have shaped the modern city.From famous landmarks to forgotten rivers, grand thoroughfares to lost palaces, and ancient villages swallowed up as the city grew, Caroline Taggart explains the hidden meanings behind familiar places. If you have ever wanted to learn more about the history of London and discover the people, events and stories that shaped our capital city, then come on a journey that will show you London in a new light...By Caroline Taggart. 2011
Take a journey down winding lanes and Roman roads in this witty and informative guide to the meanings behind the…
names of England's towns and villages. From Celtic farmers to Norman conquerors, right up to the Industrial Revolution, deciphering our place names reveals how generations of our ancestors lived, worked, travelled and worshipped, and how their influence has shaped our landscape.From the most ancient sacred sites to towns that take their names from stories of giants and knights, learn how Roman garrisons became our great cities, and discover how a meeting of the roads could become a thriving market town. Region by region, Caroline Taggart uncovers hidden meanings to reveal a patchwork of tall tales and ancient legends that collectively tells the story of how we made England.By Alex Morris, Jason Hazeley, Joel Morris, Robin Halstead. 2005
The British Lawnmower Museum, Keith Harding's World of Mechanical Music and Mad Jack's Sugar Loaf. In a world of theme…
parks, interactive exhibits, over-priced merchandise and queues, don't worry, these are names to stir the soul. Reassuring evidence that there's still somewhere to turn in search of the small, fascinating, unique and, dammit, British.In a stumbling journey across the country in search of the best we have to offer our intrepid heroes discovered dinosaurs in South London, a cold war castle in Essex, grown men pretending to be warships in Scarborough, unexplained tunnels under Liverpool and a terraced house in Bedford being kept warm for Jesus's return. And along the way they met the people behind them all: enthusiasts, eccentrics and, you know, those who just sort of fell into looking after a vast collection of gnomes ...Makes you proud!By Andrew Eames. 2009
The Danube is Europe's Amazon. It flows through more countries than any other river on Earth - from the Black…
Forest in Germany to Europe's farthest fringes, where it joins the Black Sea in Romania. Andrew Eames' journey along its length brings us face to face with the Continent's bloodiest history and its most pressing issues of race and identity.As he travels - by bicycle, horse, boat and on foot - Eames finds himself seeking a bed for the night with minor royalty, hitching a ride on a Serbian barge captained by a man called Attila and getting up close and personal with a bull in rural Romania. He meets would-be kings and walks with gypsies, and finally rows his way beyond the borders of Europe entirely...By Alison Hammond, E. L. Norry. 2022
Hiya! Alison Hammond here! I love getting to know all about different people and I'll tell you a secret .…
. . sometimes people we don't know much about are the most interesting of all! Which is really what this book is all about.Let me ask you a question: How many Black people can you name from our history? Mary Seacole? Ira Aldridge? George Bridgetower? Pablo Fanque? Walter Tull? Have you heard of these people?Yes? That's great! But if you haven't, don't worry, you're not alone, which is why I'm so excited to tell you all about them. Because the people in this book should be totally famous given the AMAZING things they've done! And we're not going to stop in the past, I'll introduce you to people making waves right here and now!From sportspeople to scientists, activists to musicians, politicians to writers, we're going to meet a whole bunch of AWESOME people who have helped shape the world we live in. So, are ready for you a journey Black in time?? Course you are, let's go!By Jacqueline Yallop. 2017
As heard on BBC Radio 4's Book of the Week'A delightful and entertaining memoir' Woman and HomeWhen Jacqueline moves to…
south-west France with her husband, she embraces rural village life and buys two pigs to rear for slaughter. But as she gets to know the animals better, her English sentimentality threatens to get in the way and she begins to wonder if she can actually bring herself to kill them. This is a memoir about that fateful decision, but it's also about the ethics of meat eating in the modern age, and whether we should know, respect and even love the animals we eat. At its heart, this book is a love story, exploring the increasing attachment of the author for her particular pigs, and celebrating the enduring closeness of humans and pigs over the centuries.By Hunter Davies. 2010
