Royalty & Religion Biographies

A seriously FUNNY, seriously CLEVER history of our early kings and queens by one of our favourite comedians and cultural commentators. This will be the most refreshing, entertaining history of England you'll have ever read. Certainly, the funniest. Because David Mitchell will explain how it is not all names, dates or ungraspable historical headwinds, but instead show how it's really...

A major reassessment of one of Britain's most important monarchs. The Mirror of Great Britain explores the life of James VI & I, who died 400 years ago. He was one of Britain's most consequential and interesting monarchs, renowned for creating the British monarchy itself by uniting the English and Scottish thrones. A major intellectual figure, James's interests ranged from...

The instant No. 1 Sunday Times bestseller, updated with exclusive new material. 'Scoops aplenty are here . . . An irresistible insider account of momentous royal events' - Melanie Reid, The Times 'Fascinating . . . the book everyone is talking about' - Daily Mail By the acclaimed royal biographer and commentator Robert Hardman, Charles III is an intimate portrait...

90 classic titles celebrating 90 years of Penguin Books During his reign, Lord Cobham was burnt alive, but I forget what for. In Jane Austen's breezy and entirely biased telling of English history, The History of England by a Partial, Prejudiced and Ignorant Historian, Mary, Queen of Scots is a scandalously wronged victim, Elizabeth I is a wicked villain, and...

A rattling page-turner... As a personal insight into one boy's life in an extraordinary spotlight, it may never be better. Sunday Times Memoir of the Year It was one of the images of the twentieth century: two boys walking behind the coffin of their mother, Princess Diana. Billions wondered what the princes must be feeling—and how their lives would play...

With a new introduction and concluding chapter from bestselling medieval author Dan Jones. Richard III is one of the most mysterious figures in English history and is, as such, a source of perennial fascination. Comparatively little is known of his early life, his appearance, and his interests. Up to 1483, he played second fiddle to his more glorious older brothers,...

FROM THE NO.1 SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF CATHERINE, THE PRINCESS OF WALES: THE BIOGRAPHY, OUT NOW IN PAPERBACK From Elizabeth II to King William, The Windsor Legacy offers a riveting exploration of the British monarchy's resilience and influence over the past century, looking at its key players and conflicts, with a forward-looking examination of its future. In an age...

A TLS, TIMES, PROSPECT AND WATERSTONES BOOK OF THE YEAR A groundbreaking examination of how the marriage of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn sent shockwaves across a continent and changed England forever. 'In many places, where once we had speculation, we now have certainty. This book is at once an education and a joy to read' LITERARY REVIEW 'Combines meticulously...

A harrowing, heart-rending first-hand account of one of the most infamous events in history—the atomic bombing of Nagasaki. A book that everyone should read The Times A harrowing, heart-rending first-hand account of the bombing of Nagasaki—and the acts of human kindness left in its wake. On 9th August 1945, the Japanese city of Nagasaki is hit by an atomic bomb....

The Sunday Times No. 1 Bestseller, Now with a Brand New Final Chapter 'Explosive' The Sun'Accounts from insiders who have never spoken before' The Times'Bombshell' The Mirror The British Royal Family believed that the dizzy success of the Sussex wedding, watched and celebrated around the world, was the beginning of a new era for the Windsors. Yet, within one tumultuous...

For fans of The Crown and The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman. 'Like an episode of The Crown - but with a spicy dish of murder on the side' (DAILY MAIL) The morning after a dinner party at Windsor Castle, eighty-nine-year-old Queen Elizabeth is shocked to discover that one of her guests has been found murdered in his room,...

An exciting new telling of the life of Anne Boleyn, using new archival research to reveal the woman behind the myth, from the acclaimed historian Dr Estelle Paranque. A queen on the edge. Anne Boleyn has mesmerised the English public for centuries. Her tragic execution, orchestrated by her own husband, never ceases to intrigue. How did this courtier's daughter become...

A masterful new translation of Suetonius' renowned biographies of the twelve Caesars, by the award-winning historian and The Rest Is History podcaster Tom Holland. The ancient Roman empire was the supreme arena, where emperors had no choice but to fight, to thrill, to dazzle. To rule as a Caesar was to stand as an actor upon the great stage of...

