John Cleese Christopher Lee & Michael Parkinson share their passion for cricket with the great broadcaster Brian Johnston. During the lunch interval on the Saturday of every Test in England BBC Radio's ' Test Match Special' used to invite a well-known guest into the commentary box for a chat with Brian Johnston about themselves & their passion for cricket. Some turned out to be able cricketers but they all had stories to tell about matches they had seen & cricketers they had met. Barry Johnston
- Brian Johnston's son
- has selected five chats from the series A View from the Boundary" beginning in 1980 with the playwright Ben Travers & his vivid recollections of W.G. Grace & other characters from the golden age of cricket. He is followed by Michael Charlton the political broadcaster & former cricket commentator who covered the great Australia v West Indies tied Test in 1960 & John Cleese a lifelong Somerset supporter who tells some funny stories about ' Monty Python' & ' Fawlty Towers'. Hollywood film star Sir Christopher Lee recalls watching the legendary Jack Hobbs & Don Bradman & Sir Michael Parkinson talks about opening the batting at Barnsley with Dickie Bird & how he nearly played for Hampshire. Publisher's note: This recording was taken from part of the cassette release of "A View from the Boundary"."

...

In this definitive biography of Brian Jones Laura Jackson
- the first to insist that Jones was murdered & the first to identify
...

As the lead guitarist of Queen Brian May is one of rocks most recognisable stars. Brian May: the definitive biography charts his life from his childhood through his years studying astro physics & teaching his success with Queen his more recent projects & his volatile relationship with actress Anita Dobson. Bestselling writer Laura Jackson examines closely the many aspects of the musicians life revealing his true story for the first time. The book reveals Queens struggles to gain success & life at the top throwing some of the most notorious & wildly salacious parties in the business. It charts the camaraderie & conflicts within Queen as well as Brians difficult years throughout the disintegration of his first marriage the death of his father & the profound professional & emotional effects of Freddie Mercurys illness & death. The book is packed with nearly 70 first-hand exclusive interviews with some of his closest friends colleagues & fellow musicians. These include school & college friends early band members & colleagues in the scientific world. Interviewees include Tony Iommi Joe Elliott Raul Rodgers Cliff Richard & Spike Edney. ...

Brian ODriscoll is the explosive captain of the golden generation of Irish rugby & a renowned genius on the field. One of the top outside centres in the game ODriscoll first became captain of his country in 2003 & his phenomenal record

Includes:: consecutive triple crowns in 2006 & 2007 & perhaps most memorably in 2009 when he led Ireland to their first Grand Slam for the first time in 60 years. Voted Player of the Decade in 2010 by Rugby World magazine ODriscoll has risen to become the most celebrated player in the sport today. Fully updated to include the 2009 British & Irish Lions tour his wedding to actress Amy Huberman in 2010 the 2011 Six Nations & Lenisters thrilling victory in the Heineken Cup Brian ODriscoll
- The Biography is the ultimate book about the Prince of Irish sport.


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Brian Wilson is a musical genius. Ever since British press agent Derek Taylor launched a publicity campaign with that theme to promote the landmark LP Pet Sounds in 1966 some variation of that claim has been obligatory when discussing the significance of the Beach Boys founder & chief composer. Originally designed to liberate Wilson from his outmoded image as a purveyor of sun-&-surf teen pop so the symphonic sophistication of his music might be properly appreciated the assertion has been repeated so often in the forty-plus years since as to render it virtually meaningless. Indeed if anything the label today seems an albatross around the mans neck inasmuch as Wilsons slow-but-steady reemergence as a working musician since 1998 after three decades of mental illness & drug abuse has been freighted with expectations that he again produce something as epochal as Good Vibrations A to justify the adoration he inspires in impassioned defenders. Brian Wilson interrogates this & other paradigms that stymie critical appreciation of Wilsons work both with the Beach Boys & as a solo artist. This is the first study of Wilson to eschew chronology in favor of a topical organization that allows discussion of lyrical themes & musical motifs outside of any prejudicial presumptions about their place in the trajectory of his career. The meanings of Brian Wilsons work have tended to be determined by the well-known storyline of his rise fall & redemption.A" From abused child to seemingly unstoppable hit-maker to eccentric with a living-room sandbox to the 300-pound Orson Wells of rock A" to the heavily medicated Icarus figure with the full-time Svengali psychiatrist to his current incarnation as a fragile elder-statesman survivor Brian Wilson has quite simply lived the most celebrated bizarre life in pop music. Its sheer Shakespearean proportions have overshadowed a beauty & gentleness of spirit that is as vibrant in Farmers Daughter A" (1963) as it is in recent efforts such as Live Let Live A" (2008). While no one would disagree that Wilson peaked A" in 1966 with Pet Sounds his current CD That Old Lucky Sun (2008) finds him creating beautiful music steeped in Americana that deserves discussion on its own terms rather than as a coda to the accomplishments of his gold-record youth." ...

