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By Bob Bevan. 2004
Firmly established in the world of entertainment, The Cat's route to fame has been through corporate and sporting dinners. He…
grew up loving sport and perservered despite having only one eye and an almost total absence of natural ability. His reputation as a figure of fun and his readiness to laugh at his own failures have reaped rich rewards.How many of us have played football with Bobby Moore and George Best at Wembley, or played at Lord's, or written a poem teasing the Duke of Edinburgh for never recognising us? In Nearly Famous, The Cat writes hilariously of the many famous people he has worked with - everyone from Colin Cowdrey, Bobby Robson and Terry Venables to Eric Clapton, Rod Stewart, Billy Connolly, Eric Morcambe and Brian Johnston - and the highs and lows of that most serious of businesses: making people laugh.By Martin King, Martin Knight. 1999
Football has reinvented itself. As television money has poured into the game, the traditional working-class fans have poured out -…
not by choice, but by economic necessity. According to those in charge of the game the football hooligan has at last been eliminated from the landscape. But how true is this much-vaunted claim? Martin King, author of Hoolifan, brings his story up to date in The Naughty Nineties. Ironically, he finds that football hooligans now really are in the minority but they are far more dangerous and committed than ever before.By Norman Dabell. 2002
Norman Dabell, journalist, broadcaster and notorious jinx, has been covering the European golf circuit for over 20 years, though after…
reading this hilarious account of his mishaps, you may well come to wonder how he has managed to survive for so long.Join Norman as he retraces his pursuit of the travelling circus of the golf world from St Andrews to Sun City, Malaga to Morocco, encountering all the great faces of the modern game. Woods, Ballesteros, Faldo, Montgomerie, Westwood, Lyle, Woosnam, Langer, Olazabal, Garcia... they have all made the headlines. Dabell is there to make sure they do - while also trying to survive another day. Golf isn't really meant to be fun, they say, and sometimes it can be toture. But Danbell's rib-tickling (and his have been more than tickled) account will have even the most serious enthusiast in stitches. Fate has caused him many a tumble, broken bone and on-air gaffe, and Dabell's presence inside the ropes has been known to make even the toughest tour professional blanche. However, he is a favourite of Major-winner Vijay Singh, who might have never have got his career on the road if his ball had plummeted out of bounds instead of ricocheting onto the fairway off Dabell's head in Spain in 1990. Singh made a birdie instead of a possible double-bogey, won the tournament and ten years later went on to beat the world at Augusta. Just one of a thousand escapades which happened to a living, breathing Natural Hazard.By Paul Mullin. 2023
The memoir from Wrexham super striker, Paul Mullin - as seen in Welcome to Wrexham, a Disney+ documentary series by…
Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney.In July 2021, shortly after being named League Two's Player of the Season and Golden Boot, Paul Mullin sent shockwaves through the EFL by taking a downwards move to National League team, Wrexham AFC. Since then, 'Super Paul Mullin' has helped transform the Wrexham team, scoring goal after goal, helping secure promotion, and capturing the imaginations of football fans across the world in the process.Here for the first time, Mullin tells his own story: his roots in Liverpool, the highs and lows of English football's promotion race, lessons learnt from his young son's Autism diagnosis, and what happens when Hollywood comes knocking at your door.By Tom Daley. 2013
DIVE INTO THE REMARKABLE FIRST OFFICIAL MEMOIR OF OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALLIST TOM DALEY AND DISCOVER WHERE IT ALL BEGAN'I laughed,…
I cried, I loved it! Probably the most inspirational book I have ever read' 5***** Reader Review'You feel like you're there with Tom through the highs and lows of his life' 5***** Reader Review_______In 2012, at the age of eighteen, Tom Daley had the whole country behind him as he won bronze at the Olympic Games in London.A double Commonwealth gold medal winner, he was already one of the sport's most exciting athletes.But behind his rise to sporting stardom, there is also a heartbreaking and inspiring story of a young man coping with the death of his father whilst under the glare of the world's media spotlight.In this, Tom's first official memoir, he writes honestly and openly about the pressures, challenges and fascinating experiences of being a world-class Olympian. From his day-to-day schedule, to his hobbies and family life, to sharing his hopes and dreams in the build-up to the London Olympics, this book offers a unique chance to get close to Tom.You already know him as the legendary Olympic athlete. Now, get the know the man behind the medals.By Steven Gerrard. 2015