A brilliant new cultural history of the Queen of Hearts For more than forty years, Diana, Princess of Wales, has been mythologised to the most extraordinary degree. Adored and lionised by some, ridiculed and traduced by others, Diana has always commanded a cultural presence unmatched by any other member of the royal family. In Dianaworld, Edward White offers both a...

In an evocative memoir, Catherine Coldstream describes life as a contemplative nun in the 1990s, and the dramatic events which led to her flight from the monastery on the brink of the Millennium. Evocative - Sarah Perry Immersive - Katherine May Profoundly moving - Mark Haddon Discover Catherine Coldstream's compelling account of life as a nun in the 1990s, and...

The SUNDAY TIMES bestselling inside story of the real relationship between King Charles III and his mother, our late Queen, by the acclaimed royal biographer, Ingrid Seward. ‘Incisive, emotive and journalistically rigorous’ - The Telegraph ‘Revelatory and perceptive’ - Andrew Morton, author of Diana: Her True Story The relationship between the late monarch and her son, the King, has long...

'Full of delightful stories...a wonderful insight into the British obsession with al fresco eating' - Travel Gourmet From the peaks of the Himalayas to the historic grounds of Hampton Court, there’s always a perfect spot for a picnic! Anne Glenconner invites both old friends and new acquaintances to join her in The Picnic Papers. Featuring contributions from Bryan Adams, Graham...

The Sunday Times number-one bestseller. A reissue of this classic title brought up to date with never-before-published material from the original taped interviews and a new introduction by Andrew Morton. This edition reflects on the extraordinary circumstances surrounding the original publication, and on the long-term legacy of Diana, the woman who helped reinvigorate the royal family, giving it a more...

The groundbreaking, intimate and inspiring memoir from Pope Francis. The wish of Pope Francis was for HOPE, on which he has been working for six years, to be published posthumously. However, with the Jubilee Year of Hope coming in 2025 and the pressing needs of our times, he has been urged to share this personal legacy now. HOPE is the...

In his irreverent and uncompromising bestseller ... And What Do You Do?, former Minister of State and Privy Counsellor Norman Baker laid bare what the British royal family didn't want us to know, namely its extravagant use of public money and general bad behaviour.This sensational sequel goes even deeper in its analysis of royal finances, examining where the money comes...

A Daily Mail Best History Book of the Year; A Spectator Best Book of the Year It is generally accepted that Queen Victoria reigned but did not rule. This couldn’t be more wrong. In Queen Victoria and Her Prime Ministers, Anne Somerset masterfully traces Victoria’s political evolution, from headstrong teenager to seasoned octogenarian. This book demonstrates her passionate involvement in...

Thoroughly researched and with a real understanding of the times these six fascinating women lived through, Alison Weir's book reveals a Tudor England where personal needs and private emotion could, and frequently did, override or influence national events. One of the most powerful monarchs in British history, Henry VIII ruled England in unprecedented splendour. In this remarkable composite biography, Alison...

Shortlisted for the Edward Stanford Travel Book of the Year 2025 Financial Times best summer travel book of 2024 Travel Book of the Year at the Inspire Global Media Awards 'A powerfully delicate book of love, loss and discovery, along paths of emotional understanding and physical wonder.' Raynor Winn On an assignment to walk the most famous pilgrimage in the...

'Certain to become the definitive work' DOUGLAS SMITH 'Elegantly written and magisterially researched' ROBERT SERVICE 'Masterful . . . a chilling lesson' VLADISLAV ZUBOK The definitive story behind the self-destruction of the autocratic Romanov dynasty, by the world's foremost expert. When Tsar Nicholas II fell from power in 1917, Imperial Russia faced a series of overlapping crises, from war to...

DISCOVER THE TRUTH BEHIND THE HEADLINES, THE REVELATORY ROYAL BIOGRAPHY OF THE YEAR From the Sunday Times bestselling author and Royal correspondent, Robert Jobson - with his extensive connections within the royal household - this revelatory new biography tells the full story of how Catherine, the Princess of Wales, became the woman she is today. Kate Middleton's life story seems...

The Times Book of the Week Named one of The Telegraph's 'Best Biographies of the Year 2024' Queen Victoria had forty-two grandchildren, but the four Princesses of Hesse were held in her particular favour. After the sudden death of her daughter Alice, Queen Victoria took an obsessive interest in the marriage prospects of the four girls their mother had left...