From the author of the highly praised & somewhat controversial The Brick Bible: A New Spin on the Old Testament" comes the much-anticipated New Testament edition. For over a decade Brendan Powell Smith creator of popular website bricktestament.com has been hard at work using LEGO[registered] to re-create scenes from the Bible. Now in one volume he has brought together over 1 000 "brick" photographs depicting the narrative story of the New Testament. From the life of Jesus
- his birth teachings & parables
- to the famous last supper scene & the crucifixion; from the fate of Judas to the life of Paul & his letters to the Ephesians; from the first book burning to the book of Revelations this is the New Testament as you've never experienced it before. Smith combines the actual text of the New Testament with his brick photographs to bring to life the teachings miracles & prophecies of the most popular book in the world. The graphic novel format makes these well-known Bible stories come to life in a fun & engaging way. & the beauty of " The Brick Bible: The New Testament" is that everyone from the devout to nonbelievers will find something breathtaking fascinating or entertaining within this impressive collection."

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While to many LEGO bricks are 'just a toy' to an ever-growing army of fans they provide a challenging & enjoyable modelling medium. These fans calling themselves 'AFOLs' or Adult Fans of LEGO have taken it upon themselves to recreate local landmarks using just the bricks that you may find at a local store. LEGO models created by adult fans however don't resemble those that many people created as a child. Created by masters of their medium these fabulously detailed models may contain thousands of pieces
- or perhaps just a handful. Either way the talented artists have an intimate knowledge of every piece & colour available. Skilfully choosing the ideal piece to recreate a well-known landmark they may create a model indistinguishable from the real thing or evoke the spirit of a building in just a few small pieces. In fact landmarks & cityscapes
- from the New York skyline to the Sagrada Familia London's St Pancras & the amazing towers of Beijing & Hong Kong
- have long been a source of inspiration for LEGO builders. In this book LEGO artist Warren Elsmore takes us on a world tour & explores more than 12 global cities & their iconic structures. Each city is examined & recreated in LEGO form. Comprising amazing artwork exploratory photographs & detailed breakdowns Brick City looks at the essence of what makes an urban landscape recognizable.


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Still in her teenage years Nazneen finds herself in an arranged marriage with a disappointed man who is twenty years older. Away from the mud & heat of her Bangladeshi village home is now a cramped flat in a high-rise block in London's East End. Nazneen knows not a word of English & is forced to depend on her husb&. But unlike him she is practical & wise & befriends a fellow Asian girl Razia who helps her understand the strange ways of her adopted new British home. Nazneen keeps in touch with her sister Hasina back in the village. But the rebellious Hasina has kicked against cultural tradition & run off in a 'love marriage' with the man of her dreams. When he suddenly turns violent she is forced into the degrading job of garment girl in a cloth factory. Confined in her flat by tradition & family duty Nazneen also sews furiously for a living shut away with her buttons & linings
- until the radical Karim steps unexpectedly into her life. On a background of racial conflict & tension they embark on a love affair that forces Nazneen finally to take control of her fate. Strikingly imagined gracious & funny this novel is at once epic & intimate. Exploring the role of Fate in our lives
- those who accept it; those who defy it
- it traces the extraordinary transformation of an Asian girl from cautious & shy to bold & dignified woman.


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A blockbusting new thriller introducing maverick FBI agent Steve Vail. Move over Jack Reacher here comes The Bricklayer." James Patterson STEVE VAIL IS A MAVERICK. A trained killer & former agent Vail despises authority & he's never met a rule he didn't break. These days he's working as a bricklayer. Now Deputy Kate Bannon of the FBI desperately wants his help. Because someone is killing their operatives
- in complex subtle twisted ways
- & the body count is rising fast. Someone holds a fatal grudge against the agency; someone who knows how it works & wants a bloody revenge. & it might be an inside job. To stem the tide of murders Vail must re-enter a world he hoped he left behind long ago
- his own past."


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Bricks were introduced to Britain by the Romans & reintroduced by Flemish craftsmen in the middle ages. Until the early nineteenth century they were made in numerous small brickyards supplying local needs but eventually increasing demand led to the invention of enhanced brickmaking machines & kilns. This book gives an insight into the surprising variety of bricks as well as a brief history of brickmaking descriptions of hand & machine moulding drying the use of kilns & firing. Despite competition from newer materials brick still holds its own as a facing material & traditional methods still survive in the smaller yards. ...