John Thaw was one of Britain’s most versatile actors. His powerful ability to deliver award-winning, top quality performances turned him into one of the country’s most bankable names. Stafford Hildred and Tim Ewbank trace Thaw’s life from his humble roots and desperately unhappy childhood to his arrival as a Teddy Boy student at RADA. From there, the book charts his remarkable rise to stardom and recounts the notable successes, controversies, disasters, and sacrifices experienced along the way. Affectionate and immensely readable, this biography is based on John Thaw’s own enthralling and moving memories and anecdotes, plus extensive interviews and recollections from his wife Sheila Hancock, close friends, relatives, and co-stars. John Thaw died of cancer on February 21, 2002. Both he and he wife Sheila had been fighting the disease for some years. He was 60.
David Jason is Britain's best-loved star. From his wonderful characterisation of Del Boy in Only Fools and Horses to Detective Jack Frost and Mr Micawber, he has captured the heart of a nation. This remarkable biography traces the life of Britain's favourite actor from his humble roots in north London through his days as an electrician to Sir David Jason, the icon we all know and love. Recruited to an early Monty Python project for his masterful sense of timing, David soon attracted the attention of Ronnie Barker with whom he appeared in episodes of the classic BBC comedy series Porridge and Open All Hours. He has gone on to create many of television's popular and enduring characters, earning numerous accolades, including the Royal Television Society's Award for Best Actor, a Top Television Comedy Actor at the British Comedy Awards and a BAFTA fellowship for his outstanding contribution to television. He also received the ultimate tribute in 2005; a knighthood from the Queen. Revealing the man behind Del Boy, Pop Larkin and Jack Frost, this authoritative biography offers valuable insight into his life and loves, covering the tragic loss of his partner of eighteen years, Myfanwy Talog, and the joy of his secret wedding to new love Gill Hinchcliffe, and the birth of their daughter Sophie Mae. It paints a complete portrait of one of England's funniest and most talented actors; a true national treasure.
- First trade paper edition in the U.S. - Rod Stewart has sold 70 million records worldwide. - Stewart's album, It Had to be You... The Great American Songbook, composed of American pop standards reached #4 on the Billboard charts and sold more than a million copies by 2003. The follow-up, As Time Goes By... The Great American Songbook, Vol. 2 was released in October of 2003 and entered the Billboard chart at No. 2 It has sold four million copies so far. - Stewart toured the US through the summer of 2004. - Includes a discography and index
Jamie Oliver is Britain's best-loved chef. His matey charm and down-to-earth approach to cooking - from The Naked Chef to 30-Minute Meals - have made him a household favourite the length and breadth of the country. Rising from humble pastry chef to television superstar by catching the eye of producers during a documentary about the River Café, his on-screen charisma meant that he featured heavily in the final programme and the offers came flooding in...and so The Naked Chef was born. Jamie's passion shone through and a whole generation of young people were captivated by his enthusiasm. Cooking was suddenly cool! His television series and books gave Jamie fame and fortune the world over, but he always wanted to do something positive with his success. Through his fifteen charity restaurants and campaigns to revolutionise school dinners and get Britain cooking again, Jamie has proved himself to be more than simply a celebrity chef. His desire to bring about radical change has seen him meet with top politicians and raise millions of pounds for good causes. This is the fun and fascinating story behind Jamie Oliver: talented chef, father of four, television celebrity, political campaigner and national institution.
After making his name as Doyle in "The Professionals" in the 1970s, Martin Shaw's career has gone from strength to strength. Now the star of the BBC hit drama, "Judge John Deed", Martin is also currently treading the boards on the London stage in "A Man for All Seasons". One of Britain's most popular and versatile actors, Martin has played over one hundred television roles as well as a host of distinguished and critically acclaimed lead theatrical parts. Based on a series of interviews and recollections from famous friends, relatives and co-stars of both stage and screen, this is a revealing and honest portrait of the notoriously reluctant but hugely popular star.