Surprised by Joy is C. S. Lewis’s captivating and profoundly personal autobiography that chronicles his journey from staunch atheism to devout Christianity. In his own inimitable style, Lewis shares the intricate and intellectual journey that led him to re-examine his beliefs and ultimately embrace faith. This journey is set against the background of his early life in Belfast, his academic...

THE UTTERLY BRILLIANT FIFTH BOOK IN THE HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN INVESTIGATES MYSTERY SERIES - NOW AVAILABLE TO PRE-ORDER IN HARDBACK, EBOOK AND AUDIOBOOK! It's 1961 and the Queen is planning her state visit to Italy aboard Britannia. But before she goes, an unreliable witness claims to have seen a brutal murder from the royal train. Did it really happen,...

A universally praised, richly enjoyable new history of medieval France. One of the great epics of Europe's history, the story of the rise and rise of the Capetian dynasty dominates the Middle Ages. Starting in the tenth century from an insecure foothold around Paris, the Capetians built a nation that stretched from the Atlantic to the Mediterranean and from the...

The author of She-Wolves chronicles the lives and reigns of Richard II and Henry IV, two cousins whose rivalry brought their nation to the brink of disintegration - and back again. Richard of Bordeaux and Henry Bolingbroke were first cousins, born just three months apart. Their lives were entwined from the beginning. When they were still children, Richard was crowned...

In her memoirs, Wallis Simpson described her time in China as her ‘Lotus Year’, referring to Homer’s Lotus Eaters, a group living in a state of dreamy forgetfulness, never to return home. That year, however, was also used to damn her in the eyes of the British Establishment. Determined to ‘save’ the monarchy, the British government’s ‘China Dossier’ of Wallis’s...

‘Tom Bower is the Inspector Morse of investigative biographers, a fluent, phlegmatic storyteller and a master of intricacies.’ Sunday Times The British Crown is in crisis, with constitutional threats at home and abroad. At a landmark moment in royal history, can King Charles overcome the scandals that blight the Royal family? Can the broken bonds between the Houses of Sussex...

The Sunday Times #1 Bestseller A Book of the Year in The Times and Financial Times ‘This isn’t a book; it’s a case for revolution’ — Camilla Long, Sunday Times ‘A damning cannonball of truth through the York ramparts’ — Mail on Sunday ‘Surely has a claim to the title of book of the year, for its seismic impact’ —...

HarperCollins is proud to present its incredible range of best-loved, essential classics. The Confessions of Saint Augustine is a profound autobiographical work that traces the remarkable journey of Augustine, from his youth spent in pursuit of worldly pleasures to his ultimate transformation into one of Christianity's most influential thinkers. This seminal work captures his internal struggles with sin, his profound...

Filled with sparkling anecdotes and tales of living life to the full, featuring previously unseen photographs from Lady Glenconner's personal collection. Lady Anne Glenconner, Lady-in-Waiting to Princess Margaret and Maid of Honour at the Queen's Coronation, returns with a rich, sparkling memoir told through an A to Z of her life. From affairs of the heart and Basil's Bar to...

The groundbreaking, intimate, and inspiring memoir from Pope Francis. The wish of Pope Francis was for HOPE, on which he has been working for six years, to be published posthumously. However, with the Jubilee Year of Hope coming in 2025, the pressing needs of our times have urged Pope Francis to share this personal legacy now. HOPE is the revelatory...

The first joint biography of William and Catherine to be written in over a decade, by acclaimed royal journalist and broadcaster Russell Myers. From the relentless media scrutiny and controversies of their 2022 Caribbean Tour to the shock cancer diagnoses of both the Princess of Wales and the King, this captivating biography by acclaimed royal journalist Russell Myers intimately traces...

For countless women in faith communities, Sunday morning smiles can mask a different reality: drowning in endless service, overwhelmed by expectations and thinking their exhaustion is simply a spiritual problem requiring more prayer. We’re familiar with terms like gaslighting, people-pleasing and accommodating, but when these behaviours show up in our everyday lives – like in our church communities – they...

The Sunday Times Bestseller The Times and Sunday Times Best Memoir of 2024… 'Genius' A Book of the Year for the Spectator, Mail on Sunday, New Statesman, Financial Times, Independent, Telegraph, Sunday Express and The Tablet. From one of the funniest writers of our time, the award-winning author of One Two Three Four and Ma'am Darling turns his attention to...

