Books

The Elgin Marbles on display at The British Museum (Image: Getty) Have I Got News For You stalwart Ian Hislop may be a national treasure in the UK for his sardonic sideswipes at power, but in Greece it is his wife Victoria who is the star. And if the best-selling …

Journalists packed into Douglas DC-3 bound for Rhodesia (Image: Fincher//Popperfoto) The threat of violence was everywhere, betrayal was an ever-present danger, but forbidden love was a risk that journalist James MacManus was prepared to take. Half a century later, the thrill of his African adventure has rekindled treasured memories for …

Laura’s father’s bucket list (Image: Adrian Bacolo) “I was terrified,” says Laura, who threw up as the ground hurtled towards her while skydiving. “Surfing the Pacific was also really scary; I must have wiped out 20 times, as was sailing alone: I capsized.” Laura was 25 years old when her …

Osman never thought he would become one of the world’s best-selling authors (Image: Getty) Steven Spielberg has optioned his book series for the big screen, but if Osman is starstruck by this turn of events, he isn’t showing it. The 52-year-old creator of quizzes and former co-host of BBC’s Pointless …

Peggy, the hedgehog (Image: ) It was my toddler grandson Billy who first spotted the hedgehog in the autumn of 2021, caught in a net we used to clear debris from our pond. We tried to shake it free but it gave only the slightest tremor. My husband, Kim, is …

After breaking Netflix records, hitting No 1 in 84 countries around the world, the One Piece live-action adaptation is getting a second series. Eiichiro Oda, author of the manga the show is based on, announced the news in a special video with his face covered by a fish drawing as …

Earlier this year Young Bond novel writer Charlier Higson published his first official adult 007 adventure. Set during King Charles III’s Coronation, On His Majesty’s Secret Service follows a James Bond who disapproves of anti-immigration talk and drinks kombucha. Recently the author has been engaging on social media with 007 …

Clive Myrie in Kyiv dodging Russian missile strikes (Image: BBC) It was TV presenter Alan Whicker who first inspired Clive Myrie to pursue a career in broadcasting. Growing up in Lancashire in the 1970s, his imagination was sparked by the long-running documentary series Whicker’s World. “Whicker would travel the globe …

Hampton Court, though no longer used as a royal residence, has seen centuries of regal drama (Image: Getty) Growing up at Hampton Court, young Prince George was utterly miserable. When his father died, he had become the charge of his grandfather, George II – a man of moderate intelligence, minimal …

Hollywood’s take on a megalodon on The Meg, (Image: ) Imagine an enormous shark weighing twice as much as a humpback whale. This giant predator is making its way through coastal waters off Africa: its body moving as if to the rhythm of a beating drum, its scythe-like fin, taller …