This insightful biography by experienced show - business biographers Tim Ewbank and Stafford Hildred charts the remarkable life of the tea - planter's daughter, born in India, who blossomed from troubled Sussex schoolgirl into the striking young woman who sashayed to stardom down a Bradford street in the film Billy Liar. Julie became the Face of 1965, won an Oscar for her role in ''Darling'', was courted by London and Hollywood's most eligible men, including Warren Beatty, and glowed with beauty in ''Dr Zhivago''. Off and on screen, her life has been fascinating, and only a woman with her spirit would have turned her back on Hollywood at the height of her fame to embrace a simpler life in Wales. In recent years, she has only rarely been tempted back into the limelight, but her most recent appearance, in ''Away from Her'', has led to another Oscar nomination and a renewal of interest in one of Britain's most successful, yet private, actresses.
Hope I die before I get old', sang Roger Daltrey over forty years ago, but it didn't quite work out like that. The wild and passionate lead singer for supergroup The Who is still very much alive. The premature deaths of fellow group members Keith Moon and John Entwistle leaves Daltrey and Pete Townshend as the only survivors of the legendary band. Roger Daltrey's life is extraordinary from start to finish: he was expelled from school and written off as a violent thug - before he made his first guitar out of a block of wood, and music and The Who became his salvation. For many years he was the vouce of a generation, strutting bare-chested on stage, swinging the mic around like a lariat at The Who's dynamic concerts. Drawing on interviews with Daltrey himself, as well as his friends and fellow musicians, this is the most complete and revealing biography of one of rock's most powerful personalities.
This affectionate and immensely readable biography charts the remarkable life of Joanna Lumley, who has been an endlessly fascinating figure for over four decades, since becoming a top model in ''The Swinging Sixties''. Today, she is best known for her role as Patsy in ''Absolutely Fabulous'' and, most recently, her championing of the Gurkhas' cause, for which she is now regarded as a national treasure. An exotic cocktail of Home Counties and Hollywood, Joanna is revered as much for her tireless campaigning for animal rights and other causes, as for her repertory of characters on stage, screen and TV. Tim Ewbank and Stafford Hildred draw on their interviews with Joanna herself, her relatives, friends and co - stars to produce this meticulously researched and revealing portrait of one of Britain's most likeable star.
Jamie Oliver is one of Britain's most popular chef's and personalities. But although his light hearted approach and ready charm have endeared him to everybody, surprizingly little is known about this young man. Stafford Hildred and Tim Ewebank have approached Jamie's friends, family and collegues to produce a biography that shows just what makes him tick.
David Jason has created many of television's best-loved characters. Hildred and Ewbank reveal the man behind the characters, a man whose real-life could not be more different to those which he portrays on screen.
On both personal and professional levels, Nicole Kidman's story is a fascinating one. Now 34, she is arguably one of the most famous actresses in the world with a string of successfull films behind her, a possible Oscar for Moulin Rouge and a clutch of movies in 2002. Her career could not be starrier. But, bruised from her divorce from Tom Cruise, she finds herself suddenly single with two adpoted children to care for. And yet she has blossomed as she has emerged from being Mrs Tom Cruise.
Martin Clunes has been a familiar face on British television for almost two decades. During that period he has starred in some of the best-loved shows of modern times, including Doc Martin, William and Mary, and of course he phenomenally successful Men Behaving Badly. He was introduced to acting at a young age. His father, a successful actor and theatre manager who gave Peter Ustinov his first break, tragically died of cancer in 1970, leaving his wife Daphne, their daughter Amanda, and 8-year-old Martin. Years later, it was Daphne's cousin, Jeremy Brett - the actor famous for playing Sherlock Holmes - who encouraged Martin to take up acting professionally. Martin worked regularly through the 1980s, but when he was spotted by comedian Harry Enfield and subsequently made regular appearances in his popular sketch shows, he was catapulted into the big time. After landing the role of Gary in Men Behabving Badly, he has gone from strengh to strength. Never one to be pigeonholed, Martin has played a broad range of roles, including a serial killer in A is for Acid anb Burbage n the Oscar winning film Shakespeare in Love. More recently, he has also presented two of the most popular documentaries on television: Islands of Britain and Martin Clunes: A Man and His Dogs.
Fifty years ago he was just the boy Harry Webb, performing in a local youth club. Now he is Sir Cliff Richard, the first rock star to be knighted, with a massive international fan base and a top ten hit in each of the last six decades. Yet, despite his huge public persona, the man himself remains a reserved and private figure. Unflinching in its portrayal of the man behind the musical icon, this revealing biography marks fifty years of music from the first British pop star. His fellow musicians, co-stars, directors and Cliff himself talk candidly about his musical ascendance, the women in his life, his religious beliefs and his lasting regret that he has never broken America.