'I am fascinated by people turning their daft dreams into a reality. How did they do it and why?'Driven by…
his own passion for collecting Hunter Davies has packed his notepad and set off in search of Britain's maddest museums. As he explores these hidden gems he soon discovers that they are everywhere and that they celebrate just about everything, from lawnmowers in Southport to pencils in Keswick.But as Hunter travels up and down the country he comes to realise that it isn't only the collections that are fascinating, it's also the people who have put them together. Whether they're a man who loves his Heinz so much he's changed his name to Captain Beany or a kleptomaniac Vintage Radio buff, these eccentric collectors are Britain's finest and could live in no other country in the world.Once you discover these museums and get to know their curators, Great Britain won't look quite the same again...By John Sergeant, David Bartley. 2015
Barging Round Britain by David Bartley is a beautifully-illustrated guide to a unique and fascinating part of our history: the…
canal network.Explore the people and places that have forged this national treasure, from the birth of the Industrial Revolution to the leisure explosion on our waterways today. Fully-illustrated with maps and photographs, the book will trace canal routes across the UK, from the Georgian grandeur of Bath to the dramatic splendour of the Scottish Highlands.This is the official tie-in to the ITV series, coming to prime-time TV in January 2015. David Bartley's Barging Round Britain includes a foreword and chapter introductions by the presenter of the TV series, John Sergeant.By J. M. Synge. 1992
In 1907 J. M. Synge achieved both notoriety and lasting fame with The Playboy of the Western World. The Aran…
Islands, published in the same year, records his visits to the islands in 1898-1901, when he was gathering the folklore and anecdotes out of which he forged The Playboy and his other major dramas. Yet this book is much more than a stage in the evolution of Synge the dramatist. As Tim Robinson explains in his introduction, "If Ireland is intriguing as being an island off the west of Europe, then Aran, as an island off the west of Ireland, is still more so; it is Ireland raised to the power of two." Towards the end of the last century Irish nationalists came to identify the area as the country's uncorrupted heart, the repository of its ancient language, culture and spiritual values. It was for these reasons that Yeats suggested Synge visit the islands to record their way of life. The result is a passionate exploration of a triangle of contradictory relationships – between an island community still embedded in its ancestral ways but solicited by modernism, a physical environment of ascetic loveliness and savagely unpredictable moods, and Synge himself, formed by modern European thought but in love with the primitive.By Tom Fort. 2010
'You have to be on your guard when you go back to special places. You may be able to locate…
them easily enough on the map, but maps tell only one story. Times change and places and people with them. The memory plays curious tricks, and things aren't always as you remember or expect.' Twenty years ago, Tom Fort drove his little red car onto the ferry at Felixstowe, bound for all points east. Eastern Europe was still a faraway place, just emerging from its half-century of waking nightmare, blinking, injured, full of fears but importantly full of hope too. Things were different then. Czechoslovakia was still Czechoslovakia, Russia was the USSR and the Warsaw Pact had not formally dissolved. But what did exist then, as they do now, were the rivers: the nations' lifeblood. It was along and by these rivers that Fort travelled around Eastern Europe meeting its people and immersing himself in its culture.Since that trip though, much has changed and in more recent years around one million Poles have settled in Britain. Fort's local paper has a Polish edition, his supermarket has a full range of Polish bread, sausage and beer and an influx of Polish businesses opened in his town centre. And it's not just the Poles, his gym has a Lithuanian trainer and the woman who cuts his hair is from Hungary. As a tide of people began to leave Eastern Europe and settle in the UK, Tom Fort started to wonder about what they were leaving behind and whether the friends he had made all those years ago remained. And so he decided to make the journey again, travelling against the flow of the steady human stream to explore the once familiar places. As he did so, many began to return as the recession took hold of Western Europe. Tom was keen to find out what had changed and how the places, people and way of life had moved on and of course fit in a spot of fishing along the way.