Musicals are the most popular form of stage entertainment today with the West End & Broadway dominated by numerous long-running hits But for every Wicked or Phantom of the Opera there are dozens of casualties that didn't fare quite so well In this book Julian Woolford explores the musical-theatre canon to explain why & how some musicals work why some don't & what you should (and shouldn't) do if you're thinking of writing your own Drawing on his experience as a successful writer & director of musicals & as a lecturer in writing musicals at the University of London Woolford outlines every step of the creative process from hatching the initial idea & developing a structure for the work through creating the book the music & the lyrics & on to the crucial process of rewriting He then guides the reader through getting a musical produced with invaluable advice about generating future productions & sustaining a career The book

Includes:: dozens of exercises to assist the novice writer in developing their craft & detailed case studies of well-known musicals such as Les Miserables The Sound of Music Miss Saigon Little Shop of Horrors Godspell & Evita An essential guide for any writers (or would-be writers) of musicals How Musicals Work is a fascinating insight for anyone interested in the art form or who has ever wondered what it takes to get from first idea to first night

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THE NUMBER ONE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER
- Robert Webb's part-memoir part call-to-arms 336 pages colour plate sections Webb Robert
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RULES FOR BEING A MANDon&t Cry; Love Sport; Play Rough; Drink Beer; Don&t Talk About Feelings But Robert Webb has been wondering for some time now are those rules actually any use? To anyone? Looking back over his life from schoolboy crushes (on girls & boys) to discovering the power of making people laugh (in the Cambridge Footlights with David Mitchell) & from losing his beloved mother to becoming a husband & father Robert Webb considers the absurd expectations boys & men have thrust upon them at every stage of life Hilarious & heartbreaking How Not To Be a Boy explores the relationships that made Robert who he is as a man the lessons we learn as sons & daughters & the understanding that sometimes you aren&t the Luke Skywalker of your life
- you&re actually Darth Vader
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An anecdote-driven narrative of the classic footballer's DOs & DO NOTs' from the ever-popular Arsenal legend & football pundit Paul Merson aka The Merse' When it comes to advice on the pitfalls of life as a professional footballer Paul Merson can pretty much write the manual In fact that's exactly what he's done in this hilarious new book which manages to be simultaneously poignant & gloriously funny Merson was a prodigiously talented footballer in the 80s & 90s gracing the upper echelons of the game
- & the tabloid front pages
- with his breathtakingly skills & larger-than-life off-field persona His much-publicised battles with gambling drug & alcohol addiction are behind him now & football fans continue to be drawn to his sharp footballing brain & playful antics on Sky Sports cult results show Soccer Saturday The book delights & entertains with a treasure chest of terrific anecdotes from a man who has never lost his love of football & his inimitable joie de vivre through a 25-year association with the Beautiful Game The DO NOTs include DO NOT adopt ' Champagne' Charlie Nicholas as your mentor DO NOT share a house with Gazza DO NOT regularly place GBP30000 bets at the bookie's DO NOT get so drunk that you can't remember the 90 minutes of football you just played in DO NOT manage Walsall (at any cost) How Not to be a Professional Footballer is a hugely entertaining moving & laugh-out-loud funny story

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THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLERThe maths we learn in school can seem like an abstract set of rules laid down by the ancients & not to be questioned In fact Jordan Ellenberg shows us maths touches on everything we do & a little mathematical knowledge reveals the hidden structures that lie beneath the world's messy & chaotic surface In How Not to be Wrong Ellenberg explores the mathematician's method of analyzing life from the everyday to the cosmic showing us which numbers to defend which ones to ignore & when to change the equation entirely Along the way he explains calculus in a single page describes Goedel's theorem using only one-syllable words & reveals how early you actually need to get to the airport ...

