Britains stately homes & grand houses are among its greatest treasures & The Most Amazing Stately Homes in Britain brings you the grandest most magnificent eccentric & unusual of them all. This wonderfully illustrated regional touring guide describes each house & tells its story following the ebb & flow of fortune & fame. Every house has something that sets it apart from the rest: the magnificent four-storey Tudor tower (set in world famous gardens) of Sissinghurst in Kent; sumptuous painted cloth wallhangings of romantic Owlpen Manor in Gloucestershire; superb topiary at Levens Hall in Cumbria; sinister myths of Blickling Hall in Norfolk & the enchanting Great Garden of Edzell Castle in Scotland created in 1604 to stimulate the mind & the senses. Discover ancient deer parks; exquisite collections of furniture national treasures & breathtaking views to enjoy season-byseason & year-round. The cover features Chatsworth in Derbyshire one of Britains most famous historic houses & the fastest-growing paid-for visitor attraction in 2010* with more than 716 000 visitors. In May 2012 Chatsworth featured in a popular threepart BBC1 documentary covering a year behind the scenes of the house & estate. ...

All that is needed to create amazing artwork
- just using thumbs! Thumb Doodles is packed with inspiration tips & ideas for crating
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The elegance of Tuscanys grand cities is found on a more intimate scale in its numerous small towns & villages the most charming of which are celebrated in this revised compact edition of the bestselling book. Thirty-six villages from all over Tuscany feature here from those clustered around the great cities of Lucca & Florence which produce some of the finest olive oil & are home to some of the world's greatest works of art to the Chianti region & the valley of the Orcia devoted to the cultivation of aromatic herbs. The vivid highly descriptive accounts of each village are accompanied by page after page of marvellous colour photographs. Beautifully composed photographs graceful knowledgeable text". (" Country Living"). " Breathtaking photographs the riches & variety of Tuscany are laid out for all to see a well balanced well presented & well written exploration of one of Italys most beautiful regions". (" Contemporary Review")." ...

The most irresistibly witty & revealing tour of Paris in years... In this enchanting memoir acclaimed author & Paris resident John Baxter recounts his year-long experience of giving literary walking tours" through the city. Baxter sets off on the trail of Pariss legendary artists & writers. Along the way he tells the citys history through a brilliant cast of characters: the favourite cafes of Ernest Hemingway F. Scott Fitzgerald & James Joyce; Pablo Picassos underground Montmartre haunts; the bustling boulevards of the late-19th century flaneurs; the secluded " Little Luxembourg" gardens beloved by Gertrude Stein; the alleys where revolutionaries plotted; & finally Baxters own favourite walk near his home in Saint-Germain-des-Pres. Paris by custom & design is a pedestrians city
- each block a revelation every neighbourhood a new feast for the senses a place rich with history & romance at every turn. The Most Beautiful Walk in the World is your guide par excellence to the true off-the-beaten-track heart of the City of Lights."
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Stephen Bungays magisterial history is acclaimed as the account of the Battle of Britain. Unrivalled for its synthesis of all previous historical accounts for the quality of its strategic analysis & its truly compulsive narrative this is a book ultimately distinguished by its conclusions
- that it was the British in the Battle who displayed all the virtues of efficiency organisation & even ruthlessness we habitually attribute to the Germans & they who fell short in their amateurism ill-preparedness poor engineering & even in their old-fashioned notions of gallantry. An engrossing read for the military scholar & the general reader alike this is a classic of military history that looks beyond the mythology to explore all the tragedy & comedy; the brutality & compassion of war.
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The Most Scenic Drives in America is a comprehensive guide to the 120 most colourful iconic & awe-inspiring byways of the United States & Canada. Written & produced in North America it gives you the insider's view of the best trips around the continent from Hawaii to Nova Scotia. With over 750 colour photographs up-to-date & user-friendly maps of every route hundreds of little-known facts about each region & features highlighting special events foods local customs festivals & more this is the one book you will need to steer you on your next fly-drive holiday. Each drive

Includes:: information on mileage the best season to travel nearby attractions & the organisations & websites to contact for more details
- all reviewed by the relevant tourist offices National Park Services & travel experts across the US & Canada. If you have ever fancied driving the Icefields Parkway in Alberta seeing the 'fall' colours in New England or heading for Yosemite you will find all these & much more here to whet your appetite.


