An enduring peace is only possible through a genuine understanding of the past. To understand the Troubles is to set them in the context of the historical root causes of the conflict, in order to grapple with its pain and its horrors; to grieve and then, perhaps, to heal.This is the memoir of Patrick Magee, the man who planted the 1984 Brighton bomb – an attempt by the Provisional IRA to kill the British Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, and her cabinet. In an unflinching reckonin...

For fans of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy and ElvenQuest, this is the epic fantasy series first heard on BBC Radio 4 in 1980 that wonderfully parodies J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings. The kingdom of Albion is under threat from The Evil One, and the wizard Radox The Green has found a hero to save the land: Agar, Son of Athar (who has a minotaur called Stephen). Written by Andrew Marshall (writer of 2point4 Children) and John Lloyd (creator o...

Stella Rimington was educated at Nottingham Girls' High School, and Edinburgh and Liverpool Universities. In 1959 she started work in the Worcestershire County Archives, moving in 1962 to the India Office Library in London, as Assistant Keeper responsible for manuscripts relating to the period of the British rule in India. In 1965 she joined the Security Service (MI5) part-time, while she was in India accompanying her husband on a posting to the British High Commission in New Delhi. On her...

Barlinnie is one of the most notorious prisons in the world and for a hundred years it has held Glasgow's toughest and most violent men, swept up from the city streets. Ten men died on its gallows in the infamous Hanging Shed, including serial killer Peter Manuel. It has sparked rooftop protests and cell block riots, and been home to godfathers of crime like Arthur Thompson Snr and Walter Norval. Barlinnie was also the scene of one of the most controversial experiments in penal history, th...

'A terrific account of a great nation cursed by ordinary leaders' - George Megalogenis'There's sharpness and insight in Bryant's book' - Sydney Morning HeraldNever before has Australia enjoyed such economic, commercial, diplomatic and cultural clout. Its recession-proof economy is the envy of the world. It’s the planet’s great lifestyle superpower. But its politics have never been so brutal, narrow and facile, as well as such a glob...

Geoffrey Robertson QC has been at the centre of internationally high-profile legal cases for over three decades. From representing Princess Diana to Salman Rushdie, to his involvement in the celebrated criminal trials of Oz magazine and Gay News, Robertson is an unfailing champion of human rights, justice, freedom and democracy. In this captivating memoir, Robertson reveals what draws him to each case, his ingenious analysis and interpretation of the courtroom proceedings,...

The Sunday Times bestseller THE STORY OF BRITAIN during the long reign of Queen Elizabeth II. Find out how Britain changed in this entrancing, lively portrait of Britain’s Elizabethan Age by bestselling writer and broadcaster Andrew MarrBritain changed fundamentally during the Queen’s long, distinguished reign. So who made modern Britain the country it is today? How do we sum up the kind of people we are? What did it mean to be the new Elizabethans?

A Sunday Times Paperback of the Year 2024The Sunday Times Bestseller and Waterstones Paperback of the Year 2024A Sunday Times History Book of the YearA Spectator Book of the YearThe Irish Times No.1 Bestseller‘As taut as a fictional thriller’ Mail on Sunday‘Gripping, detailed and r...

The Irish National Liberation Army was one of the most ruthless terrorist organisations during the troubles in Northern Ireland. Formed in 1974 as a splinter group of the Official IRA, the INLA's campaign of murder throughout the 1970s and 1980s included such notorious acts as the bombing of the Droppin' Well in Derry in 1982 and, perhaps most infamously, the kidnapping and mutilation of Dublin dentist by former member, the "Border Fox".Many of their leading members found death at ...

Faultless - Football365As EURO 2000 approached, attention once again focused on the potential threat posed by the activities of football hooligans. Not just those from England, but also from Holland, Belgium, Germany,Italy, France and even Turkey.Yet as this last year has proven, whilst the hooligans in other nations cause as much, if not more, trouble than their English counterparts, it is the activities of the fans from this country which always seems to attract the great...

News, views and hilarious stories from the legend of Newsnight and long-standing quiz master of University Challenge.‘Bursting with good things’ Daily TelegraphDuring 25 years as BBC Newsnight’s supreme inquisitor, Jeremy Paxman proved himself as the master of the political intervview. From John Major to Theresa May and Tony Blair to Ed Miliband, he has them quaking in their boots. But it wasn’t just politicians. Paxman’s interview...

In The Trigger Men, bestselling author Martin Dillon delves into the dark and sinister world of Irish terrorism and counter-terrorism. Over three decades he has interviewed and investigated some of the most professional, dangerous and ruthless killers in Ireland. Now Dillon explores their personalities, motivations and bizarre crimes.Many of Ireland's assassins learned their trade in fields and on hillsides in remote parts of Ireland, while others were trained in the Middle East or with Ba...