Get ready for the Euros by journeying through the iconic and searingly honest story of one of the country's best…
ever footballers'A truly world class career . . . This is a must read' 5***** READER REVIEW'An astonishing tale of commitment, loyalty and determination' 5***** READER REVIEW'A heart on sleeve account of success and failure' 5***** READER REVIEW________In My Story, legendary Liverpool and England captain Steven Gerrard tells the story of the highs and lows of a twenty-year career at the top of English and world football As the only player ever to have scored in a FA cup final, a league cup final, a UEFA cup final and a champion's league final, Steven Gerrard is an inspiration to fans and footballers alike. After joining his beloved Liverpool at the age of eight, he spent the next 28 years, and over 700 games, devoted to this one club. His loyalty ensures he will be remembered not only as one of the all-time Anfield greats but one of England's finest footballers. In My Story, Gerrard dissects his full playing career. He examines the defining games such as the 2005 Champion's League Final when he inspired 'The Miracle of Istanbul' as Liverpool came back from 3-0 down against AC Milan to become champions of Europe. He talks about his 114 caps for England, including World Cup and European Championship campaigns, asking what went right - and wrong. He writes candidly of those he's played with and competed against, from Luis Suárez to Jose Mourinho, his experiences under Brendan Rodgers and Roy Hodgson. He also has an incredible and rare personal story, telling us of the extraordinary ups and downs of staying loyal to one club for your entire career. Explosive and searingly honest, Steven Gerrard's My Story is the last word from an era-defining player.By Bernard Dunne. 2010
Bernard Dunne boxed for the first time at the age of 6. Twenty-three years later, in an electrifying performance at…
the O2 arena in Dublin, he stopped the brilliant Ricardo Cordoba to take the WBA World Super Bantamweight belt. The path from the gym in west Dublin to the world title was often a rocky one. Here, for the first time, Bernard Dunne tells his own amazing story. It begins in Neilstown, where boxing ran in the family. In his amateur career, Bernard never lost to an Irish fighter; but he narrowly missed out on the 2000 Olympics, and rather than spend another four years as an amateur in search of Olympic glory he decided to go pro.Going pro meant going to California, and, under the tutelage of Sugar Ray Leonard and Freddie Roach, California became a land of dreams for Bernard. Twelve of his fourteen professional fights in America were televised nationally, and he was working towards a title fight. But he missed home, missed his family. He wanted it all: he wanted to win a world title, and he wanted to do it in Ireland.The way he went about doing that has made Bernard Dunne an Irish national treasure. After winning a European belt, he was defeated by Kiko Martinez; but he bounced back with courage and brilliance to win the WBA super bantamweight belt from Cordoba in front of a delirious crowd at the O2 arena. Rather than rest on his laurels, as many champions in his position would do, Bernard accepted the toughest challenge of all: from a slab of granite named Poonsawat. He lost the belt, but his courage and dignity in defeat were heroic. Now, Bernard tells the full story of his life and boxing career - a story full of surprises. It will thrill all his old fans and win him new ones.By Sir Ian Botham. 2009
In My Sporting Heroes, one of the country's great sportsmen, Sir Ian Botham, draws up his template of what he…
believes makes a true sporting hero.Botham singles out the ten qualities he believes are the basic elements in any true sportsperson - bravery, passion, composure, determination, skill, leadership, instinct, dedication, humour and compassion - then highlights the sportsmen and women who he believes best demonstrate each quality, backing up his selection with personal anecdotes of his time spent with them or watching them in action.Covering a wide variety of sports and discussing admired athletes of both the past and present, from Ian Woosnam, Paul Gascoigne and Jonathan Davies to Joe Calzaghe, Lewis Hamilton and Andy Murray, My Sporting Heroes is a lively celebration of exactly what makes a true sporting legend - from someone who knows a thing or two about it!By Rhea Coombs. 2007
This moving memoir tells the story of how a young woman descended into the world of prostitution and drug abuse,…
