Q: Why despite all the shortages was the toilet paper in East Germany always 2-ply? A: Because they had to send a copy of everything they did to Moscow. Communist jokes are the strangest funniest most enchanting & meaningful legacy of the 80 years of political experimentation in Russia & Eastern Europe known as Communism. The valiant & sardonic citizens of the former Communist countries
- surrounded by an invisible network of secret police threatened with arrest imprisonment & forced labour confronted by an economic system that left shops empty & bombarded with ludicrous state propaganda
- turned joke-telling into an art form. They used jokes as a coded way of speaking the truth. HAMMER & TICKLE takes us on a unique journey through the Communist era (1917-1989) & tells its real history through subversive jokes & joke-tellers many of whom ended up in the gulags. It is also illustrated with a combination of rare & previously unpublished archive material political cartoons caricatures photographs & state-sponsored propaganda. Humorous culturally poignant & historically revealing this is the story of a political system that was (almost) laughed out of existence.

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Last year a box of never-seen-before photos of Hammer Films productions was archived by Hammer expert Wayne Kinsey for the British Film Institute. Kinsey & the BFI were so impressed by the collection that it was agreed the best should be published. Through these rare & mostly previously unseen images this book tells the visual story of Hammers output. You will be guided through this wonderful collection of photos by Kinsy himself the celebrated author of Hammer Films: The Elstree Studios Years" & " Hammer Films: The Bray Studios Years". The book explores the wider & fascinating side of one of the British film industrys greatest success stories showing once & for all that Hammer was not just a purveyor of cheap horror pictures. In fact they made films in a number of different genres such as war thrillers gritty dramas comedies & colourful swashbuckling adventures. Some of these were among their best films; 1959 is a case in point which included such classics as " Never Take Sweets from a Stranger" " Hell is a City" & " Yesterdays Enemy" the latter of which earned Hammer BAFTA nominations for best picture best actor & best supporting actor. Hammers films also benefited from an expert team of actors & technicians including big names that on first glance would never have thought to be associated with Hammer including Robert Aldrich Ken Adam Joe Losey Bette Davis Tallulah Bankhead Donald Sutherland Joan Fontaine Richard Widmark Ursula Andress & Raquel Welch. This is a limited edition hardcover book that is destined to become a highly sought-after collectors item." ...

Over fifty years ago with the release of The Curse of Frankenstein" & Christopher Lees iconic performance in " Dracula" Hammer ushered in a whole new era of blood & barely-restrained cleavage in glorious colour mixing sex & horror with a style & panache that made the small British company world famous. Bursting at the seams with rare & previously unpublished photographs from Hammers archive & private collections worldwide & featuring many new interviews " Hammer Glamour" is a lavish full colour celebration of Hammers female stars including Ingrid Pitt Martine Beswick Caroline Munro Barbara Shelley Joanna Lumley Nastassja Kinski & of course Raquel Welch (who can forget her fur bikini in " One Million Years B. C."?)." ...

This is the question that troubles hotshot young FBI agent Judy Maddox in Ken Follet's hold-your-breath new thriller. Judy's boss has a grudge against her so he gives her a dumb assignment: to investigate an anonymous threat from a group that claims that it can trigger earthquakes. Judy's research leads her to maverick seismologist Michael Quercus who tells her it is possible for an earthquake to be caused deliberately. & when a tremor in a remote desert area shows signs of being machine-generated Judy knows he was right. But who is responsible for the earthquake? Judy must find out before another tremor strikes. Helped by the erratic but attractive Michael she races to pinpoint the terrorists' next target before they trigger the ultimate disaster. With The Hammer of Eden Ken Follett is at the top of his form delivering a state-of-the-art suspense thriller to rival his best work. ' Crackles with suspense.' Daily Telegraph ' So exciting I found myself setting the alarm clock for four in the morning to finish it.' Daily Mail ...

In Ethrea Rhian sits upon a precarious throne. Defiant noblemen who wont accept her rule threaten the stability of her kingdom Zandakar a man she thought was her friend has been revealed as the son of a woman sworn to destroy her & her husband King Alasdair is increasingly unsure of her love. Rhians most grave problem however lay outside the borders of her realm. The trading nations refuse to believe Mijak is a threat & promise reprisals if she dares to protect her realm. If she cannot unite the warring factions within her land a move again Mijak might prove the end of her reign. Which is exactly what the empress of Mijak has planned... ...

Fifty years ago Hammer Films released their very first horror movie The Quatermass Xperiment. The now-legendary British company went on to make such classics as The Curse of Frankenstein & Dracula (and their many sequels) making international stars out of Peter Cushing & Christopher Lee changing the face of horror cinema & inspiring a generation of Hollywood filmmakers including the likes of George Lucas Martin Scorsese & Tim Burton. Now for the first time Hammer have given their active backing to an authorised history of the company & have provided unlimited access to their archives. The Hammer Story provides a film-by-film dissection dripping with rare promotional material & previously unpublished photographs. ...

This remarkable journey through the Hammer vault

Includes:: props annotated script pages unused poster artwork

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Long trusted as the most comprehensive up-to-date & user-friendly grammar available HAMMER'S GERMAN GRAMMAR & USAGE provides you with a complete guide to German as it is written & spoken today. This new edition
Includes:: -concise descriptions of the main grammatical phenomena of German & their use -examples of grammar taken from contemporary German helping you to understand the underlying grammatical principles more quickly -invaluable guidance on pronuciation & the German accent -discussion of new words from English roots such as 'zertweeten' ('to tweet') helping you to communicate in German as used by Germans today -clarification on the spelling reform & current spellings of German thus increasing your confidence while writing & reading in German. Praised for its clear layout & lucid explanations this new edition distinguishes the most common forms of usage both formal & informal & offers you a combination of reference grammar & manual of current usage that you will find invaluable whether a student or a teacher at intermediate or advanced level.
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Mark Ward enjoyed all the trappings of success as one of the most popular & highly-rated right wingers in football. ' Wardy' proved an overnight sensation at Oldham & continued to be a star at West Han Man City & Everton before inspiring Birmingham City to Wembley glory. But when his career on the pitch ended his life swiftly unravelled. After failed business ventures & the collapse of his marriage to his childhood sweetheart he ended up unemployed
- & desperate. Ward put his name to a rental agreement on a house near Liverpool that was used by others to stash drugs. When the police raided they found a drugs factory. He pleaded guilty to dealing & was sent to Liverpool's notorious Walton Prison. His life would never be the same. During the years he spent inside he has been able to reflect on an extraordianry playing career & an equally eventful life off the picth. He recounts in heart-wrenching detail his highs & lows & tells it like it is with honesty that epitomised his playing career.
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Thor the Norse god of thunder is worse than a blowhard & a bully
- he's ruined countless lives & killed scores of innocents. After
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