David Jason is Britain's best-loved star. From his wonderful characterisation of Del Boy in Only Fools and Horses to Detective Jack Frost and Mr Micawber, he has captured the heart of a nation. This remarkable biography traces the life of Britain's favourite actor from his humble roots in north London through his days as an electrician to Sir David Jason, the icon we all know and love. Recruited to an early Monty Python project for his masterful sense of timing, David soon attracted the attention of Ronnie Barker with whom he appeared in episodes of the classic BBC comedy series Porridge and Open All Hours. He has gone on to create many of television's popular and enduring characters, earning numerous accolades, including the Royal Television Society's Award for Best Actor, a Top Television Comedy Actor at the British Comedy Awards and a BAFTA fellowship for his outstanding contribution to television. He also received the ultimate tribute in 2005; a knighthood from the Queen. Revealing the man behind Del Boy, Pop Larkin and Jack Frost, this authoritative biography offers valuable insight into his life and loves, covering the tragic loss of his partner of eighteen years, Myfanwy Talog, and the joy of his secret wedding to new love Gill Hinchcliffe, and the birth of their daughter Sophie Mae. It paints a complete portrait of one of England's funniest and most talented actors; a true national treasure.
Martin Clunes has been a familiar face on British television for almost two decades. During that period he has starred in some of the best-loved shows of modern times, including Doc Martin, William and Mary, and of course he phenomenally successful Men Behaving Badly. He was introduced to acting at a young age. His father, a successful actor and theatre manager who gave Peter Ustinov his first break, tragically died of cancer in 1970, leaving his wife Daphne, their daughter Amanda, and 8-year-old Martin. Years later, it was Daphne's cousin, Jeremy Brett - the actor famous for playing Sherlock Holmes - who encouraged Martin to take up acting professionally. Martin worked regularly through the 1980s, but when he was spotted by comedian Harry Enfield and subsequently made regular appearances in his popular sketch shows, he was catapulted into the big time. After landing the role of Gary in Men Behabving Badly, he has gone from strengh to strength. Never one to be pigeonholed, Martin has played a broad range of roles, including a serial killer in A is for Acid anb Burbage n the Oscar winning film Shakespeare in Love. More recently, he has also presented two of the most popular documentaries on television: Islands of Britain and Martin Clunes: A Man and His Dogs.
Jamie Oliver is Britain's best-loved chef. His matey charm and down-to-earth approach to cooking - from The Naked Chef to 30-Minute Meals - have made him a household favourite the length and breadth of the country. Rising from humble pastry chef to television superstar by catching the eye of producers during a documentary about the River Café, his on-screen charisma meant that he featured heavily in the final programme and the offers came flooding in...and so The Naked Chef was born. Jamie's passion shone through and a whole generation of young people were captivated by his enthusiasm. Cooking was suddenly cool! His television series and books gave Jamie fame and fortune the world over, but he always wanted to do something positive with his success. Through his fifteen charity restaurants and campaigns to revolutionise school dinners and get Britain cooking again, Jamie has proved himself to be more than simply a celebrity chef. His desire to bring about radical change has seen him meet with top politicians and raise millions of pounds for good causes. This is the fun and fascinating story behind Jamie Oliver: talented chef, father of four, television celebrity, political campaigner and national institution.
Fifty years ago he was just the boy Harry Webb, performing in a local youth club. Now he is Sir Cliff Richard, the first rock star to be knighted, with a massive international fan base and a top ten hit in each of the last six decades. Yet, despite his huge public persona, the man himself remains a reserved and private figure. Unflinching in its portrayal of the man behind the musical icon, this revealing biography marks fifty years of music from the first British pop star. His fellow musicians, co-stars, directors and Cliff himself talk candidly about his musical ascendance, the women in his life, his religious beliefs and his lasting regret that he has never broken America.
