Showing titles in Entertainment & Performing Arts

Author Lynn delves into Chaplin's childhood and family, his often controversial relationships with four wives and a slew of mistresses, and his associations with British music-hall impresario Fred Karno and silent-screen star and pal Douglas Fairbanks. He addresses Chaplin's political influences and convictions, and brings a keen, critical intelligence to the meaning of the films, illuminating Chaplin's elusive genius.

The Upright Citizens Brigade Comedy Improvisation Manual is a comprehensive guide to the UCB style of long form comedy improvisation. Written by UCB founding members Matt Besser, Ian Roberts, and Matt Walsh, the manual covers everything from the basics of two person scene work (with a heavy emphasis on finding "the game" of the scene), to the complexities of working within an ensemble to perform long form structures, such as "The Harold" and "The Movie".

Camp has been an inescapable part of popular culture for at least the last 150 years. Famously unrestrained and ever evolving, it has not only captured the cultural imagination, but also played an important role as a form of protest and resistance. Paul Baker takes us through camp's rebellious and revolutionary past with warmth, humour and sensitivity, starting with the court of Louis XIV and the dandies of the eighteenth century through to Showgirls, Harlem's drag balls and Columbian telenovelas.

For decades, an old Providence church has stood empty, silently looming in the city's skyline. As a young writer looks into the history of the abandoned church - and the cult that once resided there - an ancient horror stirs. Will he be able finally to solve a mystery shrouded in darkness, or has he merely paved the way to become its next victim?

The Graham Norton Book Club is back. We’re still all about the stories – reading them, writing then, listening to them, talking about them - and in our new series we’re featuring some of the world’s best storytellers including Margaret Atwood, Matt Haig, Walter Mosley, Lisa Taddeo and Val McDermid.

In each episode of this award-winning BBC Radio 4 series, comedian Mark Steel visits a UK town and researches its history, heritage and culture, after which he performs a bespoke evening of comedy for the local residents. Mark's destinations in series 7 and 8 are: Stockport, Colchester, Hebden Bridge, Kingston upon Thames, Lynton and Lynmouth, Gibraltar, Bedford, Matlock and Matlock Bath, Inverness, Portishead, Hull and Ventnor on the Isle of Wight.

Jon Richardson’s new audiobook Nidiot takes the star of '8 Out Of Ten Cats’ and ‘Live at the Apollo’ to new levels of frustration. Recorded live in front of a sold out audience at the legendary Hammersmith Apollo we find that becoming happy hasn’t necessarily ruined his life.

In How Star Wars Conquered the Universe, veteran journalist Chris Taylor traces the series from the difficult birth of the original film through its sequels, the franchise’s death and rebirth, the prequels, and the preparations for a new trilogy. Taylor provides portraits of the friends, writers, artists, producers, and marketers who labored behind the scenes to turn Lucas’s idea into a legend.

Following the huge success of his sell-out 100-date UK stand-up tour, Dara O'Briain Live at the Theatre Royal marks the explosive finale to the run. Recorded in front of 2500 fans at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane, this show has Dara at the very top of his game, musing on subjects as diverse as driving tests, baguettes, and the Milky Bar Kid.

After almost sixty years as an actor, William Shatner has become one of the most beloved entertainers in the world. And it seems as if Shatner is everywhere. In Up Till Now, Shatner sits down with listeners and offers the remarkable, full story of his life and explains how he got to be, well, everywhere. In this touching and very funny autobiography, William Shatner's Up Till Now reveals the man behind these unforgettable moments, and how he's become the worldwide star and experienced actor he is today.

The Big Bang Theory is a television phenomenon. To the casual viewer, it’s a seemingly effortless comedy, with relatable characters tackling real-life issues, offering a kind of visual comfort food to its millions of dedicated fans. But the behind-the-scenes journey of the show from a failed pilot to a global sensation is a fascinating story that even the most die-hard fans don’t know in its entirety. The Big Bang Theory:The Definitive, Inside Story of the Epic Hit Series is a riveting, entertaining look at the sitcom sensation.

For years now, Fern Britton has been widely loved as the presenter of Ready Steady Cook, and, more recently, co-presenter of This Morning with Philip Schofield. Never one to shy away from a good laugh or cry on national TV, she has none-the-less never talked about herself to the public, preferring to keep her private life private. Her warmth and humour, empathy and compassion, have made her feel like a best friend to millions on a daily basis, but no one knows the woman behind the sparkling smile.

Maria Bamford is a creative genius. But the process of creating is not something that “comes easily” or “is enjoyable” for her. So, over the years, she’s invented a number of helpful techniques for tricking, shaming, coercing herself into doing things. You Are (A Comedy) Special is 15-step comedic send up of a self help guide that examines Maria’s approach to stand-up in a hilarious fashion.

On a dark, frozen planet where no planet should be, in a doomed city with a sky of stone, the last denizens of Earth's long-lost twin will pay any price to survive, even if the laser scalpels cost them their love and hate and humanity. And in the mat-infested streets, around teatime, the Doctor and Nyssa unearth a black market in secondhand body parts and run the gauntlet of augmented police and their augmented horses.

Spike Milligan, Harry Secombe and Peter Sellers star in 10 rare episodes of The Goon Show, plus a plethora of bonus features.

This revised and updated edition is a complete resource for anyone who wants to write and produce a television drama series or create an original series, as well as for teachers in screenwriting classes and workshops. It leads listeners step-by-step through each stage of the development and writing process, offering practical industry information and artistic inspiration. This edition also takes listeners into the future, engaging provocative issues about the interface between traditional TV and emerging technologies.

Susan Calman has some very strong opinions, and in her radio debut she expresses them with her trademark wit and charm. In series 1, she examines the current hot political topic of equal marriage, looks at the issues surrounding the death penalty from the perspective gained whilst working on death row, considers how best to deal with depression and evaluates what it means to be Scottish. In series 2 she explains why she has never been interested in having children, explores society’s obsession with appearance, discusses intellectual snobbery and asks what it is that makes us human.

The creator of Deadwood and NYPD Blue reflects on his tumultuous life, driven by a nearly insatiable creative energy and a matching penchant for self-destruction. Like Milch's best screenwriting, Life's Work explores how chance encounters, self-deception and luck shape the people we become, and wrestles with what it means to have felt and caused pain, even and especially with those we love, and how you keep living.

We dedicate this tome to Mahmoud, surgeon, prophet, model and friend, whose long hands guided us, whose cinnamon whispers soothed us, whose hot nose nudged us until this book was finally birthed, proud and powerful. Much like the man himself. This golden man is not simply an outstanding surgeon, capable of performing up to 30 hysterectomies a day (often blindfolded), but is, in his own right, a visionary, a soothsayer, a chosen one.

Having stormed shows such as Have I Got News for You (BBC1), Live At The Apollo (BBC1), Michael McIntyre’s Comedy Road Show (BBC1) and now as the new host of Channel 4’s Stand Up for the Week and team captain on 8 out of 10 Cats, the brilliantly funny Jon Richardson is the UK’s rising comedy star to watch out for! Discussing the everyday items that have a profound effect on his outlook, Funny Magnet is Jon’s new hilarious sell-out show that will be touring the UK in 2012.