The illustrated cookbook from the author of the international bestseller How Not To Die featuring 100 recipes to help reverse & prevent disease
- now in paperback 272 pages Greger Michael
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Shortlisted for the YA Book Prize 2017 & longlisted for the 2017 CILIP Carnegie Medal this novel will make you laugh & break your heart Our memories are what make us who we are Some are real Some are made up But they are the stories that tell us who we are Without them we are nobody Hattie's summer isn't going as planned Her two best friends have abandoned her Reuben has run off to Europe to 'find himself' & Kat is in Edinburgh with her new girlfriend Meanwhile Hattie is stuck babysitting her twin siblings & dealing with endless drama around her mum's wedding Oh & she's also just discovered that she's pregnant with Reuben's baby Then Gloria Hattie's great-aunt who no one even knew existed comes crashing into her life Gloria's fiercely independent rather too fond of a gin sling & is in the early stages of dementia Together the two of them set out on a road trip of self-discovery
- Gloria to finally confront the secrets of her past before they are erased from her memory forever & Hattie to face the hard choices that will determine her future Non Pratt's Trouble meets Thelma & Louise with a touch of Elizabeth is Missing by Emma Healey Clare Furniss' remarkable How Not To Disappear is an emotional rollercoaster of a novel ' Funny moving & packed with characters that jump off the page' Lisa Williamson author of The Art of Being Normal ' Absolutely gorgeous heartfelt & incredibly enjoyable' Robin Stevens author of Lady Most Unladylike ' Funny sharply observed shocking & wonderful' Sunday Times Children's book of the week 'A beautifully executed story gloriously funny deeply emotional & a triumph' Daily Mail
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As a mother are you comfortable in your skin? Want to know how best to be a stay-at-home or working mum? Babies have very simple needs yet many parents are overwhelmed with elaborate advice on how to meet them In How Not to F Them Up leading child psychologist Oliver James argues that your under-threes do not need training; it's getting your head straight as a parent that's important Drawing on extensive interviews & the lastest clinical research James identifies three basic types of mum the Hugger the Organiser & the Fleximum Outlining the benefits & pitfalls of each How Not to F Them Up shows you how to recognise which style suits you best & outlines simple strategies to reconcile personal ambitions with the needs of your family Empowering & provocative Oliver James will help you make the best choices for bringing up a happy confident child ...

A hilarious debut for all fans of Mhairi Mc Farlane & Lisa Owens The perfect antidote for Valentine's Day! Life is 10 planning 10 design & 80 totally winging it Join Emma as she guides you through How Not to become accidentally knocked up at the age of 27 How Not to unceremoniously dump the father of your child & then How Not to lose the job that (even though you hate it) is the only thing between you & being homeless Hilarious & heart-warming How Not to Fall in Love Actually will make you laugh make you cry & will reassure you that perhaps your life is not that bad actually What people are saying about How Not to Fall in Love Actually 'A phenomenal cast of characters & some real laugh out loud moments Brilliant!' Heidi Swain author of The Cherry Tree Cafe & Mince Pies & Mistletoe at the Christmas Market ' More bubbly than a big glass of champers & just as fun How Not To Fall In Love Actually is bright breezy & the perfect way to beat back the winter blues' Georgia Clark author of The Regulars ...

‘ Clever honest & hilarious her book should become a baby shower classic’ Publishers Weekly‘ Funny honest & helpful’ Grazia‘ Loads of useful achievable advice’ The Pool How did I become the ‘expert’ at changing a nappy? Jancee Dunn wondered This combined with a lack of sleep a suddenly unfair division of household chores & her husband’s new found passion for very long bike rides meant that Jancee found it hard to look at her well-meaning clever funny husband playing with his iPhone without feeling a white-hot rage Like many expectant parents they’d spent weeks researching the safest car seat but little time thinking about the titanic impact the baby would have on their marriage &8213; & the way their marriage would affect their child Tired of having the same fights over & over Dunn consults the latest relationship research solicits the counsel of renowned sex & couples therapists canvasses friends & parents & even consults an FBI hostage negotiator on how to effectively contain an ‘explosive situation’ Could it be that the person who got her into this position is the ally she&d forgotten she had? Funny honest & actually helpful this book can’t do the washing but it might just save your marriage ...