Revealed for the first time: the true story of the entrapment and deception of Princess Diana The death of Princess Diana in August 1997 was one of the most shocking events in recent history. Many events surrounding the tragedy have been shrouded in mystery, particularly the BBC Panorama interview Diana gave to journalist Martin Bashir less than two years before...

A stunning new story of Queen Victoria's secret love for her servant John Brown, by the acclaimed historian Fern Riddell. 'So often I told him no one loved him more than I did ... and he answered, "Nor you than me. No-one loves you more" ...' From the moment John Brown arrived as a servant to Queen Victoria's household, he...

'What a story - never heard a story like that before' - Chris Evans 'Uplifting and brave' - Stylist 'Claire Nelson relives a life-changing four days' - The Times 'A riveting account of loneliness, anxiety and survival' - Cosmopolitan 'An astonishing feat of physical and emotional endurance' - Mail on Sunday YOU Magazine 'A gripping account of her determination to...

The Crown meets The West Wing in this illuminating history that chronicles the largely unknown story of Queen Elizabeth II’s relationship with thirteen American presidents, from Harry S. Truman to Donald J. Trump. With that, she changed the world. No American or foreign leader has met with as many sitting presidents as Queen Elizabeth II. Her Royal Majesty’s seventy-year reign...

Features over 100 sumptuous images From the birth of the house of Windsor in 1917, its leading women—Queen Mary, the Queen Mother, the Duchess of Windsor, and Queen Elizabeth II—faced abdication and assassination, revolution and the rise of fascism, the threat of invasion and all-out war. Their sartorial decisions, alongside those of their royal husbands, projected power and perpetuity, diplomacy...

In little more than fifty years, the regard with which the Royal Family are held has changed out of all recognition. Their private lives are now the stuff of soap opera, and it seems anyone who comes into contact with them sells their story to magazines or newspapers. Marion Crawford, 'Crawfie', as she was known to the Queen and Princess...

From a trusted advisor and devoted friend of Mother Teresa comes a “powerful” (The Washington Free Beacon) firsthand account of the miraculous woman behind the saint and a book that is “rich in reflection on contemporary sanctity” (George Weigel). Mother Teresa was one of the most admired women of the 20th century, and her memory continues to inspire charitable work...

A Journey for the Ages The Pilgrimage paved the way to Paulo Coelho’s international bestselling novel The Alchemist. In many ways, these two volumes are companions— to truly comprehend one, you must read the other. Step inside this captivating account of Coelho’s pilgrimage along the road to Santiago. This fascinating parable explores the need to find one’s own path. In...

'A brilliant, funny and thought-provoking book' - Jonn Elledge 'Compelling, provocative, and utterly brilliant' - Dr Estelle Paranque THIS PAPERBACK FEATURES ADDITIONAL MATERIAL ON HER MAJESTY QUEEN ELIZABETH II How the monarchs of England and Scotland met their deaths has been a wonderful mixture of violence, infections, overindulgence and occasional regicide. In Mortal Monarchs, medical historian Dr Suzie Edge examines...

A wonderful insight into the faith of C. S. Lewis – the leading writer on Christianity and author of the Narnia books – offering encouragement for everyone struggling with intellectual questions, personal conflicts, or ethical dilemmas. C. S. Lewis shared his thinking on his faith through his brilliant books, notably Mere Christianity, and his extraordinary number of letters to his...

How to find the sublime in your everyday life Spirituality—belief, if you will—is not exclusive. It's for everyone. Whether you're wearing a cross, a hijab, or nothing at all, we all search for meaning. But how do we find it? And how can we build a world that embraces all paths to the divine, however we define it and however...

An unforgettable and profound book of wisdom, offering timeless teachings for living well in an uncertain world. In September 2022, Nikki Goldstein was near death in a Sydney hospital when her family spotted Rabbi Eli Schlanger in the hallway and asked him to come pray for her. Standing beside her bed, he blew the shofar and whispered ancient prayers over...

A brilliant double biography of two female saints: Teresa of Avila and Thérèse of Lisieux. The two saints whose lives Vita Sackville-West contrasts in this double biography were recorded by very different epithets: "the great" and "the little". Both women were Carmelites, both canonised, and both shared the same name. But whilst Teresa of Avila was aristocratic, intellectual, vigorous, and...