yet found the strength to rebuild her life.Rhea Coombs's father is a convicted murderer and she grew up with a hippy mother who constantly moved house and lived in a succession of squats and communes before settling in Bristol. It was in Bristol that Rhea had her first introduction to drugs, pimps and prostitution. Pregnant at sixteen, she escaped to London and mixed with gangsters in seedy Soho nightclubs, eventually becoming addicted to crack and heroin and running a crack house. Rhea was forced to give up her children, but she never stopped loving them and through her strength and courage was finally able to escape for the world of drugs and prostitution, and regain custody of her children. This is her remarkable story.By Maggie Semple, Jane Oremosu. 2023
Through their work with organisations and companies across the world, Maggie Semple and Jane Oremosu found that there was a…
need to help people as they discussed difference, race and inclusion. My Little Black Book: A Blacktionary aims to do just that.This A-Z pocket guide is for people who are entering the workplace and finding their identity, for leaders and managers who feel overwhelmed by ever-evolving definitions and phrases, for anyone who is afraid of saying the wrong thing and being judged. From explaining what microagressions are and their impact, to helping you understand what cultural appreciation is and how it's different to cultural appropriation, this book will break down barriers to engaging in conversations on race.Drawing together the best definitions as well as useful advice and tips, My Little Black Book: A Blacktionary is an essential tool to broaden your knowledge and live and work better with others.By Ken Gorman. 1996
Ken Gorman has gathered together a superb collection of fight reports, personal testimonies and reminiscences from some of the greatest…
boxers the world has ever seen. Spanning over four decades, this book features forty breathtaking encounters. Was there ever a more stunning victory than that of Steve Robinson, who won a world title with only two days' notice? Was anything more astonishing than the triumph of Lloyd Honeyghan, or more shocking than the punch from hell that made the world aware of the potent threat of Lennox Lewis? What about that incredible first round when Marvin Hagler met Tommy Hearns in Las Vegas, or the awesome raw power displayed in the famous Rumble in the Jungle?By Jeremy Hardy. 2010
When Jeremy Hardy decided to explore his ancestry it was, in part, to get to the bottom of his grandmother…
Rebecca's dubious claims that the family descended from a certain 17th-century architect and that, more recently, Jeremy's great-grandfather was a Royal bodyguard. Other legends ranged from the great aunt who ran illegal hooch during Prohibition to the wronged Victorian servant girl who bore an illegitimate Hardy, not forgetting the family's rightful claim to a large country estate. Wild stories aside, Jeremy sets out to such diverse locations as the Croydon one-way system and the hostile waters around Malta in order to find traces of recognisable family traits and a sense of how he came to be. With wry humour and a keen eye for the absurd and the frustrating, Jeremy takes us on a by turns funny and moving journey into the world of family ancestry. My Family and Other Strangers will be enjoyed by anyone who has tried to decipher the 1901 census records, or simply wishes they too had asked their grandparents more about their lives.By Jon Hotten. 2004
Bodybuilding is the wildest, wierdest sport in the world, but it's more than just a sport. It's a whole way…
of life for the supermen who scale its Olympian heights. Muscle is a journey through a land of giants, men for whom life is given meaning by the pursuit of the perfect pec and who worship at the shrine of Schwartzenegger.Jon Hotten has a 40-inch chest and 12-inch arms. Undaunted, he fights his unpromising genetics to hitch up with the bodybuilding circus, hanging out with the stars and legends, the casualties, gym rats and iron junkies. As his forbidding subjects open up, he discovers a story of unregulated excess, chemical mayhem and hard-won glory, a story for anyone who's ever looked in the mirror and wanted more...By Murray Walker, Simon Taylor. 2002
Murray Walker combines and enclyclopaedic knowlege of Grand Prix racing with an unbridled fanaticism that remains undimmed after more than…
half a century of race commentaries.In his personal tribute to the sport, he celebrates the most talented drivers of all time, the rivalries that have set his pulse racing and the circuits he finds the most inspiring.This updated edition of Murray Walker's Formula One Heroes gives an 'in a nutshell' appraisal of legends old and new from an esteemed hero and geniuine F1 insider who, even now he' retired, cannot keep his all-consuming passion off the page.By Mike Mulloy. 2011
Life was cheap in the Toxteth and Wavertree districts of Liverpool, and more murders were committed there than in any…