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Orford Ness was for most of the twentieth century a military research station so secret that nobody knew what went on there & so remote that even now most people have never heard of it. Yet the contribution of its scientists service & civilian to the winning of the First World War the Second World War & the Cold War places them on a par with the codebreakers of Bletchley Park. At this highly atmospheric & often inhospitable location on the Suffolk coast the Royal Flying Corps (later RAF) conducted crucial experiments & trials some brilliant others futile on effective gunnery accurate bombing & enhanced navigational aids. It was the venue for Watson Watt's early work on radar & for Barnes Wallis' enhanced Tallboy bomb. From 1953 the Atomic Weapons Research Establishment used it as the testing range for British nuclear bombs. In 1967 the world's most powerful radar station COBRA MIST was constructed for the US Department of Defense. Why it was closed down is just one of many Orford Ness mysteries. Owned by the National Trust since 1993 Orford Ness is a National Nature Reserve of international significance. But its military history has proved no less important & its secrets highly intriguing. This book tells an incredible tale of ingenious talented & brave men
- & women
- who operated with typically British patience & resourcefulness in often highly uncomfortable & on occasions fatal circumstances.

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From a young age Andy Cohen knew one thing: He loved television. Not in the way that most kids do but in an irrepressible all-consuming I-want-to-climb-inside-the-tube kind of way. & climb inside he did. Now presiding over Bravo's reality TV Empire he started out as an overly talkative pop culture obsessive devoted to Charlie's Angels & All My Children & to his mother who received daily letters from Andy at summer camp usually reminding her to tape the soaps. In retrospect it's hard to believe that everyone didn't know that Andy was gay; still he remained in the closet until college. Finally out he embarked on making a career out of his passion for television. The journey begins with Andy interviewing his all-time idol Susan Lucci for his college newspaper & ends with him in a job where he has a hand in creating today's celebrity icons. In the witty no-holds-barred style of his show Watch What Happens Live Andy tells tales of absurd mishaps during his ten years at CBS News hilarious encounters with the heroes & heroines of his youth & the real stories behind The Real Housewives. Dishy funny & full of heart Most Talkative provides a one-of-a-kind glimpse into the world of television from a fan who grew up watching the screen & is now inside it both making shows & hosting his own. ...

A half-starved young Russian man in a long black overcoat is smuggled into Hamburg at dead of night. He has an improbable amount of cash secreted in a purse round his neck. He is a devout Muslim. Or is he? He says his name is Issa. Annabel an idealistic young German civil rights lawyer determines to save Issa from deportation. Soon her client's survival becomes more important to her than her own career. In pursuit of Issa's mysterious past she confronts the incongruous Tommy Brue the sixty-year-old scion of Brue Fr?res a failing British bank based in Hamburg. A triangle of impossible loves is born. Meanwhile scenting a sure kill in the so-called War on Terror the spies of three nations converge upon the innocents. Poignant compassionate peopled with characters the reader never wants to let go A MOST WANTED MAN is alive with humour yet prickles with tension until the last heart-stopping page. It is also a work of deep humanity & uncommon relevance to our times. ...

Thirty years of celebrating the comic genius of Douglas Adams... Arthur Dent hadnt had a day as bad as this since the Earth had been blown up. Depressed & alone Arthur finally settles on the small planet Lamuella & becomes a sandwich maker. Looking forward to a quiet life his plans are thrown awry by the unexpected arrival of his daughter. Theres nothing worse than a frustrated teenager with a copy of the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy in their hands. When she runs away -- Arthur goes after her determined to save her from the horrors of the universe. After all -- hes encountered most of them before...VOLUME FIVE IN THE TRILOGY OF FIVE ...