PLUTARCH AWARD FOR THE BEST BIOGRAPHY OF 2024 SHORTLISTED FOR THE DUFF COOPER PRIZE ‘SUBLIME’ A NEW STATESMAN BOOK OF THE YEAR 2024 ‘STUNNINGLY GOOD’ THE TIMES BEST HISTORY BOOKS 2024 ‘COMPULSIVE’ A PROSPECT BOOK OF THE YEAR 2024 ‘BRILLIANT’ A SPECTATOR BOOK OF THE YEAR 2024 From the winner of the Baillie Gifford Prize, an extraordinary story of the...

A landmark reinterpretation of the life of William the Conqueror—a pivotal figure in British and European history "[The] definitive biography of the man who forever changed England with his invasion of 1066."—Tony Barber, “Best books of 2016," Financial Times In this magisterial addition to the Yale English Monarchs series, David Bates combines biography and a multidisciplinary approach to examine the...

Lloyd Geering is one of New Zealand's foremost thinkers, a man of clarity and vision who continues to present new and challenging ideas about the spiritual life of the culture he lives in. His life almost spans the twentieth century, and his stories of growing up in the Depression, cycling trips around the country, and a lively but impoverished student...

One of Britain's most distinguished biographers turns her focus on one of the most vilified women of the twentieth century. Historian Anne Sebba has written the first full biography by a woman of Wallis Simpson, Duchess of Windsor. That Woman, as she was referred to by the Queen Mother, became a hate figure for ensnaring a British king and destabilising...

They chose not to speak and now they are gone… What’s left to fill the silence is no longer theirs. This is my story, woven from the threads of rumour and legend. Jakub Rand flees his village for Prague, only to find himself trapped by the Nazi occupation. Deported to the Theresienstadt concentration camp, he is forced to sort through...

The filthy back streets of London's East End in the Victorian era were home to every imaginable crime, vice, and horror. Many thousands lived there without Christ and without hope, and no one seemed to care. But William Booth did care. In 1865, Booth began a mission that took the Gospel to these people. It became The Salvation Army and...

An intensely moving account of George III’s doomed attempt to create a happy, harmonious family, written with astonishing emotional force by a stunning new history writer. George III came to the throne in 1760 as a man with a mission. He was determined to break with the extraordinarily dysfunctional home lives of his Hanoverian predecessors. He was sure that as...

Platinum Jubilee edition ‘Full of gems … Angela Kelly is a jewel in the crown’Daily Telegraph ‘Entertaining and beautifully illustrated’The Sunday Times ‘For real intel, [The Crown] can’t come close to The Other Side of the Coin by Angela Kelly’The New York Times ‘When Angela Kelly and The Queen are together, laughter echoes through the corridors of Buckingham Palace.’ Angela...

Full of passion and betrayal, murder and war, the first volume of an epic new series from bestselling historian Alison Weir, bringing five of England's medieval queens to life. Queens of the Conquest is a Daily Telegraph Book of the Year. Love, murder, war, betrayal — this is the story of the five extraordinary queens who helped the Norman kings...

For the first time, Pope Francis tells the story of his life as he looks back on the momentous world events that have changed history—from his earliest years during the outbreak of World War II in 1939 to the turmoil of today. An extraordinary personal and historical journey, Life is the story of a man and a world in dramatic...

The acclaimed biography of one of the most extraordinary of all European rulers. Charles, King of the Franks, is one of the most remarkable figures ever to rule a European super-state. That is why he is so often called 'Charles the Great'—by the French 'Charlemagne', and by the Germans 'Karl der Grosse'. King and Emperor by Janet L. Nelson brings...

The extraordinary story of how a leading Buddhist monk overcame persecution, addiction and trauma to find enlightenment. Lama Yeshe didn't see a car until he was 15 years old. Growing up in a quiet Tibetan village, he ran in fields with yaks and mastiffs. The passing of time was simply marked by the changing seasons; life was simple and free....

This is the story of Messalina - third wife of Emperor Claudius and one of the most notorious women to have inhabited the Roman world. According to the Roman historians Tacitus and Suetonius, the Empress Messalina was a sexually insatiable schemer. The tales they told about her – including a twenty-four-hour sex competition with a prostitute – have taken deep...