- First trade paper edition in the U.S. - Rod Stewart has sold 70 million records worldwide. - Stewart's album, It Had to be You... The Great American Songbook, composed of American pop standards reached #4 on the Billboard charts and sold more than a million copies by 2003. The follow-up, As Time Goes By... The Great American Songbook, Vol. 2 was released in October of 2003 and entered the Billboard chart at No. 2 It has sold four million copies so far. - Stewart toured the US through the summer of 2004. - Includes a discography and index
He's the hottest talent in the cricketing world today. Hailed as the next Ian Botham, Andrew 'Freddie' Flintoff is a truly phenomenal cricketer. Adored by the fans and an inspiration to his team-mates, it is said that when Freddie's playing, the bar staff get a break as the punters leave the bars to watch him in action. His reputation as a gutsy and hard-working player is rapidly growing and he is seen by many as the man responsible for galvanising the England team into a force to be reckoned with. In this affectionate and revealing portrait, acclaimed biographers Stafford Hildred and Tim Ewbank uncover the man behind this invincible cricketer to find out exactly what makes him tick.
Hope I die before I get old', sang Roger Daltrey over forty years ago, but it didn't quite work out like that. The wild and passionate lead singer for supergroup The Who is still very much alive. The premature deaths of fellow group members Keith Moon and John Entwistle leaves Daltrey and Pete Townshend as the only survivors of the legendary band. Roger Daltrey's life is extraordinary from start to finish: he was expelled from school and written off as a violent thug - before he made his first guitar out of a block of wood, and music and The Who became his salvation. For many years he was the vouce of a generation, strutting bare-chested on stage, swinging the mic around like a lariat at The Who's dynamic concerts. Drawing on interviews with Daltrey himself, as well as his friends and fellow musicians, this is the most complete and revealing biography of one of rock's most powerful personalities.
Acclaimed actor Russell Crowe has a reputation for being volatile and temperamental, combined with a raucous sense of humor. While other movie stars drive themselves to become bigger, more powerful and richer, he dreams of giving it all up to spend time with his family and a select group of motorcycle-minded friends, on his farm in Australia. The great paradox of one of the screen's biggest idols -- star of LA Confidential, Gladiator and Proof of Life -- is that hardly anyone knows him. This new biography includes interviews with the star himself, his family, co-stars and colleagues, and will reveal the real man behind the cool facade.
This is the story of Roy Keane, the skipper of the richest football club inhe world - Manchester United. Since Alex Ferguson paid #2.7million to signim from Nottingham Forest, the midfield dynamo has been the on-field drivingorce behind United's continuing domination of English football.;In thisiography, Hildred and Ewbank show just what makes one Roy Keane tick. Theypeak to his family and friends, and with the verve of fans and true experts,ncover the inside story of the football, big money and the men who make itappen.
The Australian actor who burst on to the Hollywood scene with his roles in LA Confidential and The Insider, not to mention an explosive Oscar - nominated performance in Gladiator is given in - depth biographical treatment in this book. From a small role in daytime soap Neighbours to ''Sextest Man Alive'', Crowe is a different kind of Hollywood star, reminiscent of the golden age of Hollywood, he has the charisma, talent and rugged charm of Bogart and Brando. Unlike so many of his contemporaries, he seems unwilling to succumb to the modern marketing gloss and hype, instead grounding himself on his ranch in New South Wales and choosing roles that are enigmatic, raw, challenging and always highly acclaimed.
This is the story of one of the most popular men in England - as told by theeople who have met him throughout his brilliant career. It tells how Davideckham has grabbed the incredible talent that was given to him and used ito the full, as well as being a man who has never let fame obscure hisatural good humour.;Stanley Hildred and Tim Ewbank uncover the upliftingtory of Beckham, a man whose footballing wizardry has made him a nationalero and celebrity while maintaining his role as a devoted family man.
David Jason and Nicholas Lyndhurst are the Dream Team - the funniest men on television. In this affectionate, informative and enjoyable book, the authors reveal exactly what is behind the amazing chemistry that these two actors create.
This biography presents the life of Roy Keane, one of the most notorious players on the football pitch. His dramatic exit from the World Cup 2002 found him in the glare of publicity once more, as he was sent home before Ireland had even finished training. Keane's disputes with the Ireland manager forced him to miss the chance to captain his country in football's greatest tournament. This book reveals the inside story of the World Cup fiasco, Keane's glittering career from humble beginnings playing for local Irish clubs, to the glory of captaining Manchester United, plus the inside stories on his life off the pitch.
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