other part of the city; and so this tough inner-city area became known as Murder Mile. Rising to the rank of Detective Chief Inspector, and becoming the most commended officer in the history of the force, Mike Mulloy had the job of investigating a series of high-profile cases over the years involving murder, arson, rape, armed robbery, drug dealing, burglary and bombing. He and his colleagues witnessed the most appalling brutality and violence where neither age nor sex provided any defence - young children, women and old people were constantly vulnerable.MURDER MILE is a fascinating and engaging addition to the literature of True Crime, written by a man who put his life on the line in the defence of the public and who saw it all at first-hand.By Chris Townsend. 1997
When Chris Townsend reached the summit of Ben Hope in Sutherland, he walked his way into the record books. After…
118 days in which he had covered more than 1,700 miles and climber over 575,000 feet, he had completed the first single continuous journey of all 277 Munros and 240 Tops in the Scottish Highlands.This is the story of that remarkable walk from the start on Ben More on the Isle of Mull through to the finish, the equivalent of climbing Mount Everest 18 times. For the author, the real enjoyment of the walk was not in counting up the summits or the miles but in spending week after week in the hills and living in the wilds. In THE MUNROS AND TOPS, Chris Townsend recalls the joys of observing the birds and animals, the trees and flowers, the changing shapes of the hills and the play of light on their slopes. He writes about the complexities of route-finding and the challenge of rugged terrain and of coping with often atrocious weather conditions. Illustrated with photographs taken during the walk, this is a stirring account of a unique achievement.By Denise Williams. 2015
Losing a child is a mother’s worst nightmare, but when you lose two children – your innocent sons – at…
the hands of the man they should have trusted the most, it’s almost unimaginable.For Denise Williams this was her reality – her very real nightmare. In her harrowing yet inspiring memoir, she tells her personal story of falling under the spell of her control-freak husband, suffering a decade of domestic violence, finding the strength to leave and then his despicable act of revenge. Denise endured agonising grief and heavy guilt, but she has slowly rebuilt her life without her beautiful boys – learning to live, love and trust again.This is her heartbreaking memoir.By Nikkia Roberson. 2012
'Why did you leave me? Why did you get messed up with all of those drugs? Why did you kill…
my brother and sister? Didn’t you love us enough?'Nikkia Roberson has been asking these questions for most of her life. But how else do you cope when your mentally ill mother has killed your little brother and sister by scalding them with boiling water?This is a harrowing true story of how one little girl endured the most tragic of childhoods. But it’s also the ultimate tale of forgiveness. Follow Nikkia on her heartbreaking journey, as she attempts to find answers and rekindle a relationship with her mother behind the gates of a secure psychiatric hospital.Deeply moving, Mummy is a Killer proves that love really is the strongest emotion of all.By Victor Bockris. 1998
'The man who has no imagination Stands on earth He has no wings He cannot fly' Muhammad Ali Just off…
Highway 61 in northern Pennsylvania, up the dirt drive of a wooded hill lay a place called Fighter's Heaven. This was once the training camp of the 'greatest of all times'. From early '73 through the summer of '74 Victor Bockris visited Muhammad Ali, while Ali was preparing for his epic battle in Zaire to regain the World Heavyweight crown from the fearsome George Foreman. Bockris, who was later to write about people like William Burroughs, Andy Warhol and Lou Reed was less interested in his subject's boxing career and ambitions than in his extraordinary gifts as a poet, preacher and performer. As Muhammad Ali said himself of this book, 'These are some of the things I don't reveal to the public too much'.By Richard Beard. 2003
There is Rugby Union: the fast, compelling, TV-friendly combat sport in which sponsored gladiators are sold on their ability to…
crash into each other at top speed, and sometimes even to avoid each other and score. And then there's rugger. Rugger was once the serious version of rugby, more than a mere game, a fierce contact-sport developed in Victorian public schools to forge manly and unshakeable character. For a hundred years boys played rugger and made themselves into men. They also drank too much beer and took their trousers down in public. Richard Beard sets out to examine this contradiction by revisiting his seven former rugby clubs in four different countries. He meets Booker prize-winning authors and former England hookers, explores rugby's rivalry with soccer, its surprising attraction for nonconformists, and its unlikely role in organised crime. All while trying to get himself a game.This is Beard's quest into his rugby-playing past, where he's lived the sport in many of its varied forms. By the end of his wayward journey, he almost qualifies to judge whether rugger has achieved what the Victorians always intended, and made him a better man.