A HISTORY TODAY BOOK OF THE YEAR 'Certain to become the definitive work' DOUGLAS SMITH 'Elegantly written and magisterially researched' ROBERT SERVICE 'Masterful . . . a chilling lesson' VLADISLAV ZUBOK The definitive story behind the self-destruction of the autocratic Romanov dynasty, by the world's foremost expert. When Tsar Nicholas II fell from power in 1917, Imperial Russia faced a...

From one of the funniest writers of our time, the award-winning and Sunday Times bestselling author of One Two Three Four and Ma'am Darling turns his attention to Queen Elizabeth II in an unforgettable and fascinating biography. Virginia Woolf compared her to a caterpillar; Anne Frank kept pictures of her on the wall of her annex; Jimi Hendrix played her...

Globally famous and yet universally misunderstood – these are the complex and utterly engrossing stories of Britain's royal women behind the public façade. Saints or sinners? Perfect princesses or difficult duchesses? Monarchy’s saviours or its destroyers? They rank among the world’s most famous women – and the most misunderstood. Throughout history, royal women have been sanitised and sanctified by supporters,...

It's 1961 and the Queen is planning her state visit to Italy aboard Britannia. But before she goes, an unreliable witness claims to have seen a brutal murder from the royal train. Did it really happen, and could the victim be a missing friend of Princess Margaret's new husband, Tony Armstrong Jones? The Queen and her assistant private secretary, Joan...

The first American Pope’s words for the world reveal themes to his leadership: peace, hope, and unity."I would like this greeting of peace to resound in your hearts, in your families, among all people, wherever they may be, in every nation and throughout the world. Peace be with you!"With his first public appearance before the world, Pope Leo XIV expressed...

The Queen by Michelle Morgan offers a warm and nostalgic biography of the powerhouse monarch, Queen Elizabeth II. Written by an experienced biographer, this book is structured around 100 vignettes, inviting readers into an intimate telling of key moments from her long life. Many of the stories within relate to significant milestones such as her wedding to Prince Philip, the...

A ground-breaking and essential work of history – the first of its kind to closely examine the British Royal Family’s connection with the transatlantic slave trade. The Crown's Silence is the untold story of the British royal family’s relationship to slavery from the reign of Elizabeth I to the present. It will be the first history of the British monarchy...

A portrait of one of the ancient world’s first political celebrities, who veered from failure to success and back again “This colourful biography of Demetrius explores his rich inner life and reveals an ancient world of violence and intrigue.”—New York Times Book Review The life of Demetrius (337–283 BCE) serves as a through-line to the forty years following the death...

Abi Millar is looking for something. She grew up in an evangelical church, but after she lost her faith, she found herself searching for spirituality in other places. Torn between trying to balance the logical part of her brain with the part that secretly believes in magic, and in the wake of a great loss, she wondered whether her crisis...

Triumph and tragedy, love and loss, murder and malice in the lives of five fifteenth-century queens. The fifteenth century was a turbulent age - the Hundred Years War between England and France, and the Wars of the Roses dominated the lives of people both inside and out of the royal courts. Joan of Navarre, Katherine of Valois, Margaret of Anjou,...

THE SUNDAY TIMES TOP 10 BESTSELLER "It is a beautifully written book about a unique and extraordinary man who was the longest-serving consort to the longest reigning monarch in British history. I have read many other books about Philip but this is the best." - DAILY EXPRESS "Gloriously witty and incisive" - DAILY MAIL "It's bloody brilliant, totally inspiring ......

In the Shadow of the Empress is the sweeping family saga of beautiful Maria Theresa, the only woman to inherit and rule the vast Habsburg empire in her own name, and three of her remarkable daughters: lovely, talented Maria Christina, governor general of the Austrian Netherlands; spirited Maria Carolina, the resolute queen of Naples; and the youngest, Marie Antoinette, the...

'This second volume of memoirs is as fascinating as the first....full of wit, joy, vivid vignettes and useful insights...she has another bestseller on her hands' India Knight, Sunday Times 'It's great to have another memoir from Lady Glenconner . . . as open-minded and entertaining as she clearly is' Lynn Barber, Sunday Telegraph 'A jolly anecdote for every day of...